Frenzy might not be the right word to describe the Dodgers approach as the free agent period begins today, but they certainly have a lot of holes to fill, need upgrades around the diamond, and need help anywhere else they can get it.
The Dodgers have a couple of problems or issues facing them as they try to "rebuild" (for lack of a better word) a team that fell flat on its own self this past season. One, the free agent market is relatively thin this year. There really are only about five free agents worth splurging on, and the Dodgers simply can not afford to get into any kind of bidding war for any of them, despite their claim that their 2011 payroll will go up from their $95MM+ payroll at the end of the 2010 season. And two, the divorce proceedings of owner Frank McCourt and his estranged wife, Jamie, will probably slow things down early on until a judge decides before December what happens to the McCourts, and ultimately, the Dodgers.
That said, filling out the roster for next season won't be easy for General Manager Ned Colletti, but there are a few ideas that do make sense for the Dodgers. So, without getting into too much detail, below is a breakdown of five ideas the Dodgers should consider.
1. The Dodgers re-signed Ted Lilly a couple of weeks ago, leaving themselves still with two openings in the rotation. There are several decent pitchers on the market that the Dodgers can turn to to fill the back-end of the rotation without splurging. Two of these pitchers are their own free agents, Hiroki Kuroda and Vicente Padilla. Kuroda will be 36 and has had some injury concerns the last two seasons. There's no telling what his intentions are, whether its staying in the U.S. or going back to Japan, but if he's willing to stay and take a nice paycut from the $15MM+ he made over the last three season's, he's probably a safe bet. Padilla, on the other hand, is slightly younger, though he does come with some minor injury concerns like most pitchers and also some anger issues when things don't go his way. But when everything is right with Padilla, he has some of the best stuff in the game. He would come cheaper than Kuroda, thus making him the best fit of the two. Outside the organization, Jake Westbrook might be the best option. He's past his own elbow injuries and, if he, too, is willing to sign for less years, would be a solid pickup. Jorge de La Rosa would be another solid option, as well.
2. The bullpen became a disaster in the second half this past season, so much so, Jonathan Broxton was removed as the team's closer. This caused a domino effect and the Dodgers were forced to rely on Hong-Chih Kuo, even though they couldn't use him everyday, and Kenley Jansen, a converted catcher just a year ago, to close. Bringing in a legitimate closer such as Rafael Soriano, and adding bullpen depth such as Joaquin Benoit or Grant Balfour would ease the load on the rest of the bullpen, and Broxton could go back to being a successful setup guy without the added pressures of closing.
3. The Dodgers must upgrade behind the plate. Russell Martin has regressed each of the last three seasons both offensively and defensively after his breakout rookie season in 2006 and his follow-up in 2007. His hip injury last season is probably a concern, as well. Re-signing Rod Barajas to essentially replace Martin wouldn't make much sense either because of his age (35). That said, their best bet would be to non-tender or trade Martin, bring in either Miguel Olivo or John Buck, and re-sign Barajas to back them up. All three catchers have some decent power, and are above adequate defensively, easily making them upgrades over Martin and A.J. Ellis.
4. Ryan Theriot just doesn't cut it at second base. The Dodgers could just non-tender him and give the job to Jamey Carroll, but then you lose your one blue chip super-utility role player. They should non-tender Theriot regardless, who provides little-to-no offense at all and whose defense is below average, and snag Juan Uribe away from the Giants. Uribe is only 30 and has power, and he's above adequate defensively. His on-base percentage isn't anything to write home about, but then again, neither is Theriot's. Uribe's power and defense would be well worth the risk. This could be a huge steal if the Dodgers could sign him away from the Giants for a year or two at about $4 or $5MM per.
5. It's time Casey Blake became a platoon player. Blake's offense has declined in each of his seasons with the Dodgers since he was acquired mid-way through the 2008 season. At 36, his defense at third base has also declined, though it was never more than average to begin with. With the re-signing of Jay Gibbons last week, and the fact Blake can play the outfield, a possible platoon situation with Blake and Gibbons could be suitable for the Dodgers in left field, or the two could just become the primary left-handed and right-handed bats off the bench. Either way, this would open up third base for the Dodgers to bring back Adrian Beltre for the next three years. Sure we've been down this road before, but Beltre is still a proven top defensive third baseman, even seven years since he last played for the Dodgers, and his bat is still well above average, especially by comparison to Blake. On the flip side, with his big year in Boston this past season, and the fact he's a Scott Boras client, this one might be the furthest from ever coming to fruition.
The Dodgers do have other options besides those mentioned above. They could always dangle James Loney (and/or Russell Martin) for a middle-to-back-end-of-the-rotation starting pitcher, especially if they manage to sign just one free agent starting pitcher to fill out the rotation. Loney, while he's arguably one of the best defensive first basemen in the league, has shown little-to-no power development in his bat, making him one of the least productive first basemen in the league. Should they go this route and trade Loney, they could sacrifice defense for offense and try to land Adam Dunn or Paul Konerko to replace him, though Dunn might be too costly and both are probably better suited as a DH at this point in their careers. Derrek Lee, who can play the position and might still have a couple of years left in his bat, as well, even at his age, might be a more logical and less expensive fit.
As for the overall top free agents, you can all but count out the Dodgers when it comes to Cliff Lee, Carl Crawford and Jayson Werth. Each of those players will command top dollar, and the Dodgers simply can not get into bidding wars with the likes of the Yankees, Red Sox, Angels or even the Rangers.
Hopefully the Dodgers have a decent game plan in mind, at the very least similar to the one provided here. Anything less than this would be a wasted off-season, and a potentially disastrous 2011 for the Dodgers and new manager Don Mattingly.
