Dodgers Rumors: Insider Expects Clayton Kershaw Decision to Impact Lance Lynn in LA
It's shaping up to be a busy offseason for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Among the many moves expected to shake up the roster for 2024, the status of future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw figures to play a major role in how the club spends this winter.
In the view of Dodgers beat writer J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group, Kershaw returning or not will play a direct role in Lance Lynn's future with the club. LA holds an $18 million option for Lynn's services next season or they can choose to buy him out for $1 million.
From Hoornstra: The choice between exercising Lynn’s option or his $1 million buyout could depend on the status of Clayton Kershaw, the front office’s desire for a top-tier starter, and how they price the market for a steady-if-unspectacular veteran.
While Lynn's won't exclusively hinge on Kershaw not pitching for the Dodgers in 2024, it's hard to see the club spending somewhere in the neighborhood of $40 million for those two pitchers alone next season.
Andrew Friedman and Brandon Gomes made it clear last week that LA will prioritize getting better starting pitching this offseason. Friedman will welcome Kershaw back with open arms, and he understands Kershaw needs time to discuss it with his wife Ellen and evaluate his left shoulder.
If the plan is for the Dodgers to operate at the top of the market in free agency this offseason, then passing on Lynn seems to make sense. While he's posted some nice seasons over his career, for the greater part, the 36-year-old has more often been a mediocre starter. In 2023, he allowed 48 home runs, and this excludes the NLDS when he allowed four home runs in one inning.
It would be easy to say the Dodgers don’t want Lynn back, but the competition to obtain quality starting pitching will be fierce this offseason.
If healthy, Kershaw is a much better starter than Lynn. The Dodgers have a $1 million buyout on Lynn. Kershaw will accept between $20 and $25 million, and he is a better value than Lynn at $18 million.
The Dodgers understand they need depth in the starting rotation to survive the regular season and postseason. The 2023 season proved to Friedman and Gomes that they can’t have too much depth in the starting rotation when their starters spent two thousand days on the IL. The Dodgers may pick up Lynn’s option and wait for Kershaw’s decision. They may sign two top-tier free-agent starters too since Friedman understands the importance of having great starting pitching.
