The Dodgers are keeping another of their potential free agents, announcing agreement on an extension with reliever Daniel Hudson. Los Angeles will reportedly exercise their $6.5MM option on his services for next season, and the sides have agreed to tack on a 2024 team option with a $6.5MM base value that can max out at $7.3MM, based on his number of appearances next season, MLBTR has learned. Hudson is a Wasserman client.
Hudson returns for a second consecutive season in L.A. (third overall) after signing a one-year guarantee last winter. That deal paid the veteran a $6MM salary for this season and came with a $6.5MM option or a $1MM buyout for next year. That left the Dodgers with a $5.5MM decision based on Hudson’s performance this year. The 35-year-old looked well on his way to making that an easy call, dominating opposing hitters for the first two and a half months.
Over 25 appearances, Hudson tallied 24 1/3 innings of 2.22 ERA ball. His peripherals were similarly dominant. He fanned 30.9% of opposing hitters and generated swinging strikes on a whopping 16.3% of his total offerings. Hudson’s average fastball checked in north of 97 MPH, and his high-80s slider was an excellent putaway offering. Hudson also induced ground-balls at a fantastic 53.4% clip and rarely dished out free passes.
By virtually any measure, the right-hander was one of the more dominant late-game arms around. He picked up nine holds and carved out a key high-leverage role for skipper Dave Roberts, positioning himself among the most important bullpen pieces on the club. Unfortunately, Hudson’s stellar year was cut short in late June, when he tore the ACL in his left knee while trying to get off the mound to field a weakly-hit grounder.
Hudson underwent season-ending surgery, at least raising the possibility of the Dodgers letting him go if they were pessimistic about his recovery outlook. Los Angeles has frequently embraced high risk-reward plays (particularly on shorter-term deals), though, and they’ll take a shot on Hudson regaining his form for next season. In exchange for that bet, they’ll add a 2024 option that’d look like a bargain if he pitches anywhere near the level he had been over the first few months for a full season.
The Dodgers have taken similar courses of action with both Blake Treinen and Max Muncy. In each case, Los Angeles agreed to preemptively trigger a 2023 option in exchange for tacking on a similarly-priced club option for the ’24 campaign. Treinen, like Hudson, was on the injured list at the time of his deal. Muncy was on the active roster but struggling from a performance perspective, seemingly battling ill effects of last season’s elbow injury. Treinen has continued to deal with shoulder issues in the few months since signing his extension, while Muncy has played well over the few weeks since inking his new deal.
Los Angeles is surely hopeful both Treinen and Hudson will be back at full strength by the start of 2023. If healthy, they’d join Brusdar Graterol, waiver claim turned breakout Evan Phillips, Alex Vesia and Yency Almonte as candidates for mid-late inning work next season. The Dodgers will see Craig Kimbrel hit free agency after an up-and-down year, and deadline acquisition Chris Martin is headed to the open market as well. The team holds a $1.1MM option on Jimmy Nelson, who’s still rehabbing from last August’s Tommy John surgery.
It’s a talented group, although the Dodgers are sure to bring in a veteran or two from outside the organization this winter. Between the health uncertainty surrounding Treinen, Hudson and Nelson and the spotty pre-2022 track records for Phillips and Almonte, there’s room on the roster for additional veteran stability. There’s also plenty of payroll flexibility, as Hudson’s deal only brings the club shy of $98MM in guaranteed player commitments for next season, according to Roster Resource. The club’s estimated competitive balance tax ledger now sits just above $112MM.
The Dodgers have shattered the CBT threshold for two straight seasons, and they’re set to pay around $29.4MM in overage fees after this season. Next year’s base tax threshold will be set at $233MM, giving the Dodgers plenty of flexibility before even reaching the lowest tier. They’re facing another robust crop of impending free agents, with Trea Turner, Clayton Kershaw, Tyler Anderson, Justin Turner, Andrew Heaney and Kimbrel among those ticketed for the open market.
Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the Dodgers were exercising Hudson’s option, and that the sides had added a 2024 club option in the $6.5MM range.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Great guy, signed me a ball in ST this year. Nasty stuff and I hope he succeeds again next year!
tstats, I do love the SXSW homage with your profile pic…I gotta ask though, what is ST the handle for?? Haha I was no good in geography granted, but for the life of me I can’t place ST haha. I keep thinking St. Thomas Virgin Islands..
@Trumbo….I’m no cryptologist, but I think it stands for Sprain Tringing.
paddyO I appreciate that hahaha That just might be it…It was driving me nuts. You should have seen the answers google and siri were spitting out…
The username stems from my obsession for statistics lol, and the image is a friend doing a photo shop and I adopted it as my pfp because I tend to be very critical of dave roberts
Isn’t the image from NXNW?
gbs, good spot. I don’t know what I was thinking.
I assumed you enjoyed Austin music festivals.
Yeah I must have had that in the back of my head somewhere…Glad I didn’t mistake it for Burning Man at least..
That’s great and all, but let’s whip that checkbook out for Trea…
Trea is going to stay a Dodger.
I almost think if Atlanta doesn’t resign Dansby Swanson that the Dodgers maybe his suitor. Very good friends with Freeman. Brings great defense and a great bat.
If Trea moves to Antarctica and retires perhaps. As long as he is an MLB player next year it will be with the Dodgers.
Interesting. The team released very little detail on the extent of the injury or whether it required surgical correction. Maybe he avoided it.
MLB guys have access to the best Doctors in the world. Experimental therapies/procedures etc…The very best. Nothing suprises me anymore.
Mandela Effect: Could have sworn they repaired his ACL a couple weeks after the injury.
Halloffamenobodycares, somebody better start digging into the MLBTR archives…Before it becomes another Berenstein VS Berenstain Bears fiasco…
I don’t think you’re imagining it. I found one reference to surgery, but only in passing and not sourced. I find nothing official from the team on what kind of treatment he received. Usually when a player goes under the knife something is reported.
What’s there to know? He tore his ACL in a freak injury and had surgery. Will be back next season. It’s not an arm or elbow surgery so there isn’t anything to monitor.
What’s there ever to know? ACL injuries come in degrees. Some call for a surgical procedure and others don’t, and recovery from an ACL replacement can be complicated.
Didn’t see Hanser’s name in the free agent list..
I can’t tell ya where but hander is gonna be a damn good third base coach in the future. I’ve got that feeling
Hahaha I think so too…I actually saw him waiving in a runner the other night like a mad man….High Speed windmill wave with his arm and everything…Little bundle of energy that guy.
Paying the same salary to a 36 year old coming off surgery as you did when he was a year younger and healthy, doesnt seem like that smart a signing.
Unless you are Verlander
“Wins are a good way of evaluating pitchers and player opt-out clauses benefit teams!” XD XD XD
I saw Verlander throw against the Angels in summer of 2012. Most dominant pitcher and hardest thrower I ever saw. Looked absolutely untouchable.
$6.5 million for a reliever seems a lot smarter than what some RP’s sign for. Plus it’s 1 year with a team option. It’s not a long term deal with albatross potential.
Chump change for the Dodgers
Classy move by the hated Dodgers
Haters gonna hate………
Extending this bum is as stupid as buying your Halloween candy now and thinking it’s going to last until Halloween.
Man, losing Hudson, Treinen, and Graterol for an extended amount of time. Kimbrel has been terrible, and yet they still are getting it done.