Dodgers should absolutely pay Jordan Montgomery's rumored new contract request

When the Dodgers signed James Paxton in late January, it mostly wrapped up LA's free agent signing spree and rounded out a rotation that was hurting with the absences of Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw. Despite a contractual hiccup due to some injury concerns, Paxton seemed like a decent enough option to slot in between newbies Bobby Miller and Emmet Sheehan at the back end of the rotation.

Sheehan was one of the youngest players on the Dodgers' star-studded veteran roster, and still mostly untested at the major league level. His spot as their last starter was always going to have a trial period at the beginning, but it was also indisputably his — that is, until he got hurt during spring training. Gavin Stone was tapped to replace him after a great showing in camp, but Stone has a history of struggle in the majors (31 innings, 9.00 ERA in 2023).

But could the Dodgers turn back to the free agent market for another starter who could push Miller and Paxton back a spot? By some miracle, Jordan Montgomery is still out there, the last of the Boras Five and the last major holdout from this offseason's incredibly slow-goings.

The New York Post's Joel Sherman reported that, as his free agency has dragged, Montgomery has amended his contract goal from the "Aaron Nola range (seven years, $172 million)" to the "Tyler Glasnow area (five years, $136.5 million)" — $27.3 million per year. This is clearly doable for the Dodgers, who are also paying Teoscar Hernández around that amount for a year. Maybe they should consider taking the plunge and making one more headline-grabbing signing for the year.

Dodgers should consider engaging in the Jordan Montgomery race after reported new contract asking price

Historically, the Dodgers haven't liked to deal with the star clients of agent Scott Boras, but things haven't been working out for any of them very well this year. Matt Chapman, JD Martinez, Blake Snell, and Cody Bellinger all settled for 1-3 year contracts, most of them relatively affordable, despite originally holding out for longer-term and more lucrative deals. Teams held the line, and they mostly got their way when all was said and done.

Given that we're just a few days away from all 30 teams opening their seasons and Montgomery presumably would like to be employed sooner rather than later, the Dodgers could get in on the action and add themselves to the list of teams who play the waiting game with Boras to their own advantage.

Stone rightfully earned another trial run of his own after his efforts in spring training, but Montgomery is a known quantity who the Dodgers could also lock up for a nice few years.