Zack Greinke has not earned a win in his past seven starts. Over those outings he's 0-2 with a 2.28 ERA and six quality starts. The Los Angeles Dodgers have not provided him with run support and it's possible he's further leaning towards opting out of his contract after the season.
Well, that's all we can assume, since rumors earlier this season found that many executives believe the right-hander will opt out and explore free agency. Greinke, 31, is at a crossroads in his career and is entering his final season before he can earn one more long-term lucrative contract. If he opts out, he would leave the remaining three years and $77 million on the table with the Dodgers.
His comments prior to the start of the season regarding the roster overhaul conducted by the organization's new front office raised some eyebrows, and his terse responses to reporters after his most recent start may suggest he's fed up.
"If Greinke was frustrated, he didn't say it," writes Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.
"The first six years of my career, it was worse than that," Greinke told Hernandez, alluding to the lack of run support he received when he was with the Kansas City Royals. "You just do what you do."
The right-hander is still 5-2 with a 1.95 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 13 starts for Los Angeles, but his record should be a lot better.
"Are the Los Angeles Dodgers costing themselves a chance to retain one of the best pitchers in baseball?" asks Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
"You had to wonder, at least a little, after hearing Zack Greinke talk about this stretch of futility he is stuck in, with some of the finest pitching in his career netting him nil and mostly losses for the Dodgers.
"Greinke has the right to opt out of his contract following this season, a move that seems more and more probable. He has the fourth-best ERA (1.95) in the major leagues, and he'll hit free agency at 32, a year younger than James Shields was when he signed a four-year, $75 million contract with these Padres and a year older than Jon Lester was when he got a six-year, $155 million deal from the Chicago Cubs."
On top of that, Saxon reported last week that the Dodgers are considering making a big trade at the deadline for a starting pitcher, with Jordan Zimmermann of the Washington Nationals atop their wish list and Johnny Cueto of the Cincinnati Reds and David Price of the Detroit Tigers behind him. While a move like that is probably being explored to patch up their rotation - which is still a bit questionable beyond Greinke and Clayton Kershaw - it could also be to put themselves in a position to sign another top arm to a long-term deal in the event Greinke leaves after the season.
"The Dodgers did a great job piecing together a rotation even after the losses of Hyun-Jin Ryu and Brandon McCarthy, identifying Mike Bolsinger and Carlos Frias as viable options. However, the Dodgers expect to have their eye out for another starter this trading season," adds Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
Whatever the case, even though the Dodgers sit atop the NL West division and are among one of the best teams in the MLB, their star right-hander may not be convinced Los Angeles is where he wants to be.
