Clayton Kershaw Can Earn Over $37 Million in New Dodgers Contract

The Los Angeles Dodgers made Clayton Kershaw’s return official a week ago, when he signed a one-year deal with the team that includes a player option for the 2025 season. The deal guarantees $10 million for Kershaw in 2024, and his 2025 salary would start at $5 million.

More information has come out on Kershaw’s contract, revealing that the 35-year-old pitcher can make up to $37.5 million from his latest contract through incentives.

With incentives, Kershaw can make up to $12 million total in 2024, and another $25 million in 2025. Kershaw can earn these incentives in 2024 by making a start or relief appearance for at least three innings. If Kershaw does this six times, he will earn $1 million. If he makes this start/appearance seven, eight or nine times, he’ll earn $1.5 million in incentive. He’ll make $2 million for 10 such starts/appearances.

Each of these incentive figures will double if Kershaw is healthy and takes the player option in 2025, which would give him $2 million for six starts or relief appearances, $3 million for seven, eight or nine appearances, and $4 million for 10 such appearances, via the Associated Press.

Kershaw will have to wait until July or August to get these starts and appearances, which is when he believes he can be ready to pitch after undergoing to surgery to fix the glenohumeral ligaments and capsule in his left shoulder.

Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

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