After a disastrous 2013 campaign with the Toronto Blue Jays, Josh Johnson has bolted to the opposite side of the continent, signing a one-year, $8 million contract with the San Diego Padres, hoping to rehabilitate his career in the forgiving confines of Petco Park.
Pitcher Josh Johnson signs one-year, guaranteed $8M deal with #padres. http://t.co/v7ub77GhWs
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) November 20, 2013
Along with eight million guaranteed dollars, Johnson will earn a bonus if he can start 26 games for the Padres.
Josh Johnson can earn an additional $1.25MM if he makes 26 starts.
— timdierkes (@timdierkes) November 20, 2013
And while Johnson has added incentive to stay healthy, the Padres insured themselves, should Johnson get hurt:
Interesting twist to Josh Johnson's $8M deal with Padres. If he makes fewer than seven starts, San Diego gets a $4M club option for 2015.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 20, 2013
It should come as no surprise that the nine-year veteran is headed back to the National League, where he, for the most part, was a dominant pitcher.
Although the money Johnson will receive in San Diego is nothing to sneeze at, the 29-year-old was figured to be the biggest fish of the 2014 free agent class before winning just two games -- with an ERA of 6.20 -- in 16 starts with Toronto.
The contract agreed upon Tuesday is a far-cry from the rumors at this time last season, where pundits believed Johnson could sign one of the richest contracts for a pitcher in baseball history.
But despite his lost season, there was no shortage of interest from teams looking to roll the dice.
Heard Pirates were runners up on Josh Johnson, who got a one-year, $8MM deal with the Padres according to @jcrasnick.
— timdierkes (@timdierkes) November 20, 2013
#Astros and #whitesox were among other teams that expressed interest in Josh Johnson before he signed with #padres.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) November 20, 2013