According to CBS Sports’ Jim Bowden, the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers are the three teams “in play” to sign five-time All-Star Josh Hader.
Bowden added in his Dec. 28 video report for CBS Sports that Hader was seeking a deal “north of Edwin Díaz,” whose five-year, $102 million contract signed last offseason with the New York Mets was the richest in MLB. the replacement player was.No team has ever offered such a high deal to Hader, who posted a dominant 1.28 ERA and 33 saves while striking out 85 batters in 56.1 innings for the San Diego Padres last season.Although it is mentioned that the Yankees, Dodgers and Rangers are all interested in Hader, Bowden noted that all three teams would prefer to sign or trade for a starting pitcher before adding a closer like Hader.If the Yankees fail to land Jordan Montgomery, which they hope, they won’t be afraid to call on Hader. I just don’t think they’re going to benefit from the five years that [Edwin] Díaz had,” said Bowden, an MLB insider who previously held general manager positions with the Cincinnati Reds and Nationals. Washington.At 29, Hader aims to become the highest-paid reliever in MLB history in the same offseason the Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani to a record team sports contract in the United States. The Dodgers also signed starters Yoshinobu Yamamoto (12 years, $325 million) and Tyler Glasnow (5 years, $136.5 million) to bring their offseason spending to more than $1 billion. So it’s somewhat surprising that the Dodgers are also being reported as potential suitors for Hader. Since debuting with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2017, Hader has won the National League Reliever of the Year award three times during his seven MLB seasons. The flame-throwing left-hander was traded to San Diego by the Brewers in 2022. To help replace Hader, the Padres signed Japanese prospect Yuki Matsui to a five-year, $28 million contract earlier this offseason. According to Covers.com, the Yankees’ 3.34 bullpen ERA was the best among all MLB teams last season. Adding Hader would require a strong 2023 package and make him even more dominant in 2024, as stalwarts Clay Holmes, Tommy Kahnle and Jonathan Loaisiga would serve as lineup options.The addition of Hader would help offset the loss of Michael King, who the Yankees traded to the Padres this offseason as part of their package to land superstar outfielder Juan Soto. The versatile King appeared in 49 games for the Yanks last season, including nine starts, compiling a 2.75 ERA in 104.2 innings. Josh Hader broke MLB records, but he also struggled at timesFew pitchers in MLB can look as dominant as Hader, who in May 2021 became the fastest pitcher ever to reach 400 strikeouts. He did it in just 234 2/3 innings pitched, breaking fellow reliever Craig Kimbrel’s previous record of 236 innings pitched in 2014.However, Hader performed poorly for part of the 2022 season after the Brewers traded him to San Diego. In his first month with the Padres, Hader was removed from the team’s closer role in August after allowing six earned runs in his first five appearances. Hader’s issues were short-lived as he regained his All-Star form in September 2022 and made the playoffs before having a stellar season for San Diego in 2023.
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