The Los Angeles Dodgers have been baseball’s busiest team this offseason, and that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.
The Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in October to capture their second World Series in five seasons. Now, they seem poised to make another deep postseason run.
This offseason has already seen the team sign top free-agent starting pitchers Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki, and top reliever Tanner Scott.
On Tuesday, the Dodgers agreed to terms with another top reliever, signing two-time All-Star Kirby Yates.
USA Today’s Bob Nightengale had the news first.
The Los Angeles Dodgers, who already have folks screaming about their payroll, have reached a tentative agreement with free-agent closer Kirby Yates, pending a physical. The deal comes on the heels of signing Tanner Scott to a 4-year, $72 million contract.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) January 21, 2025
Nightengale didn’t report the contract length or financial details. However, he shared an interesting note that an injury to reliever Michael Kopech may have led the Dodgers to add Yates.
The Dodgers, who will have a payroll exceeding $380 million, wanted more bullpen depth with reliever Michael Kopech expected to possibly miss the first month of the season. https://t.co/ih7PGRbZHI
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) January 21, 2025
Initially signed by the Tampa Bay Rays as an undrafted free agent in 2009, Yates bounced between teams for the first few years of his career. He debuted for the Rays before playing for the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Angels between 2014 and 2017.
After being waived by the Angels in 2017, Yates was claimed by the San Diego Padres.
Yates spent three seasons with the Padres, racking up 56 saves and striking out 256 hitters in 183 innings of action. His best year with the Padres came in 2019 when he recorded an NL-best 41 saves and a 1.19 ERA. He was named to his first All-Star team and finished ninth in the year’s NL Cy Young Award voting.
The 37-year-old closer started the 2020 season with the Padres but suffered an elbow injury after four innings of action. This ended Yates’ 2020 season and kept him out for 2021.
Yates bounced back from the injury, however. He signed with the Atlanta Braves and pitched 67 innings over two seasons. He then left for the Texas Rangers in free agency.
While the Rangers didn’t have much success as a whole in the 2024 season, Yates was a bright spot. He recorded 33 saves and sported a 1.17 ERA and was named to the All-Star team for the second time in his career.
