Three legendary baseball pitchers, Justin Verlander Max Scherzer and Clayton Kershaw, are nearing the ends of their careers. Their friendly but competitive negotiations for contracts has made this offseason’s storyline one to watch.
Their recent contracts are what makes them interesting. They suggest a competition for maximum earnings, as these players may be approaching their last seasons of Major League Baseball.
Clayton Kershaw has signed a contract with the Dodgers for 7.5 million dollars, including roster bonuses and bonus money when games begin. In order to make room for Kershaw on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers transferred RHP River Ryan to the…
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) February 13, 2025
Justin Verlander began the year on 7th January, signing a 1-year contract with the San Francisco Giants. This agreement provides a $15 million base salary for the veteran right-hander. It also includes $550,000 of potential performance bonuses. This includes $200,000 for the National League MVP Award or the NL Cy Young Award. It also offers $150,000 for the World Series MVP Award and $100,000 for the NL Championship Series MVP. Verlander is expected to strengthen the Giants starting rotation as well as add some veteran leadership.
Max Scherzer, who had signed with Toronto Blue Jays in January for an amount of $15.5m flat rate, followed suit. The base salary of $15.5 million was widely perceived as an answer to Verlander’s contract due to their previous history together as Detroit Tigers teammates and New York Mets. Scherzer will be expected to make a major contribution in strengthening the Blue Jays’ pitching.
Clayton Kershaw’s contract for one year, worth $7.5 million, was recently signed, paving the way for his 18th Los Angeles season. Kershaw’s contract includes roster- and performancebased incentives which may increase his overall compensation above both Verlander’s and Scherzer’s.
Clayton Kershaw has signed a one-year contract worth $7.5million with the Dodgers.
The contract is worth 16 million dollars, $500k higher than Max Scherzer (a future Hall of Famer) and Justin Verlander (1M).— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 13, 2025
Kershaw could receive up to $8.5 million as incentives, according to Bob Nightengale from USA Today. Jon Heyman, of the New York Post, elaborated the benchmarks Kershaw has to meet in order to receive these bonuses.
Clayton Kershaw contract is now official. $7.5M plus incentives #dodgers
Kershaw receives $1,000,000 in addition for the 13gs.
Each Active Roster member gets $2,000,000 for 30 Days.
For 60 days, $1,000,000
Spend $1,000,000 in 90 Days— Jon Heyman (@jonheyman.bsky.social) 2025-02-13T18:12:06.967Z
Kershaw will earn the following:
• $1 million for each of 13, 14, 15, and 16 games started.
• $2.5 million for accumulating 30 days on the Dodgers’ active roster.
• An additional $1 million for reaching 60 days on the active roster.
• A further $1 million for totaling 90 days on the active roster.
Although some incentives may seem more achievable than others, the incentive tied to 16 starts implies that a minimum amount of time on an active roster of at least 90 days must be reached. Due to Kershaw’s history of injury and the Dodgers cautious management of his workload, achieving 16 starts could prove difficult. Clayton Kershaw’s performance last season was not encouraging. He only made seven starts and pitched just 30 innings.
Kershaw’s contract provides an interesting insight into what the Dodgers expect from the veteran pitcher who is returning to the team after a foot or knee injury. This contract shows how committed the Dodgers are to Kershaw. They believe that he can make an impact, even though he started the season on the injury list. The tone is set for an exciting season.