First, you beat ’em. Then you join ’em.

Five months after beating the Dodgers in the NL Championship Series on the way to a World Series title but only days after the Atlanta Braves moved on from him, Freddie Freeman has agreed to sign with the Dodgers. According to multiple reports, the Dodgers will sign the free-agent first baseman to a six-year, $162 million contract.

Freeman will give the Dodgers four former MVP winners once again, joining Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger and Clayton Kershaw (and replacing Albert Pujols).

After the Braves’ championship last fall, the 32-year-old Freeman seemed like a good bet to return to Atlanta where he had been the face of the franchise for years. But the Braves were slow to move on a contract extension and hesitant to offer the six years Freeman was seeking. The lockout put negotiations on hold and increased speculation about Freeman’s disenchantment with the franchise’s approach.

The potential of Freeman leaving the Braves became a certainty on Monday when they acquired Matt Olson from the Oakland A’s in a trade that Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos called “the hardest transaction I had to make” because it meant the end of Freeman’s time in Atlanta. On Wednesday, Freeman posted a farewell message to “Braves Country” on Instagram.

The Braves’ trade for Olson increased speculation about Freeman’s market with the Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays and San Diego Padres linked with the free agent to varying degrees. The Dodgers, however, always remained at the front of the pack, leveraging their financial muscle and the chance for Freeman (an Orange County native) to return to Southern California. Their willingness to add a sixth year (taking Freeman through his age 37 season) appears to have sealed the deal.

The National League MVP in 2020, Freeman has finished in the top 10 in that voting five other times including last season when he hit .300 with 31 home runs, 83 RBIs and an .896 OPS. A three-time Silver Slugger winner, five-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner in 2018, Freeman has hit at least .300 five times in the past six seasons, has hit at least 30 home runs three times and driven in at least 80 runs six times.