Just as thought, Zack Greinke has opted out of his contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Despite having 3 years $171 million left on his 6-year deal with LA, he and his agent will be expecting offers of around $125 million for 5 years. Even if he gets a new contract he is not gaining much considering he already is on the middle of a $147 million contract with the Dodgers. The only reasoning behind his decision to opt out would be either, because he hasn’t won with the Dodgers yet and doesn’t think he ever will, or it’s just the natural thing to do with agents greedy of big pay days. However, the Dodgers must re-sign #21 if they are to compete for the championship in 2016.
Yes, this year is an exceptional year considering the amount of elite starting pitchers on the market, but Greinke will absolutely be the top target coming off of a potential Cy Young Award winning campaign. Greinke has been an elite ace for years now, but has reached a whole new level after what he accomplished in 2015. During his 3 seasons with the Blue Crew he has recorded a record of 51-15 with a 2.33 ERA. He may not be a Kershaw like going 9 innings leading the league in shutouts and complete games, but after a season when 94% of his starts were of quality, he is a must re-sign. 2015 only made it clearer that LA is the place for him. By the way, Greinke also has a gold glove and a sliver slugger, making him a triple threat pitcher.
Clayton Kershaw is certainly great enough to lead the team to the Series and over the obstacles that the Dodgers have not been able to climb over the past few seasons, but with Grenkie the chances are more likely to win it all. What the two have accomplished atop the rotation the past 3 seasons have declared them as one of the best duos baseball has seen in decades. By not re-signing him, the Dodgers can surely sign a Jordan Zimmermann or David Price, or just develop their young stars even more in Corey Seager, Julio Urias, and Joc Pederson with the combination of big contract stars, but it might take a year or two to win the Series.
Hopefully the Dodgers can see that Don Mattingly doesn’t have the skill set to lead the team to the Fall Classic, thus hiring a better fit for the managerial position, but even then without Greinke, 2016 will not be the year of a championship. A new manager will hopefully be able to manage the bullpen in the way Ned Yost has handled his in KC, which has been the main reason for Mattingly failing to win the NL. In 2016 Joc Pederson will be more mature, Seager will be the starting shortstop, injured starting pitchers will be back, and Kershaw of course will be in LA, but with Greinke’s returning 1.66 ERA, the Dodgers will certainly be favorites.
