LOS ANGELES (AP) - Third baseman Justin Turner and the Los Angeles Dodgers have finalized their $64 million, four-year contract.
Turner gets a $4 million signing bonus, payable Dec. 31, under the agreement completed Friday, and salaries of $12 million next year, $11 million in 2018, $18 million in 2019 and $19 million in 2020.
He would get a $1 million assignment bonus each time he is traded.
“JT has been, and will continue to be, a vital part of the Dodgers on the field, in the clubhouse and in the community,” Los Angeles President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman said in a statement. “His talent, work ethic, leadership and instincts for the game embodies a lot of what we look for in a Dodger player.”
Los Angeles also has a pending $80 million, five-year agreement with closer Kenley Jansen. The deals raise the Dodgers’ projected luxury tax payroll to $230 million next year, in line for a tax of about $19 million.
The 32-year-old Turner spent two seasons with Baltimore and four with the New York Mets, then became a free agent when the Mets failed to offer a 2014 contract. A Southern California native who attended Cal State Fullerton, he signed a $1 million, one-year deal with the Dodgers, hit .340 in 109 games, and took over as the starting third baseman.
Turner hit .275 with 27 homers and 90 RBIs this year, batted .400 with five RBIs in the Division Series against Washington, then .200 with three RBIs in the League Championship Series loss to the Chicago Cubs. He failed to accept the Dodgers’ $17.2 million qualifying offer.
“Playing in Los Angeles has been special for me, and I want to continue to represent and give back to this community,” Turner said in a statement.
At the winter meetings, the Dodgers announced a $48 million, three-year contract with left-hander Rich Hill, acquired from Oakland at the trade deadline Aug. 1.
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