The Los Angeles Dodgers made one of the biggest moves at the MLB trade deadline, acquiring front-line starter Jack Flaherty from the Detroit Tigers. While the Dodgers front office paid a hefty price to land Flaherty, it will cost a lot more to keep him in Los Angeles for 2025 and beyond.
Flaherty’s trade value was lower than the asking price for Garrett Crochet or Tarik Skubal because of his contract. On an expiring deal, Los Angeles will only have a small window to re-sign him before he hits MLB free agency. He also can’t receive a qualifying offer because he was traded.
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- Jack Flaherty stats (ESPN): 2.97 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 150 strikeouts, 21 walks allowed in 118.1 innings pitched this season
The absence of a qualifying offer means any team that wanted to sign Flaherty wouldn’t be at risk of losing a draft pick for signing him. It immediately opens the door for more clubs to get involved, strengthening the bidding war for his services.
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Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report wrote that Flaherty is likely to land a contract this offseason worth nine figures. He’s widely viewed as one of the best pitchers in MLB free agency this offseason, behind only Corbin Burnes and perhaps Blake Snell.
- Jack Flaherty contract (Spotrac): $4.666 million salary remaining, MLB free agent in 2025
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Getting into a bidding war for Flaherty is further complicated for Los Angeles because of his medical records. The Dodgers only acquired him because the New York Yankees backed out of a deal, per The Athletic due to medical concerns.
The Dodgers’ willingness to look past those concerns on a short-term basis is easy to justify. More difficult for the club would be determining if Flaherty is worth adding another $100-plus million contract to the Dodgers payroll in 2025.
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Closing out the season strong and leading the Dodgers rotation on a playoff run would go a long way in convincing Los Angeles or another team to spend on him. However, it’s worth keeping in mind that Flaherty had a 4.42 ERA with a 1.398 WHIP across 299 innings from 2020-’23, per Baseball Reference. It’s another factor that could ultimately push Los Angeles to instead pursue Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki.
