Dodgers’ payroll hits $1BILLION in deferred payments with latest signings amid champs’ pursuit of Juan Soto

The Los Angeles Dodgers are world champions, but success doesn’t come cheap.

After beating the New York Yankees in the World Series, LA recently agreed to new, lucrative contracts with free-agent pitcher Blake Snell and returning infielder Tommy Edman – deals that bring the club’s total deferred payments to more than $1 billion for only seven players. .

Snell’s $182 million contract, announced Saturday, includes $66 million in deferred money payable to the pitcher through July 1, 2046, according to contract terms obtained by The Associated Press. He will receive a $52 million signing bonus, payable on January 25, and an annual salary of $26 million, of which $13.2 million per year will be deferred. The deferred money will be paid in equal installments on July 1 each year between 2035 and 2046.

And because Snell is a resident of Washington State, the signing bonus will not be subject to California income tax.

Meanwhile, Edman’s five-year, $74 million deal, announced Friday, includes $25 million payable to the infielder and outfielder through July 1, 2044.

Los Angeles now owes deferred payments of $1,006,500,000 to seven players from 2028-46. And that figure could rise if Dodgers fandom finds a way to lure free agent Juan Soto to the West Coast. Soto could be worth something approaching $700 million — the same amount the team gave Shohei Ohtani before the season, much of which is deferred.

Soto is rumored to be in the market for a $700 million deal. Can the Dodgers afford that too?

Both Soto and Snell are represented by MLB super agent Scott Boras.

Delayed payments are becoming the norm in Major League Baseball, where the New York Mets are routinely mocked for their $1 million annual payments to retired All-Star Bobby Bonilla.

But today, such deals have become commonplace as they provide teams with short-term payroll flexibility and help players navigate difficult income tax situations.

It also helps the Dodgers reduce luxury tax payments. For example, amortizing the contract over decades discounts Snell’s average annual salary to about $31.4 million per year for the Dodgers’ luxury tax accounting and Edman to about $12.9 million.

Los Angeles has a conditional $10 million club option for 2023 that is exercisable if Snell has a qualifying injury as specified in the contract and he is on the injured list for 90 or more consecutive days due to the qualifying injury and he is not traded.

If Snell is traded, he will receive a $5 million assignment bonus, payable by the acquiring team.

He also gets a hotel suite during road trips.

Tommy Edman celebrates as he reaches home plate after hitting his solo home run in Game 2

Ohtani won his first World Series after signing a $700 million contract with the Dodgers

Edman will receive a $17 million signing bonus, payable Dec. 10, a $5 million salary next year and $12.25 million in each of the final four seasons, with $6.25 million per year deferred. The Dodgers have a $13 million option for 2030 with a $3 million buyout.

Edman’s deferred funds for each year are paid in three installments, with each payment due July 1:

• for 2026: $2.5 million each in 2035 and 2036, and $1.25 million in 2037.
• for 2027: $1.25 million in 2037 and $2.5 million each in 2038 and 2039.
• for 2028: $2.5 million each in 2040 and 2041, and $1.25 million in 2042.
• for 2029: $1.25 million in 2042 and $2.5 million each in 2043 and 2044.

Snell and Edman will each make a charitable contribution of 1 percent of his salary.

Ohtani, the reigning National League MVP, is due $680 million between 2034 and 2043 as part of a record $700 million 10-year contract through 2033.

Infielder/outfielder Mookie Betts is owed $115 million in salaries from 2033-44 and the final $5 million of his signing bonus payable from 2033-35, all part of a $365 million, 12-year contract through 2032.

First baseman Freddie Freeman is owed $57 million between 2028 and 2040 in a six-year contract through 2027 worth $162 million.

Catcher Will Smith is due $50 million between 2034 and 2043 as part of a 10-year, $140 million contract through 2033.

Outfielder Teoscar Hernández will get $8.5 million between 2030 and 2039 as part of a one-year, $23.5 million deal through 2024.