The Dodgers and Mookie Betts are nearing a contract extension on Wednesday that could keep Betts in Los Angeles for another decade, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
Reports indicate the deal could be for 10 years and more than $ 350 to $ 400 million, although it is not known whether the options and foreclosure options, which could shorten the contract, would be included in the deal.
The development comes a day before the Dodgers open their 2020 season against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. The 60-game season, shortened by a pandemic, was in jeopardy during the league shutdown and heated negotiations between the owners and the union.
Failure to organize a season could have meant that Betts had never played a meaningful game for the Dodgers. Now it looks like he will not only be playing in Los Angeles in 2020, but for years to come.
The club acquired Betts, a four-time All-Star and Most Valuable Player in the 2018 American League, and left-hander David Price from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for outfielder Alex Verdugo and two prospects days before the players showed up for spring training in February.
Betts, 27, came as a potential one-year rental with the looming free agency in the winter after he turned down a $ 300 million extension offer from the Red Sox. The decision carried risks, but Betts was the elite player the Dodgers were looking for in their October attempt to end a 32-year championship drought. They hoped they could persuade Betts to stay in Los Angeles.
“I don’t regret rejecting that,” Betts said this month. “Once I make a decision, I make a decision. I will not go back and question myself. I don’t care about that. The market will be what the market is. We will cross that bridge when we get there.
Betts made a lasting first impression in spring training. She came every day at 5 am to exercise. One morning, a few days after reporting, she delivered a speech in front of her new team to emphasize the urgency. Her teammates emerged in amazement at her work ethic and determination. Instantly they saw him as a leader.
Weeks later, it seemed that the organization would have little chance of persuading him to stay. On the eve of opening day, it appears the Dodgers have made it.
“It’s going to be amazing to put on a Dodgers uniform,” Betts said this month. “Really, to put on the uniform in general, I am happy. This is basically a new home for me. I am super excited. I got 60 games to make the playoffs, and then I took a ring home. “
The contract would be the richest that Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman has given a player. The team has re-signed players for substantial contacts since Friedman took over in October 2014, but none have reached the $ 100 million threshold. Even in a depressed free-agent market this offseason, Betts would easily break that ceiling.
Friedman has positioned the organization for this expense with careful planning. The Dodgers don’t have guaranteed money on their payroll after the 2022 season. Flexibility led them to be more aggressive during the winter.
The organization sought out starting pitcher Gerrit Cole, the cherished free agent, and offered him a $ 300 million eight-year contract with deferrals. Cole decided to sign a record-breaking $ 324 million nine-year contract with the New York Yankees.
The Dodgers then set their sights on acquiring a superstar in the commercial market. They focused on Betts in late January. The first week of February an exchange of three teams was agreed, including the Minnesota Twins, but the Twins pulled out, forcing the Dodgers and Red Sox to restructure a direct transaction.
The Dodgers then worked in a side agreement with the Twins, sending pitcher Kenta Maeda, catching prospect Jair Camargo and cash to Minnesota for reliever Brusdar Graterol and minor league outfielder Luke Raley.
Graterol is expected to be on the Dodgers’ starting list. Price decided not to play this season, but Betts will start and play right field at Dodger Stadium on Thursday and, in all likelihood, for a long time.
