Dodgers Rumors

Roberts: Daniel Hudson Will Be In Dodgers’ Bullpen

By Darragh McDonald | March 6, 2024 at 5:45pm CDT

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told members of the media, including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times and Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, that reliever Daniel Hudson will be in the club’s bullpen. Hudson is in camp on a minor league deal and has a March 15 opt-out but Roberts says there’s no “hard date” for adding him to the roster. The club will need to make a corresponding 40-man roster move whenever Hudson is added.

Hudson, who turns 37 on Saturday, signed with the Dodgers going into 2022. He and the club agreed to a one-year, $7MM deal with a club option for 2023. He was excellent for the first few months, posting a 2.22 earned run average over 25 relief appearances. He struck out 30.9% of batters faced, only gave out walks at a 5.2% clip and kept 53.4% of balls in play on the ground.

Unfortunately, he tore the ACL in his left knee in June of that year, prematurely ending his season. The Dodgers had enough faith in him that they agreed to an extension in September of that year, effectively triggering the 2023 option early and adding another option for 2024. But in the winter heading into 2023, he developed ankle tendinitis as well as patellar tendinitis in the knee. He was on the injured list until June and then made just three appearances before suffering a sprained MCL in his right knee, ending his season early yet again.

The club turned down their option on Hudson’s services for 2024 but brought him back via a minors pact, which comes with a $2MM base salary and $2MM worth of incentives. He’s been healthy enough to make four appearances already this spring and it seems the club plans to put him back on the roster at some point. The Dodgers are set to be a third-time payor of the competitive balance tax this year and are well beyond the fourth and final line of the tax. That means they are facing a 110% tax rate on any additional spending so they will effectively be paying $4.2MM to add Hudson’s salary onto their books.

Hudson is an Article XX(B) free agent, which is a player with at least six years of service time who finished the previous season on a major league roster or injured list. Under the current collective bargaining agreement, any such player who signs a minor league deal more than 10 days prior to Opening Day can opt out of that deal at three points if they haven’t been added to the 40-man roster: five days before Opening Day, May 1 and June 1.

Most clubs open this season on March 28 but the Dodgers start early when they play the Padres in the Seoul Series March 20. It’s unclear whether Hudson’s March 15 opt-out is the “five days before Opening Day” opt-out that he is guaranteed or if it was a contractual stipulation and he will have another chance on March 23, five days before the wider Opening Day. Regardless, he will have two other opt-out chances and it seems as though he and the Dodgers have a good relationship anyway. With Roberts’ suggestion that there’s no “hard date,” perhaps Hudson and the club have some kind of understanding whereby he won’t feel compelled to trigger his early opt-out.

Adding Hudson will make the Dodger bullpen a bit crowded to start the year. Closer Evan Phillips is out of options while veterans like Hudson, Joe Kelly, Ryan Brasier, Blake Treinen and Ryan Yarbrough can’t be optioned by virtue of having more than five years of service time. That group would account for six of the eight bullpen slots. Brusdar Graterol has options but would certainly have a spot with the big league club after posting a 1.20 ERA last year while racking up seven saves and 19 holds. Yarbrough is the only southpaw in that group and he’s a long relief guy, so the Dodgers will probably want a spot for Alex Vesia for when they need a situational lefty.

Unless Yarbrough winds up in the rotation or someone goes on the injured list, it’s possible that someone like J.P. Feyereisen gets squeezed out and optioned to the minors. The Dodgers acquired him from the Rays prior to 2023, knowing that he had undergone shoulder surgery and was facing a significant absence. He didn’t pitch at all last year but has a 2.31 ERA in his 89 2/3 innings pitched in his career.

Dodgers Acquire Andre Lipcius From Tigers

By Darragh McDonald | March 4, 2024 at 1:05pm CDT

The Tigers have traded infielder Andre Lipcius to the Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations. He had been designated for assignment by Detroit last week. The Dodgers opened up a roster spot for him by transferring left-hander Clayton Kershaw to the 60-day injured list.

Lipcius, 26 in May, will join a new organization for the first time in his career. He was selected by the Tigers in the third round of the 2019 draft and was added to their 40-man roster in November of 2022. His major league experience thus far consists of 38 plate appearances over 13 games with the Tigers last year, hitting .286/.342/.400 in that time.

During his time in the minors, he has primarily profiled as a hit-over-power utility guy. Over the past three years, he has made 1487 minor league plate appearances at various levels, walking in 13% of them while limiting his strikeouts to a 17.9% clip. He hit 36 home runs in that time and slashed a combined .264/.360/.419 for a wRC+ of 110. He hasn’t played shortstop since 2019 but has continued to play the other three infield positions, as well as getting brief looks in the outfield corners.

The Tigers bumped Lipcius off their 40-man last week when they claimed another utility infielder, Buddy Kennedy. The Dodgers had a roster spot to burn as Kershaw had shoulder surgery in the offseason and isn’t expected back until the second half of the season. They sent a bit of cash to Detroit so that they could jump the waiver claim order and add Lipcius to their roster.

Lipcius still has a couple of options and will likely be serving as a depth piece in the minors to be called upon as needed. The Dodgers have Max Muncy, Gavin Lux, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman set to be their regular infielders, with Miguel Rojas, Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernández on hand as bench options. Lipcius will join Miguel Vargas and Andy Pages as optionable depth pieces on the roster.

Dodgers Notes: Paxton, Muncy, Cartaya, Frasso

By Mark Polishuk | March 3, 2024 at 1:59pm CDT

James Paxton threw 96 innings with the Red Sox last season, marking his return to somewhat regular action after injuries limited him to 21 2/3 big league frames in 2020-21 and no innings at all in 2022. Paxton’s comeback year was then basically two seasons in one — the excellent 2.76 ERA he posted over his first 56 innings, followed by an ugly 6.98 ERA in his final 40 innings of work.

As Paxton tells Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times, “I felt like I kind of reached a point where my body was just a little burned out. I didn’t have much left in the tank.” Paxton kept pushing since the Red Sox were still on the fringes of the playoff race, and struggled in particular once he was moved to a regular turn of four days’ rest between starts.

“Early in the season, I had a lot of extra rest, and then we went to a shorter leash. Coming off a surgery and that much time off, I wasn’t conditioned for that,” Paxton said. “If you start off going [every five days] your body gets accustomed to that, whereas if you go six all the time, that’s what your body gets accustomed to. We’re creatures of habit.”

Despite the rough finish to his season, Paxton still landed $7MM from the Dodgers on a one-year free agent contract, even if that $7MM total dropped from an initial $11MM guarantee due to some concerns the team had about his overall health. The 35-year-old lefty is hopeful that getting some innings under his belt last season will better help him manage the length of the 2024 campaign, plus L.A. will deploy “somewhat of a six-man rotation,” according to assistant pitching coach Connor McGuinness. The idea is to keep all of the Dodgers’ hurlers fresh and healthy, plus some other reinforcements in Clayton Kershaw and Dustin May could join the pitching mix after the middle of the season.

Whereas Paxton’s 2023 season was basically divided in two, Max Muncy’s year was a bit more of a roller-coaster before he finished a pretty typical year of production. The infielder hit .212/.333/.475 over 579 plate appearances while matching his career high of 36 home runs, translating to a 118 wRC+. Los Angeles was impressed enough to sign Muncy to a new contract extension, guaranteeing him $24MM through 2025 while also tacking a $10MM club option on his services for 2026.

Muncy’s recipe of homers, walks, low averages, and high strikeouts is pretty set, but as he enters his age-33 season, Muncy feels he has more to offer as a defensive player. He told reporters (including Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register) that his offseason regiment included cutting 15 pounds and focusing more on flexibility training.

“It was just making sure my feet move a little bit more, and getting the knees healthy. Last year, I had a little trouble with just not staying down on the ball,” Muncy said. “I was coming up out of my fielding stance and everything. And when you’re doing that, it’s hard to read the hops and I kept putting myself in bad positions last year with bad hops….So the focus was just making sure that my feet stay moving. Just allowing myself to read the ball and make moves on it.”

There’s basically nowhere to go but up for Muncy defensively, as the public defensive metrics (-7 Outs Above Average, -3 Defensive Runs Saved, -14.8 UZR/150) were unanimously unimpressed with his third base glovework in 2023. The move to more or less a full-time third base role has come as the Dodgers have brought superstar talent into Muncy’s other positions — Shohei Ohtani is now locked in at DH, Freddie Freeman at first base, and Mookie Betts is now moving into everyday second base duty.

“I’ve been very open about how I want to stay here for the rest of my career….So if I want to play here, I need to make sure I’m in the field, and the best way to do that is just put myself in a good spot,” Muncy said.

In other Dodgers news, GM Brandon Gomes told Plunkett and other reporters that catching prospect Diego Cartaya has been dealing with a back problem but the “full expectation” is that Cartaya will be set for the start of the Double-A season. Back problems have bothered Cartaya in the past, and the last thing the catcher needs is an injury setback as he looks to bounce back from a difficult season. A top-20 prospect in the sport heading into the 2023 campaign, Cartaya hit only .189/.278/.379 over 403 PA at Double-A last season, dropping his stock as a potential catcher of the future.

Nick Frasso is another top-100 prospect looking at a lost year, as he was already expected to miss the 2024 season after undergoing shoulder surgery back in November. Gomes added that Frasso also had a “clean-up” surgery on his right hip labrum, though it doesn’t appear as though this second procedure will impact the right-hander’s timeline. If all goes well, Gomes thinks Frasso will be able to pitch in the Arizona Fall League.

Twins Acquire Manuel Margot

By Steve Adams | February 26, 2024 at 11:57pm CDT

The Twins announced the acquisition of veteran outfielder Manuel Margot, infield prospect Rayne Doncon and cash from the Dodgers in exchange for minor league shortstop Noah Miller. Los Angeles is reportedly covering $6MM of Margot’s $10MM salary for the upcoming season. The Dodgers originally received $4MM from the Rays when acquiring Margot alongside Tyler Glasnow earlier this winter; Tampa Bay also remains on the hook for a $2MM buyout on a $12MM club option for 2025.

The Twins placed right-hander Josh Winder on the 60-day injured list to open a roster spot for Margot, announcing that Winder has a scapular stress fracture. His exact timeline in unclear but he’ll be ineligible to rejoin the club until late May at the earliest.

Minnesota has been on the lookout for a right-handed-hitting outfielder who could cover all three spots for much of the offseason. They’d previously been tied to free agents like Adam Duvall and Enrique Hernandez, and they’d also maintained an interest in re-signing Michael A. Taylor, who belted 21 home runs as a Twin in 2023. However, it seems they’ve found a deal to their liking on the trade front, presumably ending those free agent pursuits.

In Margot, the Twins are acquiring that righty bat they’ve been seeking but are also buying low on a player who’s been hampered by knee troubles dating back to the 2022 season. Margot missed roughly half of the ’22 campaign with a significant strain of the patellar tendon in his right knee. He was limited to just 363 plate appearances and turned in a solid, if unspectacular .274/.325/.375 slash (101 wRC+). He followed that up with a .264/.310/.376 line in 336 plate appearances this past season.

Had Margot enjoyed a season of his typical defensive excellence in ’23, that offensive output would’ve made him an above-average all-around contributor. But in the wake of that knee injury, his once-elite defensive grades slipped closer to average. Statcast noted that Margot’s range and sprint speed both declined in 2023. Defensive Runs Saved pegged him at -3 on the season, while Statcast’s Outs Above Average credited him at +3. Either way, it’s a notable drop for a player who posted 13 DRS and 16 OAA as recently as 2021. The Twins, presumably, are confident that as Margot distances himself from that knee injury, he can rebound in the field — if not back to peak form than at least to a clearly above-average defender at all three spots.

In Minnesota, Margot will provide the Twins with some insurance in the event of another injury to rarely-healthy center fielder Byron Buxton. Beyond that, he’ll give the Twins a righty bat that can spell lefty-swingers Matt Wallner and Max Kepler in the corners. Margot is a career .281/.341/.420 hitter (109 wRC+) against left-handed pitching, so he’ll likely see his fair share of pinch-hitting opportunities for a Twins club that tends to play matchups throughout the game. Margot can also serve as a late-game defensive upgrade in left over Wallner or a late-game pinch runner. Even with a downturn in his sprint speed, he still ranked in the 75th percentile of MLB players last year, per Statcast.

The Twins will also pick up Doncon, a 20-year-old infielder who signed with the Dodgers for just under $500K as an international amateur during the 2021-22 signing period. FanGraphs ranked him 12th among Los Angeles prospects as recently as last season, touting potentially plus raw power and an above-average hit tool as his best tools. The Athletic’s Keith Law ranked him 19th among L.A. farmhands just last week.

Doncon has played shortstop, second base and third base in the Dodgers’ system and climbed as high as A-ball during 2023 — his age-19 season. He spent the entire year at that level and posted underwhelming numbers (.216/.283/.368) — but did so against much older competition. Scouting reports suggest he’ll have to move to either third base, second base or the outfield as he fills out his projectable 6’2″, 176-pound frame. Doncon possesses significant power potential but questions about his pitch recognition and eventual defensive home. He’s a couple years off from being a potential big league factor, but at this point he’s a more highly regarded prospect than Miller.

Doncon’s inclusion in the deal aligns with the Twins’ general M.O. in deals of this nature; Minnesota tends to push trade partners to include prospects of varying quality even when they’re the team acquiring the established player (e.g. Jose Salas in the Pablo Lopez trade, Gabriel Gonzalez in the Jorge Polanco deal, Ronny Henriquez in the Isiah Kiner-Falefa swap, Brayan Medina in the Chris Paddack trade, Francis Peguero in the Sonny Gray trade, etc.).

As for the Dodgers’ end of things, they’ll add a former supplemental first-rounder in the deal. Miller, 21, was the No. 36 overall pick by the Twins in 2021 but hasn’t lived up to that billing at the plate thus far. He’s regarded as a solid defender at shortstop but has posted only a .220/.326/.318 batting line in the minor leagues, including a .223/.309/.340 slash in High-A last year. Miller gives the Dodgers a glove-first shortstop option who can begin the 2024 season either with a second run at High-A or in Double-A. Even if his bat never comes around, there’s utility upside for Miller within the next few years based on the quality of his defense.

Like Doncon, it should be noted Miller’s pedestrian production in 2023 came against much older and more advanced competition. Both players were more than two years younger than the average player at their respective minor league levels. Neither needs to be protected from the Rule 5 Draft until after the 2025 season.

As with the Twins getting Doncon included in this deal, the Dodgers’ acquisition of Miller fits a recent pattern. Los Angeles has bought low on recent high-profile draftees that needn’t be added to their 40-man roster this winter while performing maintenance to make room for new acquisitions. In addition to Miller, the Dodgers picked up former Yankees first-rounder Trey Sweeney in their Victor Gonzalez swap and former Cubs second-rounder Jackson Ferris in trading away Michael Busch.

Perhaps most importantly for the Dodgers, the trade of Margot frees up a roster space. In that sense, this trade has largely facilitated the team’s re-signing of utilityman Enrique Hernandez to a one-year contract. The Twins had been in the mix to sign Hernandez and were reportedly one of four finalists. Instead they’ll go with a hitter who’s been more productive over the past few seasons and can capably fill the same role in the outfield, but lacks the infield versatility. Taking on $4MM of Margot’s deal makes the transactions cash-neutral for the Dodgers, who subsequently guaranteed Hernandez the same amount in free agency.

Juan Toribio of MLB.com first reported that Margot had been traded to Minnesota. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that Miller was going back to Los Angeles. Daniel Alvarez Montes of El Extra Base reported Doncon’s inclusion in the deal. Jeff Passan of ESPN added that the Dodgers were sending cash to the Twins as well. Aaron Gleeman of the Athletic first reported the Twins were taking on $4MM.

Dodgers Sign Enrique Hernández To One-Year Deal

By Darragh McDonald | February 26, 2024 at 11:55pm CDT

The Dodgers announced that they have signed utility player Enrique Hernández to a one-year deal. No corresponding move will be necessary as they opened a roster spot by trading outfielder Manuel Margot to the Twins. Hernández, a Wasserman client, will reportedly make $4MM this year.

As news started to leak out about about Margot being traded to Minnesota, speculation turned to Hernández almost immediately. There was reporting over the weekend that the Giants, Angels, Twins and Padres were interested in him but he will instead head back to the club that he’s played for throughout most of his career.

Now 32, Hernández spent 2015 to 2020 with the Dodgers, largely deployed as a serviceable multi-positional guy. He hit .240/.312/.425 over those six years, production that led to a wRC+ of 98. Though that offense was slightly below average, he still helped the club by being able to slot in all over the place. He played all four infield positions and all three outfield spots during that time, and even made an appearance on the mound.

Going into 2021, he reached free agency and signed with the Red Sox on a two-year, $14MM deal. He was excellent in the first year of that pact, hitting 2o home runs and slashing .250/.337/.449 for a wRC+ of 109. He spent most of his time in center field, getting strong grades there, while also lining up at the middle infield spots.

In 2022, his offense took a step back. He went on the injured list due to a right hip flexor strain and missed over two months. Nonetheless, the Sox still had faith in a bounceback. In September of that year, they gave him a $10MM salary to stick around for 2023. He finished 2022 with a line of .222/.291/.338 for a wRC+ of 74.

With Trevor Story set to miss significant time in 2023 recovering from elbow surgery, the Sox tried to make Hernández their everyday shortstop, though the experiment didn’t work out. The defensive metrics didn’t like his work there, as he was saddled with a grade of -6 from Defensive Runs Saved and -12 Outs Above Average. He also hit just .222/.279/.320 before getting flipped back to the Dodgers at the deadline. Returning to his old stomping grounds seemed to suit him, as he hit .262/.308/.423 while bouncing all over the diamond for the Dodgers.

The Dodgers may never have been fully committed to Margot, as they took him on as part of the Tyler Glasnow trade. The Rays were looking to move some payroll in the Glasnow deal but also saved some more by including Margot, who is owed $12MM this year in the form of a $10MM salary and then a $2MM buyout on a club option for 2025.

The Dodgers are set to have a regular outfield of James Outman, Teoscar Hernández and Jason Heyward this year. Margot and his right-handed bat could have platooned with Heyward, who had a bounceback year in 2023 while being mostly shielded from southpaws, but the Dodgers also have other options for that role. Right-hander Chris Taylor is also on the roster and now Hernández will join him, giving the club two guys who could platoon with Heyward while also adding some infield depth as well. Hernández has hit .257/.343/.458 in his career against lefties for a 115 wRC+, compared to .228/.290/.377 and a wRC+ of 80 versus righties.

The Dodgers are going to have a middle infield combo of Gavin Lux at shortstop and Mookie Betts at second base. The former missed all of 2023 after tearing his ACL and damaging the LCL in his right knee, while Betts only recently moved to the infield after spending most of his career in right field. Miguel Rojas is on the roster as a glove-first depth option and Taylor is in the mix there as well, but Hernández can help out while also taking Margot’s role as the fourth outfielder.

The Dodgers are over the fourth and final line of the competitive balance tax and are a third-time payor. That means any money added to the payroll now comes with a 110% tax rate. However, they will end up being cash neutral today as they are saving $4MM in the Margot deal and giving $4MM to Hernández.

Fabian Ardaya and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported that the two sides were nearing a deal. Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported that it would be a one-year pact. Hernández himself first relayed that the deal was done. Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times. had the $4MM salary.

Dodgers To Hire Matt Kemp In Advisory Role

By Darragh McDonald | February 26, 2024 at 8:24pm CDT

The Dodgers are hiring former big leaguer Matt Kemp in an advisory role, per reports from Bob Nightengale of USA Today and Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

Kemp, 39, had a 15-year career in the big leagues, spending much of that time with the Dodgers. He was drafted by them in 2003 and made it to the majors as a Dodger in 2006. He was with them through 2014 before suiting up for the Padres and Braves, returning to the Dodgers and then going to the Reds and Rockies, making his last appearance with Colorado in 2020.

Over those years, he got into 1,750 major league games, logging 1,808 hits, including 338 doubles, 37 triples and 287 home runs. He scored 950 runs, drove in 1,031 and stole 184 bases. He slashed .284/.337/.484 in that time for a wRC+ of 120.

It’s unclear exactly what role the Dodgers have in mind for Kemp, but they seem to have decided on having more former players in the organization. This offseason, they have added Nelson Cruz, Chris Archer and Tyson Ross as advisors or special assistants.

NL Notes: Grichuk, D’Backs, Kiermaier, Keller, Lodolo

By Mark Polishuk | February 18, 2024 at 10:40pm CDT

Randal Grichuk underwent surgery last month to remove bone spurs from his ankle, so the newest member of the Diamondbacks roster might not be ready to make his Arizona debut by the very start of the season. “It’s one of those things where there’s a good chance I’ll be ready for Opening Day and if not, it’s a week. In the grand scheme of things, big picture, it’s nothing to worry about,” Grichuk told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic and other reporters. Obviously the D’Backs weren’t concerned enough to back away from their $2MM deal with the veteran outfielder, and Grichuk could possibly be used as a designated hitter at first until he is fully ready for outfield work.

As to what the D’Backs might have left on their shopping list after a busy offseason, GM Mike Hazen told reporters (including Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports) that “I think building out relief depth is probably something that we’re talking about. Pitching in general…I think from a position player standpoint, we’re probably in a spot where it’s less likely to see a clear opportunity for somebody. But we still have competitions underneath the starting roles. So we’ll see where that takes us.”

Dodgers, Justin Wilson Agree To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | February 16, 2024 at 11:52am CDT

The Dodgers have agreed to a deal with free-agent lefty Justin Wilson, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. It’ll be a minor league pact with a spring training invite for the ACES client, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic adds.

Wilson, 36, has been limited to just 3 2/3 innings over the past two seasons due to Tommy John surgery and a lat strain. That brief sample of work came with the Reds and saw Wilson create some intrigue with a bump back to his peak velocity levels (95.1 mph average fastball). He faced only 13 hitters as a Red but fanned seven of them and didn’t issue a walk. Surgery cut his season short, however, and he signed with the Brewers on a one-year deal with an option. The TJS rehab and subsequent lat strain wound up combining to keep Wilson off a big league mound for the entirety of the 2023 season.

Prior to those health setbacks, Wilson had enjoyed a lengthy run as a quality setup man for the Pirates, Yankees, Tigers, Cubs and Mets. From 2013-21, the lefty rattled of 458 2/3 innings of 3.43 ERA ball with 132 saves and 18 holds. He’s never had great command (career 10.7% walk rate), but Wilson has fanned just shy of 26% of hitters in his MLB career and sat north of 29% with his strikeout rate from 2017-20 after shelving his sinker and ramping up the usage of his four-seamer.

The Dodgers lost some left-handed depth in the bullpen this winter, trading Victor Gonzalez and Caleb Ferguson to the Yankees in separate swaps. Alex Vesia and Ryan Yarbrough are currently slated to manager Dave Roberts’ left-handed options in the ’pen, with fellow southpaw Matt Gage also on the 40-man roster (and still possessing a minor league option). Wilson and veteran T.J. McFarland give the Dodgers a pair of experienced lefty relievers who’ll be non-roster invitees in camp. They’ll be joined by NRI righties Daniel Hudson, Dinelson Lamet, Nabil Crismatt and Jesse Hahn, among others, in looking to win a spot in a crowded Dodgers bullpen.

Dodgers Re-Sign Clayton Kershaw

By Steve Adams | February 12, 2024 at 6:58pm CDT

February 12: Ronald Blum of the Associated Press reports the specifics on Kershaw’s performance bonuses and escalators. The future Hall of Famer would earn a $1MM bonus for his sixth start next season, $1.5MM for each of his next three starts, and $2MM if he reaches 10 starts. A relief appearance in which he accrues at least nine outs also qualifies, protecting Kershaw in the event he follows an opener.

The $5MM base value of his 2025 player option would escalate based on his ’24 workload by the following amounts:

$2MM for six starts
$3MM apiece for seven through nine starts
$4MM for 10 starts

If he exercises the option, the deal includes additional bonuses for 2025 depending on the number of starts he makes in each of the next two years.

February 9: Clayton Kershaw is heading back to the Dodgers. The team announced Friday that the left-hander has re-signed on a two-year guarantee — the second season of which is a player option. Kershaw, a client of Excel Sports Management, is recovering from November shoulder surgery and isn’t expected to pitch until the second half of the season, at the earliest. He’s reportedly guaranteed $10MM on the pact: $5MM in each season of the deal.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Kershaw’s 2024 incentives are contingent on him making six to ten starts this season. Any increases to this year’s base salary will also be reflected in the value of his player option. Sherman further adds that between those escalators and incentives specific to the 2025 season, Kershaw could earn as much as $25MM in year two of the contract. That’d give him a total earning power of $37.5MM over the two years of the contract.

Kershaw can boost that 2024 salary to $12.5MM based on the number of games he starts this season. The number of games he starts can also boost the base value of his 2025 player option. Right-hander Tony Gonsolin was moved to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man roster spot for Kershaw. If and when the Dodgers need another 40-man spot, Kershaw himself can be transferred to the 60-day IL.

Assuming he’s able to suit up at some point in the second half, the 2024 season will be Kershaw’s 17th pitching for the Dodgers, who selected him with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2006 draft. Injuries have begun to take their toll on Kershaw, who hasn’t reached 30 starts in a season since 2015, but the quality of his results remains largely constant. From 2009-15, Kershaw averaged 32 starts per year, won four straight ERA titles and took home three Cy Young Awards. Since 2016, he’s averaged just 24 starts per 162-game season but maintained a brilliant 2.55 ERA — including sub-2.50 marks in three of the past four seasons.

Kershaw clearly wasn’t pitching at 100% for much of the 2023 season. A shoulder strain landed Kershaw on the injured list in July, and manager Dave Roberts candidly acknowledged in September that he was pitching at less than full strength. Los Angeles limited Kershaw to five innings per start for all but one start in his return from the injured list (a 5 1/3-inning outing in his final appearance of the season). Along the way, Kershaw’s average fastball dipped to career-low levels; he averaged just 89.4 mph on his fastball in his return — including just an 88.7 mph average through his final four starts.

Diminished velocity notwithstanding, Kershaw remained quite effective. In eight post-IL starts he turned in a pristine 2.23 ERA. His 22.2% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate were both a ways from his pre-injury levels (27.7%, 6.3%), but Kershaw looked to making the most of what he had to offer on any given day. He didn’t allow more than three runs in any of those final eight appearances and in fact held opponents to one or zero runs in six of them. The D-backs ambushed him for six runs in the first inning of his lone NLDS start, however, ending his season on a low point.

It’s not yet clear when Kershaw might be able to rejoin the Dodgers’ staff, though they’ll presumably provide an update when announcing his deal and discussing it with the media. A returning Kershaw in the second half will provide some high-end insurance for a Dodgers rotation that is teeming with uncertainty. Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be adjusting to a new culture and a new league in his debut campaign this year. Right-hander Walker Buehler is in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery. Southpaw James Paxton is a perennial injury risk. Young righties Bobby Miller, Emmet Sheehan, Gavin Stone and Kyle Hurt haven’t pitched full big league seasons.

As already noted, Kershaw won’t be the only potential second-half addition for the Dodgers. The aforementioned May underwent a Tommy John revision and flexor tendon repair in early July but could potentially be back for the stretch run. Gonsolin, who underwent Tommy John surgery in late August, feels like a longer shot to make it back but could potentially do so in a bullpen capacity if his rehab plays out in a best-case scenario.

The Dodgers are set to pay the luxury tax for a third straight season and are already well into the final tier of luxury tax penalization. As such, any dollars committed to Kershaw will be taxed at a 110% rate. That apparently won’t be a deterrent as they welcome the future Hall of Famer back for a 17th season.

In 2712 2/3 innings though his big league career, Kershaw owns a 210-92 record, a 2.48 ERA, a 27.6% strikeout rate and a 6.3% walk rate. He’s a ten-time All-Star with five NL ERA titles, three Cy Young Awards and a National League MVP Award under his belt.

Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the Dodgers and Kershaw had reached an agreement. The Athletic’s Andy McCullough reported the presence of a 2025 player option. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reported the terms of the deal.

NL West Notes: Kershaw, Peralta, Baker

By Nick Deeds | February 10, 2024 at 6:59pm CDT

Longtime face of the franchise Clayton Kershaw reunited with the Dodgers earlier this week on a two-year deal, ending the uncertainty that lingered surrounding the southpaw’s future throughout the offseason. Kershaw recently spoke to reporters, including Juan Toribio of MLB.com, regarding the difficult decisions he had to make this offseason regarding surgery and his future as a player.

As relayed by Toribio, Kershaw noted that thoughts of retirement weighed heavily on him for the first time in his career, and that he took his time deciding whether or not to undergo shoulder surgery, which he indicated was necessary to continue his career but wouldn’t have been required from him to partake in day-to-day activities such as catch with his children. Toribio added that Kershaw’s difficult start against the Diamondbacks during Game 1 of the NLDS, where he surrendered six runs while recording just one out, played a role in the southpaw’s decision to return to the Dodgers for a 17th season in the majors.

Toribio indicates that potentially parting ways with the only club he’s pitched for as a professional and pitching for his hometown Rangers held some appeal for Kershaw, but that ultimately the Dodgers’ flurry of activity this offseason played a role in convincing the veteran lefty to remain in L.A. for the 2024 campaign.

“This offseason has been pretty amazing to watch, honestly. There’s definitely a part of me that wanted to be a part of that,” Kershaw told reporters, as relayed by Toribio.

Kershaw isn’t expected to return to a big league mound until the late summer, with Toribio noting that “sometime in July” is the earliest he could pitch for L.A. in 2024. The left-hander is currently slated to ramp his throwing progression up sometime next month and will join the team on homestands during his rehab. The club’s offseason overhaul of their pitching staff leaves them with plenty of options to hold down the fort in the starting rotation during Kershaw’s absence. Though right-hander Walker Buehler is expected to start the season on the injured list, offseason additions Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and James Paxton are currently slated to pitch in the rotation alongside sophomore righty Bobby Miller and an addition young arm such as Emmet Sheehan or Gavin Stone come the start of the regular season.

More from around the NL West…

The Padres brought in left-hander Wandy Peralta on a four-year deal earlier this week, but The Athletic’s Dennis Lin reports that this is hardly the first time the club has pursued the veteran southpaw. According to Lin, San Diego’s interest in Peralta dates back to the 2023 trade deadline. At the time, the lefty was subject to some trade speculation as the Yankees toyed with dealing pending free agents due to them sitting at fifth place in the AL East at the time of the trade deadline despite a decent 55-51 record. Ultimately, of course, no deal came together for the lefty, who went on to struggle to a 4.30 ERA and 6.46 FIP down the stretch last year. Looking ahead to 2024, Peralta figures to be part of San Diego’s late inning mix alongside the likes of Yuki Matsui and Robert Suarez as the bullpen looks to bounce back from the loss of Josh Hader earlier this winter.
The Giants hired recently-retired Astros manager Dusty Baker in a special assistant role last month, and the longtime skipper spoke to reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart) in Houston recently about his move to San Francisco. Baker indicated that while Houston remains a “second home” to him, a key factor in his decision to join the Giants is the club’s proximity to Sacramento, his hometown. “Getting older, you start thinking about enjoying your life, enjoying your grandchildren,” Baker said, as relayed by McTaggart. “But I still have something, you know, to give to the game and make a living in a part-time capacity.” Baker’s hiring in San Francisco is a homecoming in more ways than one, as he served as manager of the Giants for ten seasons, from 1993 to 2002. He won three NL Manager of the Year awards throughout his tenure with the Giants and led the team to a World Series appearance in his final year with the club.

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