The Los Angeles Dodgers went into the offseason with a goal of adding at least one impact starting pitcher and wasted no time checking that off their to-do list.
On Tuesday night, Blake Snell posted a photo of himself on Instagram in a Dodgers uniform to break the news that he is heading to L.A.
According to multiple reports, the left-hander has agreed to a five-year, $182 million contract that includes deferred salary.
Snell’s contract with the Dodgers also has a $52 million signing bonus that will lower the team’s competitive balance tax hit, via Andrew Baggarly and Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic:
Snell’s deal includes a $52 million signing bonus, a league source confirmed. The signing bonus essentially makes sure the present value of the deal is still high even with the deferrals — so while the average annual value is $36.4 million, the figure for the Dodgers’ competitive balance tax calculation is expected to be around $32 to $33 million.
According to Jack Harris of the L.A. Times, the Dodgers are deferring roughly $60 million of the total value in Snell’s contract and will pay him an additional $5 million if he is traded at any point:
A few more details on Blake Snell’s contract with Dodgers:
— About $60 million will be deferred
— If the Dodgers were to trade Snell, he would be paid an additional $5 million by the team https://t.co/psMhgYU8Sq— Jack Harris (@ByJackHarris) November 27, 2024
Per Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Snell’s Dodgers contract does not have any opt-outs:
There are no opt-outs in Snell’s $182M Dodgers deal. There isn’t a no-trade clause but there is an assignment bonus if traded. There are deferrals. Deal is pending a physical.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 27, 2024
Although Heyman noted otherwise, it has since been reported Snell’s contract does include a limited no-trade clause.
With Snell now in the fold, he joins a 2025 Dodgers starting rotation that should include Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin and eventually Clayton Kershaw once he is re-signed.
The Dodgers could still look to add to the group as they are among the teams interested in Roki Sasaki, who will be posted when the new international signing period begins on Jan. 15, 2025.
L.A. could also look to bring back Walker Buehler or Jack Flaherty, but perhaps only if either is willing to return on a team-friendly deal.
Blake Snell’s 2024 season
Snell went 5-3 with a 3.12 ERA, 2.43 FIP and 1.05 WHIP across 20 starts for the San Francisco Giants this year while posting a 24.2% K-BB%.
He suffered a left adductor strain in late April and left groin strain in June, but he has not dealt with any recent arm troubles.
Snell got off to a slow start, partly due to not having a full Spring Training to build up, but posted an MLB-best 1.45 ERA during the second half among qualified starting pitchers.
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