Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
Tanner Scott is one of the top remaining players on the MLB free agent market and he represents the best available relief pitcher for a team to acquire this offseason.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have been widely connected to Scott, as well as Devin Williams before he was traded to the New York Yankees. L.A. is reportedly focused on adding a high-leverage arm to their bullpen after already bringing back Blake Treinen.
With Williams no longer available, it’s presumed the Dodgers have turned their attention to Scott. According to Robert Murray on The Baseball Insiders podcast, there is also mutual interest between the Dodgers and Scott:
“There is widespread interest in Tanner Scott, and the Dodgers are among the teams that are interested in Scott. … Especially with the Yankees seemingly not involved — I mean, I guess it’s possible they could try to put together a super bullpen — but I think Scott is the natural pivot point here for the Dodgers. It makes a ton of sense to me, they’ve got the funds to do it. I don’t know of anything close or anything done there, but I think the fit makes a lot of sense and there is absolutely interest there between both sides.”
The 30-year-old was traded to the San Diego Padres at last year’s deadline from the Miami Marlins for a hefty price and played a key role down the stretch and into the postseason. He appeared in four National League Division Series games against the Dodgers this past season while recording a hold and allowing just two hits with no runs.
The left-hander posted a 1.75 ERA, 2.92 FIP and 1.13 WHIP across 72 innings while striking out 28.6% of hitters and walking 12.2%. It was his second consecutive season with more than 70 innings pitched an an ERA below 2.35.
Scott had a breakout season in 2023 after struggling to figure things out in the years prior. He owns a career 3.56 ERA in 368.2 innings with a 30.4% strikeout rate and 12.6% walk rate.
If he signs with the Dodgers, there would be a good case that he’s the best reliever in their bullpen, which already has multiple elite arms, including Treinen, Michael Kopech, Evan Phillips and Alex Vesia.
Tanner Scott contract projections
As the top available free agent reliever, Scott is going to get a significant multi-year contract. He also has no qualifying offer attached because of the midseason trade, which should fuel even more interest from clubs.
Scott is projected to receive a four-year, $56 million deal by MLB Trade Rumors while The Athletic projects him at slightly higher with a four-year, $60 million deal.
Thus far, the market has been trending toward players beating their projected deals, so Scott may very well come in with a higher total value.
Still, a deal of four-years should be the expectation with an average annual value of at least $15 million.
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