Andrew Heaney is the First Short-Term Pitcher Off the Board – Signing With the Dodgers
Well, he was rumored to be one of the first pitchers to go off the board, and sure enough he is: Andrew Heaney is signing with the Dodgers.
Heaney, 30, is one of those long-time, untapped potential, big upside guys, who has never fully put it together. Lots of teams would want to be the next to take a crack at him, and he’s getting paid pretty well for another shot:
Free-agent LHP Andrew Heaney in agreement with Dodgers on one-year contract, pending physical, sources tell @TheAthletic. Deal is for more than $8 million – the amount Robbie Ray got from the Blue Jays a year ago. Heaney, as @JoelSherman1 noted, viewed as similar upside play.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 8, 2021
The Dodgers and Andrew Heaney are in agreement on a one-year, $8.5M deal pending physical, per source. @Ken_Rosenthal was on it.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) November 8, 2021
The Cubs hadn’t been connected to Heaney in any rumors, but the transaction here is still pretty notable. Not only does it reiterate the price tag on some of these starter types can be pretty healthy on a one-year deal, but it underscores that this part of the market could move quickly, even before the CBA is completed.
The Cubs, even after claiming Wade Miley (one year, $10 million), need to be aggressive in this area if they want to get their preferred short-term, high-risk, high-upside, high-AAV type pitchers. The guys in this tier include Dylan Bundy, Danny Duffy, Steven Matz, Yusei Kikuchi, Alex Wood, Corey Kluber, Tyler Anderson, and many, many more.
