Kershaw Agrees to $19 Million Deal With Dodgers
Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw had an arbitration hearing scheduled for Feb. 14. But now he can take his wife, Ellen, out for a nice Valentine’s Day dinner instead. The left-handed pitcher from Highland Park High School avoided arbitration today, agreeing to a two-year, $19 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
I don’t get this. He’s a 23 year old, Cy Young award winner and he only gets a 2 year contract?
@M
It is in his best interest to only have a 2 year deal. Given baseball’s free agency rules, in 2 years he’ll be eligible to be a free agent and can go for the 5/6 year deal at $15-$20MM+ per. If he were to sign a 4 year deal today, the club (which still doesn’t have an owner) wouldn’t pay him nearly as much since he can’t be an unrestricted free agent.
@Southern Gent. None of what you said is accurate. Before he even signed this 2 year deal, he was not eligible to become a free agent until 2015. The Dodgers retain his rights until then. He is, however, eligible for arbitration. The arbitration system in baseball allows for a player and team to agree on terms or else have an arbitrator rule in favor of the club’s salary or player’s salary. There is no middle ground if the parties go to an arbitrator, which is why they often meet somewhere in the middle before the hearing.
for pete’s sake, i’m just hoping he can find enough change in his sofa cushions to pay for the plaque in his honor at scotland yard.