Submitted by PrincessBananas85 t3_10ab09j in sports
rythestunner t1_j4jz62b wrote
Reply to comment by samdc1985 in Dodgers release Bauer, set to pay him over $21M. by PrincessBananas85
He can't get more than the league minimum unless someone signs him and then offers him a contract extension. He's still under his Dodgers contract. Even though he's a free agent, he's still bound by that contract because the Dodgers released him while it was still active. The Dodgers will pay all but the league minimum (if he gets picked up) and whatever team picks him up (if they do) will pay him the league minimum. That team cannot offer him more. He cannot make more money during his contract than his original contract dictated.
His 2023 contract has him receiving $22,537,634. If nobody picks him up, the Dodgers will be on the hook for $22,537,634. If someone does pick him up, the Dodgers will be on the hook for $21,817,634 and his new team will be on the hook for $720,000. They cannot offer him more than $720,000 for 2023.
MLB has strict rules regarding this because allowing a team to sign a released player for more than the league minimum would reward a player for being awful and getting released by his team by potentially allowing him to earn more money than his original contract.
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