Dodgers All-Star Free Agent Jack Flaherty Drawing Interest From 5 Teams
The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired current free agent Jack Flaherty at the 2024 trade deadline, fulfilling his childhood dream of being a Dodger.
After helping his dream team win an eighth World Series championship, it is becoming increasingly more likely he will not return to the franchise. Due to the Dodgers having a jam-packed pitching rotation heading into 2025, the Burbank native is drawing interest from five teams around MLB.
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Perhaps a move that could land the 28-year-old in familiar territory is signing with the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles lost 2021 Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes to the Arizona Diamondbacks as he agreed to a six-year $210 million deal to head to Phoenix. This opens up the Orioles for a potential Flaherty reunion, who was acquired in 2023.
Additionally, Ken Rosenthal reported, “Jack Flaherty is one fallback option for the Orioles if, as expected, they fail to re-sign Corbin Burnes” earlier last month. If Baltimore is sticking to that same strategy, we very well may see Flaherty in Baltimore again.
Flaherty’s days in Baltimore were forgettable, posting a 6.75 ERA and -0.6 WAR in just nine appearances, but a 2025 reunion would not be completely out of the question given the current state of the free agent pitching market.
Burnes is off the market, Max Fried signed with the New York Yankees, and Blake Snell is a Dodger. Flaherty seems like the next best option for Baltimore. Flaherty can redeem himself with Orioles fans while assuming the ace role Baltimore no longer has with the departure of Burnes.
Other teams reportedly showing interest in Flaherty are the San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue Jays, Detroit Tigers, and the Chicago Cubs.
The case for the Giants is very similar to the Orioles. Both teams were in on the Corbin Burnes sweepstakes and both teams did not end up with him. San Francisco is also where Just Baseball’s Ryan Finklestein predicts Flaherty will land.
A team that should not be ruled out is the Detroit Tigers — another potential reunion, but this time with a better memory of the veteran. Flaherty made 18 starts for Detroit with an impressive 2.95 ERA and a WAR of 2.4 last season.
Flaherty is the perfect complement to Tigers ace Tarik Skubal. Detroit also made a somewhat unexpected run into the postseason in 2024, and assuming they keep up that momentum, Flaherty will only add to the success — as he did last year before the trade deadline.
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Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
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