Kershaw stays with Dodgers
LOS ANGELES >> Clayton Kershaw is staying with the Los Angeles Dodgers, agreeing to a $93 million, three-year contract after he initially opted out and chose free agency.
The agreement was reached Friday, when Kershaw opted out of a $215 million, sevenyear contract that had two seasons remaining at a total of $65 million.
The left-hander gets an additional $28 million in guaranteed money. The new agreement includes $4 million annually in performance bonuses, in four $1 million increments for 24, 26, 28 and 30 games started, which could raise the deal’s value to $105 million over three years.
He also can earn award bonuses of $1.5 million for winning the NL Cy Young Award or $500,000 for finishing second or third in the voting.
Also Friday, the Dodgers made $17.9 million qualifying offers to two of their other free agents: pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu and catcher Yasmani Grandal.
Winner of the NL Cy Young in 2011, ‘13 and ‘14, Kershaw was limited to 26 starts this year because of a back injury and went 9-5 with a 2.73 ERA while striking out 155.
The Dodgers lost in the World Series for the second straight season, with Kershaw taking the loss in Sunday’s season-ending Game 5 defeat to Boston.
Kershaw signed his $215 million deal in January 2014, and it called for salaries of $32 million next year and $33 million in 2020. The new deal calls for a $23 million signing bonus, payable in equal installments on June 30 in each of the next three years, and annual salaries of $23,333,333.
The money designated a signing bonus will not be subject to state income because Kershaw is a resident of Texas, which does not have a state income tax.