Alejandro Avila
Videos by OutKick
Rise and shine, Mr. Freeman.
Longtime Atlanta Braves first baseman and 2020 NL MVP Freddie Freeman is headed to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi first broke the news Wednesday night as negotiations between the Dodgers and Freeman culminated in an agreement
The top name on plenty of teams’ free-agency boards, before and after the grueling lockout period, Freeman remained the topic of tense discussion, amid speculation as to where the 32-year-old was headed this offseason.
Players in the race for Freeman included the Dodgers, Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays and others.
Atlanta was often seen as the eventual outcome in any coin-flip between the Braves and the Dodgers.
The Braves signed Oakland Athletics first baseman Matt Olson to an eight-year, $163 million contract on Tuesday — tipping the scales in favor of the Dodgers to land Freeman.
Tampa Bay remained in the rumor mill leading up to Wednesday after they reportedly pitched a considerable offer.
Freeman’s deal with Los Angeles is reportedly set at six years, $162 million, according to Morosi.
Since March 11, reports indicated that a decision was imminent, with Los Angeles as a constant mention throughout developments.
The Fountain Valley product heads back to his roots after building a legacy in Atlanta for the past 12 seasons.
Walking away after helping the Braves win their first championship in 26 years, Freeman ends his storied tenure with Atlanta in the highest regard possible.
Last season, Freeman batted .300 and tallied 180 hits, 83 RBIs, 31 HRs.
Arriving at the doorstep of a World Series appearance last season were the Los Angeles Dodgers — defeated by the Braves in a six-game series.
With a great deal of versatility embedded in LA’s roster welcoming Freeman — including Mookie Betts, Chris Taylor, Gavin Lux and Max Muncy — the Dodgers must now adopt a World Series attitude as they build upon last year’s NLCS exit.
Follow along on Twitter: @AlejandroAveela
As a life long Braves fan and a HUGE Freeman fan I’m sorry but this one has soured me a bit on him. He and his agent were acting all offseason like it was money that was keeping him from resigning with the Franchise that helped build him….then he signs with LA for pretty much the exact same amount we signed Olson for? Seems like he was just done with ATL totally. Lmfao have fun in literally the worst city in America with by far the worst fan base in the league outside of NY.
He’d probably make the same money staying with the Braves after you factor in the taxes. Too bad. I understand getting paid but don’t expect to be a beloved former Brave like Chipper Jones. Ain’t gonna happen.
Hopefully the Braves will give me a credit for his jersey for a current player. But I’m not going to hold my breathe.
Freeman is from the LA area, so it doesn’t surprise me he wanted to move back home. Thinking back, if Atlanta and Freddie wanted to extend his contract they’d have done all that after his 2020 season. Going into FA is a sign of doom. I think Atlanta made a great move signing Olson. The Braves are clearly loaded again.
Huge Braves fan. This doesn’t surprise or bother me really. He’s from LA and wanted to go play for his hometown team. It’s the same reason Olson (ATL native) just signed with us long term at a considerable discount compared to what he would get on the open market. Cheers to Freddie – until we beat him in the playoffs of course.