In an effort to get below the luxury tax threshold for the 2018 season, the Los Angeles Dodgers were among the quieter teams this past offseason in terms of free agency.
They only signed one Major League free agent to a multi-year contract, and ironically enough the player who inked that deal was Chase Utley, who re-signed for two-years and $2 million. That the 39-year-old received a two-year contract was in part to lower the annual average value of the deal.
In an interview with Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times, Utley said his goal is to play out the life of his contract, although he is still unsure if that will end up happening:
“I’m 39 years old,” he said. “I have to try to keep everything in perspective. I’d like to play two more years. That’s the goal. But I have to be realistic. I understand that’s not a 100% given.”
Utley endured a rough start to the 2017 season before hitting his stride in May. He finished the year batting .236/.324/.405 with 20 doubles, four triples, eight home runs, 34 RBI, a 92 OPS+ and 96 wRC+.
After playing in 127 regular season games, Utley may have run out of gas a bit in the playoffs as he went hitless in 15 at-bats.
When the Dodgers re-signed Utley, it was expected to be in a bench role as a backup to Logan Forsythe at second base. But with Justing Turner expected to miss an extended period of time while recovering from a fractured wrist, Forsythe will move to third base so Utley could see more playing time than expected.
