Report: Maeda's deal with Dodgers worth $25M over 8 years
Japanese right-hander Kenta Maeda is poised to spend most of the next decade in Los Angeles, as his widely-reported agreement with the Dodgers is believed to be an eight-year, $25-million deal that includes significant performance bonuses, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
Terms of Maeda's deal first surfaced Friday, almost 24 hours after he reportedly agreed to terms with the Dodgers, who earlier this week signed veteran left-hander Scott Kazmir to a three-year deal.
Related: Dodgers agree to deal with Kenta Maeda
In addition to committing at least $25 million to Maeda - a two-time Sawamura Award winner in his native Japan - the Dodgers will also pay the Hiroshima Carp a $20-million release fee for the 27-year-old.
Maeda, who authored a 2.39 ERA with a 3.87 strikeout-to-walk ratio over eight seasons with Hiroshima, will join a revamped Dodgers rotation tentatively poised to feature four left-handers when the 2016 campaign begins.
Projected 2016 rotation
| PLAYER | IP | ERA | WHIP | K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clayton Kershaw | 232.2 | 2.13 | 0.88 | 11.6 |
| Kenta Maeda (Japan) | 206.1 | 2.09 | 1.01 | 7.6 |
| Brett Anderson | 180.1 | 3.69 | 1.33 | 6 |
| Scott Kazmir | 183.0 | 3.10 | 1.20 | 7.6 |
| Hyun-Jin Ryu | DNP | -.-- | -.-- | - |
Maeda is the second Japanese expatriate to land a major-league contract with the Dodgers after being posted by his NPB club. In 2002, the Dodgers signed Kazuhisa Ishii away from the Yakult Swallows, giving the right-hander a four-year, $12.3-million deal after making a successful posting bid of $11.26 million. Though Hiroki Kuroda, another Hiroshima star, also received his first MLB contract from the Dodgers back in 2008, he accrued enough service time in Japan to forego the posting system.