Dodgers Sign Kershaw to Richest Pitcher Deal Ever

Dodgers will be paying their ace over $30 million per season

Clayton Kershaw is getting quite the payday. After years of leading the Majors in just about every pitching category, the Dodgers ace has become the highest-paid pitcher in baseball history.

He agreed to a reported seven-year, $215 million extension with Los Angeles on Wednesday that will average north of $30 million per season. You can expect an official announcement on Friday.
 
It's about time that the best pitcher in baseball got paid like it. Since breaking into the bigs at age 20 he has posted a career 2.60 ERA, while leading the league in the category for three straight years.

The contract comes with a clause that allows him to opt-out after five years. So, if he decides to play elsewhere, or negotiate a new deal, he will be just 30 years old, and looking to make more than the $65 million he committed to the last two years of this contract.

Kershaw was up for his third year of arbitration this off-season. If he and the Dodgers had just settled on a salary for the 2014 season the ace would have been a free agent by November of next year.

Contract extension talks have swirled around Kershaw and the Dodgers for years, so this seven-year deal will calm the turmoil from the media questioning if he will leave for a new club.

This is some of the best news to come out of the off-season for the Dodgers. After the Mattingly extension and with arbitration talks going on this week, it seemed like the clock was ticking down before a deal had to be reached.

Overall this is a great deal for the team, the pitcher and definitely the fans. At least five, maybe seven, more years of watching Kershaw mow down opponents like it's no big deal? Sounds like a good time to be a Dodgers fan!

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