3 Dodgers team options for 2023 fans may have forgotten about

2. Danny Duffy

My goodness, what a waste. For two years, too! The Dodgers acquired Danny Duffy from the Kansas City Royals at least year’s trade deadline and paid him $5 million to never return from a flexor strain … which eventually required offseason surgery.

Then came 2022. The Dodgers re-signed him to a one-year, $3 million contract that carried a $7 million team option for 2023. Duffy was eyeing a midsummer return to “take care of unfinished business,” but suffered a setback in August and never stepped foot on the field.

That’s $8 million for zero innings of Duffy. Do the Dodgers even bother attempting this dance on last time? That would run them the risk of investing $15 million in the veteran left-hander with the fear of his injury issues lingering as he enters his age-34 season.

Then again … he could be worth $7 million if he can give you a 20+ starts or long relief out of the bullpen. Before getting injured in 2021, Duffy had a renaissance of sorts, and maintained a 2.51 ERA, 3.40 FIP and 1.21 WHIP with 65 strikeouts in 13 games (12 starts), totaling 61 innings.

We’d vote “no” here because watching this backfire for a third time would be devastating, but the Dodgers do need a lot of pitching, so stay tuned.