Mariners re-sign Hisashi Iwakuma to 1-year, $12 million deal

In a surprising turn of events, the Mariners have re-signed right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma to a 1-year, $12 million deal that includes vesting options for 2017 and 2018. Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto announced the signing at the team's holiday party on Thursday night.

Jerry Dipoto delivers a special gift to the front office at the #Mariners holiday party: Kuma is back. pic.twitter.com/8Bo8Y93ub2

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) December 18, 2015

Iwakuma receives $12 million in guaranteed money, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, who also reports that the deal can max out at $39 million over three years. The vesting options are valued at a base salary of $10 million each, and can be triggered with 162 innings pitched in each year.

Iwakuma, 34, agreed in principle to a 3-year, $45 million contract with the Dodgers during the Winter Meetings, but the deal did not become official due to some concerns with the team's physical examination. Los Angeles was thought to be willing to re-work the deal between the sides, but the Mariners re-entered negotiations for the right-hander and came to an agreement that will bring him back to Seattle.

Iwakuma re-joins Felix Hernandez, Taijuan Walker, James Paxton and newcomers Wade Miley and Nathan Karns in an upgraded Mariners' rotation. He has spent his entire four-year major-league career with the Mariners, posting a 47-25 record and 3.54 ERA in 111 appearances (97 starts) in that span.

The Dodgers will once again go back to the drawing board after losing out on Zack Greinke, who signed with the Diamondbacks, Aroldis Chapman, whose ongoing domestic violence investigation scuttled a trade from the Reds, and Iwakuma. Los Angeles is said to be considering many options on both the trade and free-agent markets, with Jake Odorizzi, Scott Kazmir and Jose Fernandez potentially among them.