Angels poised to pounce: Dodgers $60M starter set to…
The Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series, but now have decisions to make on key free agents. They could see some players sign elsewhere for more money as the Dodgers pursue bigger names.
While listing the top 20 free agents and predicting where they would sign, FanSided’s Nick Villano predicted that Dodgers ace Jack Flaherty would leave the team and join the Los Angeles Angels.
“The Los Angeles Angels might be looking to offload this offseason, and it could be a long and terrible stretch after they wasted the primes of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, but they still need to put a roster out there, and they desperately need pitching,” wrote Villano. “Flaherty gives them a decent option every fifth day, and the pressure will be off of him as he gets a World Series ring no matter his performance.”
The Angels have seemingly been the Dodgers’ shadow in Los Angeles for the last 15 years. However, adding Flaherty could potentially be a solid move for the team. They are lacking in the starting rotation, Flaherty is a Los Angeles native and is coming off of a solid season.
Flaherty took over as the Dodgers ace after injuries decimated their rotation. However, with Tyler Glasnow, Clayton Kershaw and Shohei Ohtani set to return to the mound, the Dodgers may not want to pay Flaherty what he will command. Spotrac projects Flaherty to sign a three-year, $60 million deal in free agency.
“Flaherty has never been able to hit the heights we thought he would when he was younger,” wrote Villano. “In his 23-year-old season, he was fourth in Cy Young voting. He led the league in WHIP and allowed fewer hits per nine than anyone. Since then, he’s been an above-average pitcher, but that’s it.”
