Health Issue Allows Dodgers to Make Pitcher's 2024 Contract More Team-Friendly
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A health issue caused the Dodgers and James Paxton to rework his contract before it was finalized Monday. Reporting for The Athletic, Fabian Ardaya and Ken Rosenthal broke down the situation:
"The one-year deal, announced on Monday, still has a maximum potential value of up to $13 million with performance and roster bonuses, according to a copy of the contract details obtained by The Athletic. The Dodgers and Paxton’s agent, Scott Boras, however, agreed to reduce the total guarantee from the originally reported $11 million to $7 million. The issue, while not serious enough to scuttle the deal, resulted in a reworking of the structure of the contract."
As reported in the article, Paxton's guaranteed money for 2024 dropped from $11 million to just $7 million. He can recoup the difference if he meets certain incentives.
According to Rosenthal, those incentives revolve around his availability at specific times during the year. He gets $2 million for being on the active roster on March 20 for the Korea series or March 28 for Opening Day.
If not, he can receive $1 million if he's healthy any time before April 15. From there he earns more money if he hits a specific number of starts.
This lowers the risk the Dodgers are taking on Paxton significantly. Paxton has struggled to stay on the mound, making only 25 starts since 2020.
In the current pitching market, this deal is a steal. By comparison, the St. Louis Cardinals are paying Lance Lynn $11 million fully guaranteed for next year.
The nature of the health concern remains a mystery. The article notes that both Paxton's agent Scott Boras, and the Dodgers declined to reveal the injury.
"Both Boras and the Dodgers declined to comment, citing HIPAA considerations."
Since 2018, Paxton has missed time with injuries to his lower back, knee, gluteus, forearm, elbow and hamstring.
In a best-case scenario, Paxton will hit all of these incentives and help stabilize the rotation this year. If not, it won't cost the Dodgers as much as initially reported.
