Dodgers' division rival Padres finally beef up rotation with really weird contract

It's been so easy to laugh at the Padres this offseason that it might've even gotten old at this point, if that's possible. We know how this has gone: San Diego lost multiple players in free agency and only got one of them back (the Dodgers even swiped one of them in Tanner Scott), couldn't compel Roki Sasaki to come despite his connection to Yu Darvish, and they've resorted to signing guys from the bottom of the barrel, including former Pirate Connor Joe.

The Padres still have so many needs that they have to address but really can't, given how little time is left before Opening Day. However, they did finally add a starter to their ailing rotation on Wednesday night: former Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta, who turned down the qualifying offer from Boston early in the offseason to bet on himself instead.

So the Red Sox get a draft pick, and the Padres get a pretty average starter. Details of Pivetta's four-year contract quickly followed news of the signing, and they're...weird, to say the least.

He'll make just $4 million in 2025, which includes a $3 million signing bonus, and the rest of the $55 million is heavily backloaded. He'll get $19 million in 2026, $14 million in 2027, and $18 million in 2028, and there are opt-outs after 2026 and 2027.

Dodgers rival Padres finally make a move, sign Nick Pivetta to a bizarre four-year deal

Although both Padres players and their front office have been trying to downplay the effect of the club's ownership battle, Pivetta, Jason Heyward, Connor Joe, Elias Díaz, and Kyle Hart will only be making a collective $8.5 million of salary in 2025, and the Padres still might look to shed payroll by offloading closer Robert Suarez.

Pivetta's contract being this backloaded definitely makes it seem like the Padres front office is accounting for all of the instability at the top and not having a clear, permanent control person to communicate with (though John Seidler was approved as interim last week) on how much they can actually stretch.

They'll owe Pivetta $19 million next season no matter what, so hopefully they'll actually have some things figured out by that point. It seems as though they're barreling toward a sale and things could get even messier down the line, though.

Pivetta's addition doesn't make the Padres any more threatening to anyone, and they really might be destined to overpay a guy who has a career ERA of nearly 5.00.