ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Los Angeles Dodgers finalized their second major move this offseason on Saturday, acquiring Tyler Glasnow from the Tampa Bay Rays in a four-player trade after the pitcher agreed to a $136.5 million, five-year contract.
Los Angeles also received outfielder Manuel Margot and sent the Rays young right-hander Ryan Pepiot and outfielder Jonny DeLuca.
A week after signing free agent Shohei Ohtani to a record $700 million, 10-year contract to bolster an already potent lineup, the Dodgers addressed a need for pitching help with the addition of an often-injured, hard-throwing right-hander with a track record of being a dominant performer when healthy.
A 30-year-old right-hander, Glasnow had one season remaining at $25 million and would have been eligible for free agency after next season. The teams reached a tentative agreement on the trade Thursday and were given a 72-hour window by Major League Baseball running through Sunday for the Dodgers to negotiate with Glasnow on a new deal.
Glasnow went 10-7 with a 3.53 ERA while setting career highs for starts (21), innings pitched (120) and strikeouts (162) in 2023. Without a new contract, he would have been eligible to become a free agent after the 2024 World Series.
Margot, a .255 career hitter, batted .264 with four home runs and 38 RBIs in 99 games with the Rays in 2023. Parting ways with him enabled Tampa Bay to save even more money as the 29-year-old outfielder is owed $10 million next season, plus a $2 million buyout on a $12 million option for 2025.
The Rays acquired Glasnow, along with outfielder Austin Meadows and pitcher Shane Baz, at the trade deadline in 2018 in a deal that sent one-time Tampa Bay ace Chris Archer to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Saturday’s cost-cutting move continues a trend that’s seen the team depart with other front-line pitchers.
Right-hander James Shields also was an All-Star before being dealt to the Kansas City Royals in December 2012. Lefties David Price and Blake Snell both won AL Cy Young awards with Tampa Bay before being dealt to the Detroit Tigers and San Diego Padres in July 2014 and December 2020, respectively.
In each case, the return for the Rays has included promising young prospects or players who helped the budget-minded franchise remain playoff contenders while also keeping the club’s payroll at a manageable level.
Pepiot, 26, made his major league debut with the Dodgers in 2022 and has appeared in 21 games, going 5-1 with a 2.76 ERA with 80 in 78 1/3 innings. He was 2-1 with a 2.14 ERA in three starts and five relief appearances this year after beginning the season on the injured list after straining his left oblique in his final spring training start.
DeLuca, 25, is a right-handed hitter who batted .262 with two homers and six RBIs in 24 games for Los Angeles last season.
Glasnow had Tommy John surgery in August 2021 and missed most of the following season before returning to the major leagues on Sept. 28, 2022. He sat out the first two months of 2023 due to a left oblique strain suffered during spring training, returned to the rotation in late May and helped the team reach the playoffs for a fifth consecutive year.
Over portions of eight seasons with the Pirates and Rays, the right-hander is 30-27 with a 3.89 ERA over 127 games, including 88 starts. Glasnow started all 71 games he pitched with the Rays, compiling a 27-16 record with a 3.20 ERA with 678 strikeouts over 388 1/3 innings.
He slots into the Dodgers rotation along with Walker Buehler and Bobby Miller. Buehler is expected back back after rehabbing from his second Tommy John surgery, which ended his season early in 2022 and kept him out all of 2023.
Los Angeles still needs more pitching. Three-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw is a free agent who underwent shoulder surgery on Nov. 3, and the 35-year-old lefty has yet to decide where or when he might pitch next season.
With Glasnow moving on and injured starters Shane McClanahan, Drew Rasmussen and Jeffrey Springs all expected to miss either all or a significant portion of next season, the Rays face the challenge of re-tooling a rotation headed by right-handers Zach Eflin and Aaron Civale.
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