It didn’t take long for former Royals relief pitcher Nick Anderson to find a new home. After being released by Kansas City and clearing waivers, Anderson merely waited for a reliever-needy team to sign him.
A few hours later, the Los Angeles Dodgers agreed to terms with the 33-year-old righty, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post on X.
The Royals designated Anderson for assignment to make room for Hunter Harvey, their recently acquired reliever. When Anderson, a journeyman with five years of MLB experience, declined a trip to the minors, he was released and became a free agency on July 20, according to MLB insider Bob Nightengale.
Anderson has a lengthy injury history, including a tear in his right elbow ligament that forced him to miss much of the 2021 and 2022 seasons, but he is productive when fit.
He had an impressive rookie season in 2019, ending with a 3.32 ERA, 1.077 WHIP, and 110 strikeouts in 65 innings pitched. In 2020, he earned a spot on the All-MLB first team. And, after recovering from an elbow injury, Anderson demonstrated why he was so highly regarded early in his career with a return to form in 2023. Anderson had a 3.06 ERA, 9.2 K/9, and an ERA+ of 145 during his last season with the Atlanta Braves.
Despite struggling this season with an ERA above 4.00, a 1.402 WHIP, and the lowest BB/9 of his career, Anderson may be hired for the league minimum wage while the Royals are stuck with the remaining $1.575 million on his deal.
Anderson’s low cost and previous effectiveness as a reliever ensured that he would not be on the market for long. Sure enough, the Dodgers signed him on the same day he became a free agent. According to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, Anderson signed with the Dodgers on a minor league deal, providing the team more bullpen flexibility and depth.
Dodgers sign former Royals reliever Nick Anderson.
The Dodgers’ relievers have had a mixed performance. From the beginning of the season until the end of June, Los Angeles had one of baseball’s greatest bullpens. During that time, Dodgers relief relievers ranked second in MLB in ERA, WHIP, and batting average against. The Los Angeles bullpen rated third in WPA and top ten in BB/9 and fWAR.
However, from June 30 to the All-Star break, the bullpen deteriorated considerably. Los Angeles relievers rated 20th or below in ERA and BB/9. The Dodgers’ bullpen was particularly terrible during this time, ranking 28th overall in batting average against, 29th in WHIP, 29th in WPA, and 27th in fWAR.
Clearly, the Dodgers’ bullpen could use some help. But the sky isn’t falling in Los Angeles. The squad is 17 games above.500, with a seven-game advantage over the second-place Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League West. According to FanGraphs, they have the second best probability of winning the World Series, with 14.3 percent.
Of course, the Dodgers are not about to rest on their laurels. The arrival of Anderson is only the first salvo; the squad will be active at the trade deadline.
Los Angeles will almost probably look into the relief market further, as the organization is believed to be interested in purchasing Miami Marlins’ Tanner Scott. The Dodgers are also looking for a starting pitcher and are likely to make a strong run at Chicago White Sox ace Garrett Crochet. The squad has also been associated with White Sox centre fielder Luis Robert Jr.
Those players are all regarded top-tier talent who will be available at the trade deadline, and there will be fierce rivalry for their services. However, the Dodgers are not afraid to make headlines with their transactions. The team has the sixth-highest payroll in MLB and has made 11 straight postseason appearances.
Los Angeles is one of the few baseball clubs projected to challenge for a championship each year. Despite three consecutive 100-win seasons, the Dodgers have been eliminated from the playoffs after only one series in each of the previous two years.
With the signing of megastar Shohei Ohtani to the richest contract in sports history – 10 years, $700 million – the Dodgers signalled their commitment to winning the franchise’s first non-Covid championship since 1988.
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