Dodgers tender contracts to Julio Urías, Cody Bellinger and others

Dodgers tender contracts to Julio Urías, Trea Turner and Cody Bellinger

Dodgers pitcher Julio Urías delivers a pitch during Game 4 of the NLCS against the Atlanta Braves.

Staff Writer

Nov. 30, 2021 6:25 PM PT

The Dodgers tendered one-year contracts to four of their five remaining arbitration-eligible players before Tuesday’s non-tender deadline.

Julio Urías, Cody Bellinger, Trea Turner and Caleb Ferguson were offered deals. Only left-handed reliever Andrew Vasquez, who was picked up Aug. 31 and appeared in two games for the Dodgers, wasn’t offered a contract. He became a free agent.

The four players tendered contracts will head to arbitration unless they reach a deal with the Dodgers to avoid a hearing.

Arbitration hearings usually take place in early February, but the looming lockout could change the schedule. Major League Baseball is expected to impose a lockout and, as a result, a freeze on transactions involving players on 40-man rosters when the collective bargaining agreement expires Wednesday night.

Dodgers second baseman Trea Turner blows a bubble while waiting for a pitch.

Turner, acquired with Max Scherzer from the Washington Nationals at the trade deadline, is the reigning National League batting champion. He projects to replace Corey Seager at shortstop before hitting free agency next winter — unless he and the Dodgers come to an agreement on a contract extension beforehand.

Urías is coming off a career season in which he was the only 20-game winner in the majors, posted a 2.96 earned-run average and tallied a career-high 185 2/3 innings. He finished seventh in National League Cy Young Award voting. As it stands, he and Walker Buehler are the club’s top two starting pitchers.

Bellinger struggled with injuries and was one of the worst hitters in the majors during the regular season, batting .165 with a .542 OPS in 95 games, before finding his rhythm in the playoffs. He’ll also be a free agent after the season.

Ferguson, a left-hander, will compete for a spot in the bullpen after missing the 2021 season recovering from Tommy John surgery.