Last week was full of surprising moves across Major League Baseball. The Atlanta Braves, who had already bid adieu to Freddie Freeman after acquiring (and extending) Matt Olson from the Oakland Athletics, made another eye-catching transaction on Friday night, signing closer Kenley Jansen to a one-year deal worth $16 million.
Jansen, who had previously spent his entire career with the Los Angeles Dodgers, had not had his name pop up frequently in the rumor mill. As such, it seemed like only a matter of time before he reached a new agreement with the Dodgers. Alas, there was just one complication, per Jansen: the Dodgers wanted to avoid the "Cohen tax."
According to Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times, the Dodgers wanted to keep their luxury-tax payroll under $290 million, thereby avoiding the steepest penalty. With MLB extending Trevor Bauer's administrative leave, rather than issuing a suspension, the Dodgers had to look to the trade market to attempt to clear space after signing Freeman earlier in the week. The Dodgers, it seems, simply ran out of time.
"They tried to bring me back, but unfortunately I had to make a decision and I chose to be with the Braves," Jansen told Castillo.
The Dodgers' current Competitive Balance Tax payroll, calculated using average annual value rather than raw salary, sits north of $290 million, per Cot's Contracts. The "Cohen tax" line starts at $290 million this season, with those teams who dare to venture more than $60 million beyond the first tax line having to pay an 80 percent tax rate. The Dodgers, a second-time payor, would've faced a 90 percent surtax.
Spotrac's estimate has the Dodgers with the majors' second-highest tax bill, at $18 million, bested only by the New York Mets (more than $20 million). The Mets, of course, are owned by Steve Cohen, the inspiration for the highest tax tier.
Bauer's suspension should drop the Dodgers back below the Cohen line in due time. It is unclear who Los Angeles attempted to trade to make room for Jansen. The most obvious candidate was veteran southpaw David Price, whose CBT number ($31 million) the Dodgers likely find excessive given his role as a reliever.
The Dodgers' loss will be the Braves' gain. Jansen is expected to serve as Atlanta's closer, bumping Will Smith back into a setup role.
