CARLSBUDD, CA – The Los Angeles Dodgers’ decision not to make a qualifying bid for Clayton Kershaw is not an indication that the team is willing to let him leave.
Quite the contrary, it seems.
“We’ve made it clear that if Kershaw wants to come back, he’ll always have a place,” Andrew Friedman, chief of baseball operations, Andrew Friedman, said Tuesday from the general managers meeting site.
The Dodgers extended qualifying bids to suspend Corey Seager and companion man Chris Taylor on Sunday, a method that rewards teams by offsetting draft picks if those players fall elsewhere. The players have until the middle of next week to decide whether to accept or decline the offer that would pay them $18.4 million for 2022. Kershaw, a three-time Cy Young winner who is arguably the greatest player in Dodgers history, has had none, largely due to the uncertainty surrounding the health of his left arm.
Kershaw, 33, missed more than two months due to an elbow/forearm inflammation that surfaced around the All-Star break. He came back in mid-September, but dropped out of his prime on October 1st with the same problem recurring and was unavailable throughout the post-season. Dave Roberts, the Dodgers manager, said Kershaw’s ulnar collateral ligament is structurally healthy and that he does not need Tommy John surgery, but there appears to be a fear that he may have a long-term injury.
“I know he wants to spend time with Elaine [his wife] To find out what’s best for them, and most importantly to get to a point where he feels healthy, Friedman said. We have no reason to believe he won’t. But in his mind, he wants to get to that point, where he feels good in terms of health, and go from there. This is amazing [the qualifying offer] He would hasten the schedule in a way he wasn’t ready for, and I think just by our respect for him, and what he did for this organization, it wasn’t something we wanted to do and put him on the clock when he wasn’t ready for it.”
The Dodgers agreed to a one-year, $8.5 million contract with another left-handed player, Andrew Heaney, over the weekend, adding him to the 2022 tournament they are currently facing. Walker Buhler And Julio Urias. Tony Johnslin And David Price He could also be part of the mix, but the Dodgers will express a keen interest in bringing Max Scherzer back and possibly play for other big names at free agency. Trevor Power, who is still under criminal investigation over allegations of sexual assault, is not expected to return to the team, regardless of the length of a possible suspension by Major League Baseball, although the Dodgers have not yet publicly commented on the matter.
Expressing enthusiasm for the emerging crop of novice shooters at the organization’s minor league levels, Friedman said his goal in completing the 2022 tournament is to “bridge the short term, not shut down sites that seek and block opportunities.”
Kershaw, who would probably prefer a short-term deal, fits perfectly in that strategy – if he’s healthy, if he wants to keep promoting, and if his hometown of Texas Rangers doesn’t affect him in the end.
“We’ve been very vocal that we really want Kirsch back,” Friedman said. “Not just what he meant for us looking back, but also what we think he would mean for us looking forward. That’s what was said – just like every free agent, but Kirsch is a little more than that – he’s got the right to be in this position and figure out what works best for him and his family. So there’s a personal and professional tug of war for me. Professionally, I really hope he comes back, and personally I want them to do what makes the most sense for their family, and we’ll find out what that means.”