Dodgers Players React To Clayton Kershaw’s Record-Breaking Extension
Yesterday afternoon the Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw signed a record-breaking seven-year, $215 million contract. The 25-year-old lefty filed for salary arbitration on Tuesday and it was evident that both sides wanted to avoid that as much as possible.
While there were reports that he wanted to test free agency, the Dodgers will get the prime of Kershaw’s career and at age 30, he’s able to opt-out. With the deal, a whole fanbase can breathe a sigh of relief knowing the best pitcher in baseball will be wearing Dodger Blue for at least the next five-to-seven years.
Even though the deal hasn’t been officially announced by the team (expected tomorrow), several Dodgers players took to Twitter and the radio waves to discuss what the signing means:
Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis is quite excited his batterymate will be in LA long-term:
Big winner today……me. I am blessed to catch best in the game for foreseeable future God willing. Congrats Kersh!
— AJ Ellis (@AJEllis17) January 15, 2014
Outfielder Matt Kemp also chimed in:
Congrats 2 the best pitcher in baseball and great teammate @ClaytonKersh22 on his deal!
— Matt Kemp (@TheRealMattKemp) January 15, 2014
Pitching coach Rick Honeycutt spoke to MLB Network Radio about the ace:
Honeycutt: (Kershaw’s) progression up till now has been handled extremely well and he’s proven to be worthy of this contract
— MLB Network Radio (@MLBNetworkRadio) January 16, 2014
Former Dodger Todd Coffey was also congratulatory:
Coffey on Kershaw:”I’m thrilled for him and the team. He is a terrific man, helps out in the community and the neighborhood, and helps team”
— MLB Network Radio (@MLBNetworkRadio) January 16, 2014
Closer Kenley Jansen was also thrilled to hear the news:
Jansen on Kershaw: “It’s pretty awesome, he’s one of the great pitchers in baseball, and we’ll have him a long, long time”
— MLB Network Radio (@MLBNetworkRadio) January 16, 2014
It’s clear that Kershaw’s current and former teammates are excited to have him back and Dodger fans everywhere can breathe a little easier knowing he’s locked up for the foreseeable future.
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ICYMI: The Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw agreed to a record-breaking contract extension