The Dodgers and free agent left-hander James Paxton, represented by Scott Boras, came to an agreement on a one-year contract last month that would pay the 35-year-old pitcher $11 million in 2024 with incentives that could take it higher.

Pending a physical.

After Paxton’s physical, the two sides went back to work, restructuring the contract to assuage some of the Dodgers’ concerns about the left-hander’s injury history. They settled on a $4 million salary, a $3 million signing bonus, a roster bonus and performance bonuses that will pay him $600,000 each for making six, eight, 10, 12, 16 and 18 games started this season, giving Paxton a chance to make as much as $13 million if he stays healthy.

“I’m an older player now, and I’m not perfect anymore. My body’s not perfect,” Paxton said of the restructuring. “So there’s things that have kind of built up over the years. But I’m feeling really good right now. All the physical tests are really good. I’m feeling strong and ready. We were able to figure things out and just make a plan for me going forward, how to build up and manage my load.”

Paxton said it was nothing specific that came up during the physical – “just my body.” But he acknowledged the Dodgers were “worried” about the right knee injury that ended his season early last year with the Boston Red Sox.

‘They wanted to talk about that,” he said. “Obviously, going through the Tommy John (surgery in 2021) and talking about how my elbow was feeling and stuff like that. But that was about it.”

Paxton returned from the elbow surgery to go 7-5 with a 4.50 ERA in 19 starts for the Sox last season, his heaviest workload since 2019. But his season wasn’t built equally.

After going 5-1 with a 2.73 ERA in his first 10 starts, Paxton was 2-4 with a 6.98 ERA in nine starts after the All-Star break before his season ended in early September.

“The second half, I started to get pretty tired,” he said. “It had been 2½ years since I pitched, and the innings kind of built up there. I was going pretty deep into ballgames there for quite awhile and I just ran out of gas there at end. Then my body started to bark at me a little bit, my knee and stuff like that. So I wasn’t able to execute pitches the way that I needed.”

Paxton threw a bullpen session during Saturday’s workout at Camelback Ranch and said he has “no doubt” he will be ready to join the Dodgers’ starting rotation to start the season. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said he doesn’t think Paxton will have any physical issues that prevent him from opening the season when needed.

“We don’t think so. He feels really good and strong,” Friedman said. “Obviously we weren’t around him last season so it’s hard. It’s harder. If you’re around someone, you see how they’re recovering, the treatment they’re getting, things that we can do to help. You have a much better feel for that with someone who’s been with you before. Someone who hasn’t, it’s harder.

“But he’s incredibly confident. We feel good about it. … He is a full go and ready to get after it and excited to be here.”

MEDIA MADNESS

Before Friday’s workout, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts compared the attention surrounding Shohei Ohtani this spring to the large media group that followed the San Francisco Giants when Barry Bonds was closing in on the home run record.

Roberts was a teammate of Bonds during his final season and found himself doing a lot of interviews when Bonds – notoriously unfriendly with the media – wouldn’t talk.

Ohtani’s time with the press was limited during his days in Anaheim and Roberts was asked to nominate a teammate with the Dodgers to be the Japanese media’s go-to alternative for interviews about Ohtani. He suggested veteran Jason Heyward and Heyward was surprised to find his locker surrounded by media before Saturday’s workout.

“Shohei is the guy to talk about Shohei,” Heyward said when told of Roberts’ suggestion.

Approximately 60 reporters and photographers have been credentialed for spring training, more than triple the usual number. Heyward was asked if that could become a distraction this year and told reporters “it’s harder if you guys make it harder.”

“We start officially on Tuesday. So it hasn’t felt like anything yet,” said Heyward, one of several position players already in camp.

Roberts said he would likely address the issue of dealing with the greater media attention this season with the team.

“I do think that when you put this uniform on, there’s a certain standard in how you go about things,” he said. “Appreciating the fact that there’s more responsibility, more autographs to sign, more media probably to contend with and stuff out in the community. Then obviously on the field, there is an expectation. … I don’t know if we’re prepared for it. I think that we’re going to learn as we go. But I think that’s what we’re in store for.

“It’s going to be a learning curve for everyone. But I think that part of my messaging to the players is going to be, it comes with the territory. I think that the expectations of winning, the expectations of answering questions when you don’t feel like it, it’s part of the job. I think that, yeah, playing is first and foremost, but to sort of grow this pie of Major League Baseball, that’s part of the deal.”

OFFENSIVE TACKLE

Right-hander Bobby Miller is wearing uniform number 28 this year after wearing 70 as a rookie last season. Miller said he “just always liked that number” – which J.D. Martinez wore for the Dodgers last season.

“I just wanted to get out of the offensive linemen numbers this year,” Miller joked.

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani pauses as he speaks to reporters during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, center, with interpreter Ippei Mizuhara, right, speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, center, with interpreter Ippei Mizuhara, right, speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, center, with interpreter Ippei Mizuhara, right, speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, center, with interpreter Ippei Mizuhara, right, speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani smiles as he speaks to reporters on the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, foreground, walks to the workout fields during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto follows through during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto stretches during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, center, adjusts his cap as he talks with teammates and staff on the field during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto walks to the workout fields followed by media during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto walks to the workout fields during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws in the outfield during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto leaps for a ball during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers shortstop Gavin Lux, wearing a knee brace, looks to throw to first base during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers shortstop Gavin Lux throws to first base during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler throws off a mound during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers manager Dave Roberts walks to the field during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, right, stands with shortstop Gavin Lux, second from right, on the field during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  Dodgers pitcher James Paxton throws during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  A child wearing a Shohei Ohtani jersey and cap rides on their father’s shoulders during the first day of Dodgers spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu trains during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  New Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu trains during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  From left, Dodgers teammates right fielder Jason Heyward, center fielder James Outman and third baseman Max Muncy walk from the field during the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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  As the sun rises on a cold morning, members of the media walk to the entrance of Camelback Ranch before the first day of spring training workouts on Friday at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

GLENDALE, Ariz. — The evidence is everywhere. This is not a normal spring at Camelback Ranch.

The parking lot outside the entrance to the Dodgers’ training complex has been lined with dozens of Japanese reporters as early as 6 a.m. each day this week, cameras pointed to capture any glimpse of the new guy in camp. Security has been tightened with even credentialed media being scrutinized at a level unfamiliar during the normally relaxed early days of spring training.

And the No. 17 jerseys – clean, white and fresh off the shelves – seemed to be on the backs of every other fan walking the grounds at Camelback Ranch as the Dodgers’ pitchers and catchers went through their first workout of the spring on Friday.

“I’ve still got to pinch myself to see him in a Dodger uniform,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of the object of all this attention, the team’s new $700 million man, Shohei Ohtani.

Even Ohtani himself can feel how things have changed with his move from the Angels to the Dodgers this winter.

“I’m on a brand new team so I’m going to act like I’m a rookie and try to get along with all the guys, and get along with my teammates,” Ohtani said through his interpreter.

“I like to go up and say hi, introduce myself. But there are so many new people that I have to make sure I don’t introduce myself twice. If I do, hopefully they’ll let it go.”

While the signs of Ohtani’s presence are evident at the Dodgers’ facility, the man himself will be largely out of view for now.

Last year’s elbow surgery means that Ohtani pitching in 2024 is “not on the table,” Roberts said. But the DH arrived in camp Monday and began hitting off a pitching machine at CBR, a significant step forward in his recovery that puts him on track to debut in the Dodgers’ lineup when they open the season in South Korea on March 20.

“My swing, effort level-wise, is almost 100 percent,” Ohtani said Friday. “My next step is facing live arms or facing some velo from the machine.”

After his first elbow surgery in 2018, Ohtani’s hitting-only debut in 2019 was delayed until May and he didn’t pitch again until the pandemic-shortened 2020 season when he made just two starts before being shut down with a flexor strain.

Balancing his preparation as a hitter while rehabbing as a pitcher will be easier this time around, Ohtani said.

“This is not my first time doing this, rehabbing while getting ready for the season,” he said. “I did this back in ’19 so I kind of know how to do it and I feel like it’ll be easier the second time around.”

Being able to focus on hitting this season has Ohtani confident that he can more than meet expectations in his first season with the Dodgers.

“I feel like there’s not just one level but several levels ahead offense-wise,” said Ohtani who set career-highs with a .304 batting average and 1.066 OPS while winning his second American League MVP award with the Angels last season.

Whatever numbers Ohtani puts up this season, he has already made a good first impression.

“Obviously we knew his work ethic was top shelf, but to see how deliberate everything he does is, our training staff commented that they’ve never seen a guy returning from surgery that is so intentional about every single thing they do,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. “From every swing he takes. Most guys kind of get in the cage and they just mindlessly swing. He does his whole pre-pitch routine between every pitch. Just how intentional every single thing he does is, whether it’s in the weight room, out on the field, that you can’t really fully appreciate until you see it.”

 KERSHAW CONTRACT

The Dodgers made their signing of Clayton Kershaw official on Friday and added him to the roster (with Tony Gonsolin moved to the 60-day injured list).

“We’ve said this a lot, but it feels like everything is right in the world when Kershaw is wearing Dodger blue,” Friedman said.

Kershaw’s contract will pay him $5 million in salary this season with an additional $7.5 million in incentives if he makes as many as 10 starts. Recovering from shoulder surgery in November, Kershaw is not expected to pitch until sometime in the second half of the season.

Unlike the past two seasons when he signed one-year contracts, Kershaw’s deal this time includes a player option for a second season. The base salary in 2025 would be $5 million again with bonuses again.

“Right now, I’m sure he’s saying the right things,” Friedman said of Kershaw, who estimated a return in “July-ish, August-ish.”

“But knowing him, he’s going to start pushing probably earlier than the doctors suggest and recommend. But so much of a guy returning from surgery – there’s a couple factors that play a large part in that, one is who is the surgeon? And two is how much can you bet on them and the rehab process and how he’ll attack it. Those boxes couldn’t have been checked in a more resounding way. We feel good that he will come and contribute and be a big part of what we do. The when? We’re not sure yet.”

“They didn’t really help too much honestly,” Kershaw said. “They were kind of indifferent.”

But Kershaw found he wasn’t indifferent about it. He had shoulder surgery in November and wound up re-signing with the Dodgers.

“I really never made a big decision in my life,” said Kershaw, who reported to Camelback Ranch and took his physical on Thursday. “I got drafted by the Dodgers. I married the same girl from high school. I didn’t have many decisions to make along the way. This was really kind of the first offseason where I had some choices to make and it wasn’t easy.”

The Dodgers’ 2023 season ended abruptly with a first-round playoff loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks and “you had to get away from the season a little bit” before thinking about his future. Pitching with an injured shoulder, Kershaw’s lone playoff start was a disaster and he “didn’t want to go out that way.”

“I think that was ultimately how I came to it,” he said.

“I went home and the season, the way it ended especially for our team and for me personally, wasn’t fun at all. A lot of doubts, a lot of different things and just really had to sit back on, if I wanted to do this it became pretty evident that I had to fix it and get surgery.“

Dr. Neal ElAttrache performed the surgery to repair the glenohumeral ligaments and capsule in Kershaw’s pitching shoulder. After three months of rehab, Kershaw started his throwing program last week and isn’t sure when his 17th season with the Dodgers will begin.

“Honestly I think summer is about as good as I can do,” he said. “It’s probably not early summer. … I hate saying a timetable because if I go below it or beyond it, it’s not good. But I would say July-ish, August-ish. Somewhere in there. I don’t know.”

The three-time Cy Young Award winner is more definitive about how he expects to pitch when he returns to the mound.

“I expect to be good,” he said. “I’ve said it before, I don’t want to be average. I don’t want to just pitch to pitch. I wanna be good. I wanna contribute and be part of this. So yeah, my expectations are no concessions. Just be good.”

Kershaw won’t be around for much of spring training. He returned home after taking his physical and doesn’t plan to return to camp until March “for a few weeks.” Once the season starts, he said he will join the team for homestands and then go back to Texas with his family when the Dodgers go on the road.

That will make Kershaw an interested observer of the Dodgers’ most anticipated season, perhaps in franchise history.

“This offseason has been pretty amazing to watch, honestly,” Kershaw said of the additions of Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow. “There’s definitely a part of me that wanted to be a part of that, part of this team. Winning an offseason doesn’t mean anything, but it’s a pretty good clubhouse of guys. The talent is probably the best I’ve ever been a part of. I’m hopeful that I can be a part of it, too.”

Kershaw took note of the extra media attention the presence of Ohtani and Yamamoto has already drawn this spring. Approximately 40 Japanese reporters were on hand Thursday as pitchers and catchers reported to Camelback Ranch.

“I think it’ll be like this pretty much the whole season, if not more,” Kershaw said. “I just talked to him (Ohtani) a little bit, I don’t know him super well. But he seems like he’s got a great head on his shoulders and he can handle it.

“Honestly, it should be good for our other guys. I think Mookie, Freddie – they’re superstars in their own right. But, I mean, the attention is going to be on Shohei 24/7. I think he can handle it from what I’ve seen and I think it should be good for our team.”

Kershaw said he has only seen videos of Yamamoto in action. But he is aware of the Japanese right-hander’s unique workout regimen – including throwing a javelin to build arm strength.

“Maybe I need to learn the javelin to come back,” Kershaw joked.

ALSO

The signing of right-hander Ryan Brasier was made official Thursday. Brasier will receive $4.5 million in salary each of the next two seasons with incentives that could make the two-year contract worth as much as $13 million. Right-hander Dustin May was placed on the 60-day Injured List to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Brasier. …

Dodgers signed veteran infielder Chris Owings to a minor-league contract with an invitation to major-league camp. Owings, 32, has spent parts of 11 seasons in the majors with six different teams, primarily the Diamondbacks.

The Dodgers have used their financial muscles annually since the Guggenheim Group took over ownership, carrying one of – and frequently – the highest payrolls in baseball each season.

But this winter’s billion-dollar flex took things to another level.

The Dodgers have done the ‘super team’ thing before. But they open spring training this week having bought and paid for (or put on layaway to pay later) the best free agents available this winter – domestic (Shohei Ohtani) and international (Yoshinobu Yamamoto) – and one of the best players to change teams via trade (Tyler Glasnow), adding in a few extras (Teoscar Hernandez and James Paxton) along the way.

This spending spree was not universally cheered.

“There’s just something about those guys that you don’t like. Can’t explain it,” San Francisco Giant ace Logan Webb said after the Dodgers’ binge. “It kind of added to that.

“Giants players, we all texted each other. We didn’t like it.”

Former Dodgers right-hander Ross Stripling started the winter as one of those Giants players before a trade to the Oakland A’s. On a podcast, he said the Dodgers had crossed a line with this winter’s moves.

“The way I look at it is that they are just going full villain mode in a way,” Stripling said. “They’ve always had the payroll. But they’ve done an unbelievable job in drafting and developing talent. I think that World Series team (in 2020) had, like, 16 homegrown Dodgers on it. Now, it’s Freddie. It’s Mookie. It’s Shohei and Yamamoto and they’re coming for everybody.”

Stripling is not wrong.

Of the 27 players who appeared in the 2020 World Series for the Dodgers, 13 of them were homegrown products. The roster most likely to break camp and head for the season-opening games in South Korea this spring could have as few as five homegrown Dodgers on it with only three – Will Smith, James Outman and Gavin Lux – likely to be in a starting lineup dominated by high-dollar imports like Ohtani, Betts and Freeman.

But if anyone doesn’t like the way the Dodgers spent their money – too bad, Betts said.

“If you’ve got it, then you can, you know?” he said. “You do things that other people can’t do. That’s what makes you good, right? That’s what makes people better than the next guy, because he can put out more power than the next guy. He can do this better than the next guy.

“Somebody’s bankroll may be a little bit longer. There’s nothing you can do about it. … They used it. Sorry.”

Betts’ economic philosophy is endorsed by his teammates.

“I think Mookie said it best – what do you want us to do?” third baseman Max Muncy said. “We’re trying to win. We’re assembling a good team. … If people want to call us the villains, that’s fine. It doesn’t change who we are in the clubhouse. It doesn’t change who we are to our fans. It doesn’t change who we are in the stadium. We’ve got to go out there and perform.”

Shortstop Gavin Lux dismissed any criticism that what the Dodgers did this winter was “bad for baseball.”

“I don’t see how. I think Mookie said it the best – how can you not go out there and try to get the best players possible?” Lux said. “Twenty-nine other teams could have done it. So I don’t see how it could be bad for baseball if everybody else could have done it. Like Mookie said, what do you expect us to not try to get the best guys to win? Our goal is to win a World Series so of course we’re going to go get the best guys out there. I don’t know why you wouldn’t do that.”

The Dodgers have won a lot over the past 11 seasons – an average of 99 wins in the 10 full seasons (including 100 or more in each of the past four) and 10 division titles. But they have just one short-season championship to show for it – a championship devalued in some eyes – and back-to-back first-round playoff failures the past two Octobers.

This winter’s spending spree is already seen in some quarters as an attempt to correct that by buying another championship.

“Believe me, I wish buying a championship meant we win a championship,” Freeman said. “But I think anyone in this game knows how hard it is to win a championship. I’m just glad our ownership gave us a chance to do it. That’s really all you can ask for as players. To give us the best chance to win a World Series this year and many, many more beyond, that’s your ultimate goal.”

This winter’s acquisitions are not short-term investments. Ohtani signed for 10 years, Yamamoto for 12, Glasnow for five.

Ohtani was asked what the Dodgers have to do now to make those investments be seen as wise.

“I mean, the only choice is winning the World Series,” Ohtani said through his interpreter.

Is Gavin Lux ready to be the everyday shortstop?

Lux went into spring training last year penciled in to move back to his original position, replacing Trea Turner who left as a high-priced free agent – after Turner had replaced Corey Seager who also left as a high-priced free agent. But Lux suffered a serious knee injury during a spring training exhibition game and missed the entire 2023 season.

Lux was asked at last weekend’s DodgerFest event if there was any doubt he would be ready to go when the season starts.

“Nope,” he said. “I’ll be in Korea.”

When will Walker Buehler join the starting rotation?

The Dodgers plan to be cautious with Buehler in his return from a second Tommy John surgery performed in August 2022. That means an innings limit on him this season – likely less than 150 innings, allowing for more in a deep postseason run.

Buehler has been throwing bullpen sessions at Dodger Stadium already. But he will be “slow-played” during the spring and might not make his regular-season debut until May.

When will Shohei Ohtani be ready to hit?

The Dodgers already know that the two-way star will not pitch again until 2025 after having a second reconstructive surgery on his elbow last year. The question is how much of an impact that surgery will have on Ohtani’s ability to start the season in the Dodgers’ lineup at DH.

Ohtani said he was “very confident” he will be in the lineup when the Dodgers play in Seoul, South Korea on March 20. But so far, his swinging has been limited to hitting off a tee or soft tosses.

What will the top of the order look like?

Betts-Freeman-Ohtani? Betts-Ohtani-Freeman?

How the Dodgers arrange their collection of MVPs in the lineup is what Manager Dave Roberts calls a “high-class problem.”

Roberts has indicated that he wants to talk it through with the trio at some point before Cactus League games start. But from the stage at DodgerFest, he told fans it would be Mookie Betts leading off followed by Freddie Freeman batting second and Ohtani third.

Are there bullpen reinforcements on the way?

Blake Treinen and J.P. Feyereisen spent last year rehabbing from shoulder surgeries. Daniel Hudson returned from a knee injury in June only to suffer a season-ending injury to the other knee three games later.

All three veterans will be in camp this spring, trying to prove they are healthy enough to return to a major-league mound.

WHO’S IN?

DH Shohei Ohtani, signed as a free agent from the Angels

RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, signed as a free agent (Japan)

RHP Tyler Glasnow, acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay

OF Teoscar Hernandez, signed as a free agent from Seattle

OF Manuel Margot, acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay

LHP Matt Gage, acquired in a trade with the New York Yankees

LHP James Paxton, signed as a free agent from Boston

WHO’S OUT?

DH J.D. Martinez, unsigned free agent

IF-OF Kiké Hernandez, unsigned free agent

RHP Ryan Pepiot, traded to Tampa Bay

OF Jonny DeLuca, traded to Tampa Bay

LHP Caleb Ferguson, traded to the Yankees

LHP Victor Gonzalez, traded to the Yankees

OF David Peralta, unsigned free agent

IF Amed Rosario, unsigned free agent

IF Michael Busch, traded to the Chicago Cubs

RHP Lance Lynn, signed as free agent with St. Louis

RHP Yency Almonte, traded to the Cubs

RHP Shelby Miller, signed as a free agent with Detroit

NON-ROSTER INVITEES

RHP Daniel Hudson

RHP Nabil Crismatt

RHP Dinelson Lamet

RHP Jesse Hahn

RHP River Ryan

RHP Kevin Gowdy

RHP Elieser Hernandez

RHP Michael Petersen

RHP Eduardo Salazar

LHP T.J. McFarland

LHP Stephen Gonsalves

C Chris Okey

C Dalton Rushing

IF Jonathan Arauz

IF Austin Gauthier

IF Trey Sweeney

IF Kevin Padlo

OF Drew Avans

OF Jose Ramos

OF Travis Swaggerty

OF Ryan Ward

Friday: First workout for pitchers and catchers

Feb. 13 – Position players report

Feb. 14 – First full-squad workout

Feb. 22 – First Cactus League game vs. Padres in Peoria, 12:10 p.m. PT

Feb. 23 – First Cactus League game at Camelback Ranch vs. Padres, 12:05 p.m. PT

Feb. 24 – Dodgers vs. Angels Cactus League game in Tempe, 12:10 p.m. PT

March 5 – Dodgers vs. Angels at Camelback Ranch, 5 p.m. PT

March 17 – Dodgers vs. Kiwoom Heroes in Seoul, South Korea

March 18 – Dodgers vs. Korean National Team in Seoul South Korea

March 20 – Regular-season opener, Dodgers vs. Padres in Seoul, South Korea, 3 a.m. PT

March 21 – Dodgers vs. Padres in Seoul, South Korea, 3 a.m. PT

March 24 – Freeway Series (exhibition), Dodgers vs. Angels at Dodger Stadium, 4:10 p.m. PT

March 25 – Freeway Series (exhibition), Dodgers vs. Angels at Dodger Stadium, 6:10 p.m. PT

March 26 – Freeway Series (exhibition), Dodgers vs. Angels at Angel Stadium, 6 p.m. PT

March 28 – Home opener, Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals, 1:10 p.m. PT

The Dodgers have reached agreement on a contract with the unsigned free agent which will allow Kershaw to rejoin the team when he has recovered from shoulder surgery performed in November. The 35-year-old left-hander is not expected to pitch again until some time after the All-Star break.

The contract will not become official until later in the week after Kershaw completes his physical. The Dodgers can place players on the 60-day injured list beginning Thursday, allowing them to add Kershaw without clearing a spot on the 40-man roster.

This would be Kershaw’s 17th season with the Dodgers. The three-time Cy Young Award winner is 210-92 with a 2.48 ERA while holding opposing batters to a .209 average with a franchise-record 2,944 strikeouts and just 669 walks. He has also made 39 appearances in the postseason (32 starts), with a 13-13 record, a 4.49 ERA and 213 strikeouts.

Last season, Kershaw went 13-5 with a 2.46 ERA in 24 starts. Plagued by back injuries in recent seasons, he missed five weeks in July and August with a shoulder injury this time. He returned to pitch in August and September but was pitching with diminished velocity and struggled in his one postseason start, retiring just one batter and allowing six runs in a loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 1 of the National League Division Series. He was preparing to start again in Game 4, but the Dodgers were swept in three games, marking the second straight year they had been eliminated in their first round by a division rival.

In November, Dr. Neal ElAttrache performed surgery to repair the glenohumeral ligaments and capsule in Kershaw’s pitching shoulder. At the time, Kershaw posted on Instagram that he hoped to pitch again “at some point next summer.”

The Dodgers remained in contact with Kershaw following his surgery with President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman saying the team “absolutely” would welcome Kershaw back when he is healthy.

“We are very respectful of Clayton and Ellen’s decision and giving them the time and space to make the best decision for their family,” Friedman said. “But selfishly, we hope it’s to continue and finish his career in Dodger blue.”

Kershaw has signed one-year contracts with the Dodgers before each of the past two seasons, giving consideration to signing with the Texas Rangers so he could finish his career pitching in his hometown. That possibility has dimmed this year and Kershaw’s new deal will reportedly include a player option for the 2025 season, which would allow him to potentially spend 2025 in the same rotation with Shohei Ohtani.

The Dodgers can afford to wait for him to take his time rehabbing this season. New additions Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto will anchor the top of their rotation at the start of the season, and Walker Buehler, recovering from his second Tommy John surgery, is expected to join shortly thereafter. The Dodgers also signed veteran James Paxton and have Bobby Miller returning, with the likes of Emmet Sheehan, Michael Grove and Gavin Stone also available to contribute.

Free-agent right-hander Ryan Brasier reportedly agreed to a two-year deal to return to the Dodgers. The contract will pay him $9 million with incentives that could add to that. The move is not official until the Dodgers clear a spot on their 40-man roster.

Additionally, the Dodgers traded left-hander Caleb Ferguson to the New York Yankees in exchange for two pitchers – left-hander Matt Gage and 19-year-old right-hander Christian Zazueta Jr.

Ferguson spent five seasons with the Dodgers, missing the 2021 season while recovering from his second Tommy John surgery. The 27-year-old lefty signed a one-year contract for $2.4 million earlier this offseason, avoiding arbitration. He will be eligible for free agency next winter.

Ferguson was 18-9 with five saves and a 3.43 ERA in 201 games for the Dodgers. He tied with Brusdar Graterol with a team-high 68 appearances last season including seven starts as an “opener.” He did not pitch well in that role, allowing five runs in 6⅔ innings.

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The 36-year-old Brasier was a key piece of the Dodgers’ 2023 bullpen, helping turn the relief corps around after a poor first two months of the season.

After six seasons with the Boston Red Sox (including the 2018 World Series championship), Brasier was released in May with a 7.29 ERA after 20 appearances. The Dodgers signed him and encouraged him to add a cutter to his pitch mix. The result was a 0.70 ERA, 38 strikeouts and only 18 hits in 38⅔ innings for the Dodgers.

In Gage, the Dodgers get a well-traveled 30-year-old who has pitched in five organizations, the Mexican League and independent baseball. Gage had a 1.83 ERA in 16 major league games for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2022 and the Houston Astros last season. He was claimed on waivers by the Yankees last month.

Swapping Ferguson for Gage gives the Dodgers some roster flexibility. Ferguson is out of options and could not be sent to the minors without clearing waivers first. Gage can be optioned throughout the season.

Ferguson is the second left-handed reliever sent to the Yankees by the Dodgers this winter. Victor Gonzalez was also traded earlier this offseason in exchange for minor league infielder Trey Sweeney.

Zazueta has spent the past two seasons playing for the Yankees team in the Dominican Summer League, going 3-5 with a 4.54 ERA. His father has played in the Mexican League for the past 19 seasons, primarily as an outfielder, collecting over 1900 hits.

Dodgers pitchers and catchers report to Camelback Ranch on Thursday with the first spring training workout scheduled for Friday. The first full-squad workout is scheduled for Feb. 14.

2023 RECAP

The Dodgers’ bullpen went from a massive liability to a strength over the course of the 2023 season. The relievers had a 5.05 ERA through the first 23 games of the season. In mid-June, it was still 4.98 and only the woeful Oakland A’s had a higher bullpen ERA. But things turned around from there and the Dodgers’ bullpen was one of the best in baseball over the final three months of the season. Ryan Brasier was released by the Boston Red Sox in late May but had a 0.70 ERA in 39 games with the Dodgers. Brusdar Graterol had the best season of his career, going 4-2 with a 1.20 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in a career-high 68 games. Joe Kelly was re-acquired at the trade deadline and allowed just three hits while striking out 19 in 10⅓ innings back in a Dodger uniform. After a slow start, Evan Phillips regained his form and eventually settled in as the closer, converting 24 of 27 save situations.

HOW IT LOOKS RIGHT NOW

A key figure in last season’s bullpen turnaround, Brasier spent most of the winter as an unsigned free agent, pursued by multiple teams, before re-signing with the Dodgers. Shelby Miller did leave as a free agent, signing with the Detroit Tigers, and Caleb Ferguson was traded to the New York Yankees. But the rest of the bullpen mix looks very familiar. Phillips and Graterol are back as the back-end foundation. Kelly re-signed for one year and $8 million. Left-hander Alex Vesia returns. Veteran relievers Blake Treinen, Daniel Hudson and J.P. Feyereisen are all potential additions at some point early in the season. Treinen and Feyereisen both missed the 2023 season while recovering from shoulder surgery. Hudson’s season ended in June when he suffered a second knee injury. Acquired at midseason, lefty Ryan Yarbrough returns in a swing man role. Another lefty, Matt Gage, was added in the trade with the Yankees.

THE NEXT LAYER

The Dodgers saw one wave of young pitchers reach the majors last season (Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, Emmet Sheehan, et al). Another wave is on the way and players like Kyle Hurt and River Ryan could find their way into the bullpen mix at some point. Hurt made an impressive major league debut last season, retiring all six batters he faced in a September game against the San Diego Padres, including striking out the side in his second inning. He could emerge as a bullpen weapon this season. Major league veterans Nabil Crismatt and T.J. McFarland will be among the non-roster invitees in camp this spring and are good bets to find their way into the Dodgers’ bullpen at some point during the season.

MOVES THEY COULD MAKE

The Dodgers have never seen a reliever they weren’t willing to take a flier on. They could certainly add to the in-house options with a late signing – though rumors of a reunion with franchise saves leader Kenley Jansen have seemed overblown.