Why Dodgers Reportedly Modified Deal For Ex-Red Sox Pitcher James Paxton

The Los Angeles Dodgers inked former Boston Red Sox pitcher James Paxton to a one-year, $13 million deal last week to bolster their starting rotation.

But the contract Paxton signed reportedly had some tweaking done after the fact.

According to The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya and Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers lowered the guaranteed money Paxton will receive in the deal due to an “unspecified health concern.” Paxton was set to make $11 million guaranteed but now will make $7 million guaranteed.

“The issue, while not serious enough to scuttle the deal, resulted in a reworking of the structure of the contract,” Ardaya and Rosenthal wrote.

Ardaya and Rosenthal noted that Paxton’s reworked contract puts more weight on him being ready to pitch at the start of the season. Paxton reportedly has a $2 million bonus if he’s on the active roster for the Dodgers’ season opener on March 20 in Seoul, Korea or for when Los Angeles has its home opener on March 28.

Injuries have been at the center of Paxton’s 10-year Major League Baseball career. Paxton pitched just 1 1/3 innings in 2021 due to an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery, which knocked him out for the following year as well. Paxton hasn’t made more than 20 starts in a season since 2019.

The Dodgers are buying into the fact that Paxton can still produce when he’s on the mound. He went 7-5 with a 4.50 ERA in 19 starts for the Red Sox last season while fanning 101 batters in 96 innings.