DODGERS DODGERS re-sign HOWIE KENDRICK

Discussion in 'Los Angeles DODGERS' started by doyerfan, Jan 29, 2016.

  1. doyerfan

    doyerfan MODERATOR Staff Member Moderator

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  2. Dodgers99

    Dodgers99 DSP Legend

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    Hopefully it's only 1 or 2 years (maybe an opt-out after 2016).
     
  3. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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  4. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    LAdiablo likes this.
  5. THINKBLUE

    THINKBLUE DSP Gigolo

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    If we aren't getting the draft pick anyways, I'm happy to have him back.

    I think letting a solid player like that walk in favor of a questionable platoon is just out smarting yourself.
     
  6. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    At some point the price probably fell to where they were comfortable and then perhaps they weighed his return/role from there?
    Either way I hope this gets done.
    Haven't looked but I imagine Howie's .360/.398/.480 line with RISP is among the leaders in all of MLB
    Been gettin it done for a long time now.
     
  7. doyerfan

    doyerfan MODERATOR Staff Member Moderator

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    Although I do feel semi-bad for Enrique cause he deserves a starting gig, This team is SO much better with him being the utility guy and the main back up to everyone. Signing Kendrick would make an injury or slump at 2B, SS, or OF much easier to handle when you can slot in Enrique.
     
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  8. IBleedBlue15

    IBleedBlue15 DSP Stud

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    Hopefully not that and more of Chase Utley is 800 years old.
     
  9. BlueMouse

    BlueMouse 2020 World Champions

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    Signing Kendrick would make 10x more sense than signing Utley.
     
  10. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    [​IMG]
     
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  11. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    The roster move needed to bring back Howie could be interesting to see unfold.
     
  12. CapnTreee

    CapnTreee Guest

    This is what I've said all along.
     
  13. CapnTreee

    CapnTreee Guest

    and some CBS Sports spin on the topic

    Four reasons why a Howie Kendrick reunion makes sense for Dodgers
    by Mike Axisa | CBS Sports — 3 hours ago

    With spring training less than three weeks away, the remaining unsigned free agents are staring to scramble for jobs. Teams are looking to score some bargains as well. Could that lead to a reunion between the Dodgers and Howie Kendrick? Possibly.

    The Dodgers made Kendrick the qualifying offer earlier this offseason, and his market has been surprisingly quiet. The Diamondbacks reportedly had some interest a few weeks ago, but they don't want to forfeit the draft pick. (Kendrick would only cost them a second rounder after they gave up their first for Zack Greinke.) The Nationals also had interest before signing Daniel Murphy.

    Kendrick, 32, had a typical Howie Kendrick season at the plate in 2015. He hit .295/.336/.409 (107 OPS+) with nine home runs in 117 games -- it was his fourth straight season hitting between .287 and .297 -- while missing time with a hamstring problem. The various fielding stats say his defense took a slight step back and was closer to average.

    There is always going to be risk associated with players over 30, especially middle infielders who have taken a beating turning double plays over the years. Second basemen are known to fall off a cliff around age 32-33. But still, a reunion with Kendricks makes sense for the Dodgers. Here are four reasons why.

    1. Their second base situation isn't so great.

    The Dodgers currently have a Chase Utley/Enrique Hernandez platoon penciled in at second base, which seems like one of those things that sounds good enough in December and January and awful in May and June.

    Utley has had a phenomenal career, but he is 37 and he hit .212/.286/.343 (73 OPS+) last year, including .221/.286/.366 (81 OPS+) against righties. Hernandez is only 24 and he did hit .307/.346/.490 (130 OPS+) last year, though that's largely built on his small sample success against lefties (234 OPS+ in 84 PA). Righties chewed him up (64 OPS+ in 131 PA).

    2. The Dodgers lack infield depth.

    Right now the Dodgers have the always reliable Adrian Gonzalez at first, Utley/Hernandez at second, the ultra-promising Corey Seager at short, and Justin Turner at third. As Rosenthal noted, Turner is coming off knee surgery, and the Dodgers always managed his playing time carefully anyway. He rarely started more than four days in a row in 2015.

    Behind that starting infield the Dodgers have Micah Johnson, who came over in the Todd Frazier three-team trade and has never played a position other than second base in his pro career. They also have Alex Guerrero, who didn't at all after April (.585) and is one of the worst defensive players in baseball. He's played mostly third base and also some left field, and is a total butcher at both spots.

    That's it among 40-man roster infielders. The Dodgers brought in Charlie Culberson and Elian Herrera as non-roster invitees, and they still have Erisbel Arruebarrena in the organization, though there's a clear lack of depth here. Hernandez is currently the backup shortstop and backup third baseman in addition to his platoon duty at second base.

    It's hard to know what to expect from both Utley and Hernandez this coming season. Utley is near the end of the line and what happens when Hernandez gets more playing time? Even if you fully buy into him being a legitimate platoon option, there's still room for improvement here. The team's second base situation is questionable.

    3. The Dodgers could use one more bat.

    At the moment, the Dodgers have a regular starting lineup that looks something like this:


    ◆ RF Yasiel Puig
    ◆ SS Corey Seager
    ◆ 1B Adrian Gonzalez
    ◆ 3B Justin Turner
    ◆ LF Carl Crawford/Andre Ethier
    ◆ C Yasmani Grandal
    ◆ CF Joc Pederson
    ◆ 2B Enrique Hernandez/Chase Utley​

    Grandal (shoulder) and Turner (knee) are coming off offseason surgery, Pederson vanished in the second half last year, Puig was merely good but not great around his hamstring issues, and who knows about the second base platoon. And as promising on Seager looks, he has yet to play a full big league season.

    FanGraphs projects that lineup to score 4.27 runs per game 2015, which ranks middle of the pack among the 30 clubs. There's a lot of upside in that group -- Pederson and Puig could bounce back, Seager might be great, Grandal mashed when healthy -- but also more downside risk than I think the Dodgers are comfortable with. Bringing Kendrick back adds a solid and versatile bat new manager Dave Roberts could hit anywhere in the order.

    4. The NL West figures to be tougher in 2016.

    Both the division rival Giants and Diamondbacks improved this offseason. San Francisco brought in Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto, as well as Denard Span. The D-Backs poached Greinke from the Dodgers and also brought in Shelby Miller. Those are considerable upgrades.

    There are reasons to believe the Dodgers are still the favorites in the NL West. The division does look like it will be tougher in 2016 than it was in 2015 though. Every win the Dodgers add to their roster -- ZiPS projects Kendrick as a +2.3 WAR player in 2016 -- improves their chances of winning the NL West, and when you have Clayton Kershaw in his prime, the front office's priority should be making every possible upgrade. The Dodgers are in win-now mode. They should be going for it.
     
  14. CapnTreee

    CapnTreee Guest

    Why sign a 37 year old who hit .204 when you can sign a 32 year old who hit .295??

    Never did make sense to sign Utley unless they have zero faith in Kike
     
  15. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    i'm guessing they thought someone would have signed howie by now, thus giving us their draft pick
    but teams are becoming more and more reluctant to part with them
     
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  16. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    an argument against signing howie

    Why Howie Kendrick may be a bad bet for 2016
    by David Schoenfield | ESPN Senior Writer

    Everyone seems to think free agent Howie Kendrick is the right fit for the Arizona Diamondbacks, which isn't the same thing as saying the Diamondbacks are going to sign Kendrick. General manager Dave Stewart has mentioned not wanting to lose a draft pick for signing him, which in the Diamondbacks' case would mean a second-round selection. That's a little silly, considering the D-backs gave up shortstop Dansby Swanson, the No. 1 overall pick in 2015, in the Shelby Miller trade. Since they've already lost the first-round pick for signing Zack Greinke, it actually makes more sense to sign Kendrick now, since they would only be losing that second-round pick instead of a first-rounder.

    Anyway, the Diamondbacks do need a second baseman. Aaron Hill has now had two subpar seasons in a row and can't be counted on for a turnaround at 34. Chris Owings can't hit. They both bat right-handed, so there's not even a potential platoon situation there. Hill is on the payroll for $12 million so there seems to be a reluctance to pay Hill and Kendrick.

    As Buster Olney wrote, Kendrick and other free agents like Dexter Fowler and Ian Desmond are stuck in the compensation-pick web, with teams wary of paying those good-not-great players and losing a pick.

    That said, I'd be wary of Kendrick for another reason: He's at the precarious age -- he'll be 32 -- and in possession of a somewhat limited skill-set where his decline could be pretty rapid.

    Look, he's been a remarkably consistent player, hitting between .285 and .297 each of the past five seasons. He's been a solid defender at second, generally rating around league average via the defensive metrics.

    But ... I see some red flags here:

    Injuries
    He played 122 games in 2013 and 117 in 2015, so he's missed significant chunks of time in two of the past three seasons.

    Declining power
    His percentage of extra-base hits has been 6.7 percent the past two seasons, the lowest figures of his career.

    His defense may be slipping
    He was credited with minus-12 Defensive Runs Saved in 2015, a big decline from his plus-7 in 2014 (which was the second-highest figure of his career).

    He doesn't walk much and never has
    And his walk rate severely plummeted in the second half last season, when he drew just three walks in 136 plate appearances.​

    So he doesn't walk and his mid-range power game is in decline. Almost all of his offensive value is derived from his batting average. If he hits .270 instead of .295, he's not bringing a whole lot to the table, especially if the defensive metrics from 2015 hold up as well.

    Then there's his age. The Diamondbacks only have to look at Hill to see how second basemen can lose it quickly. At age 30 and 31, Hill put up OPS totals of .882 and .818. He lost it at 32. One of the similar players to Kendrick on his Baseball-Reference page is Todd Walker, who had his last good year at 32 and was done at 34. Jose Vidro is another similar player, and his decline began even sooner. He was done at age 33. Brian Roberts was great through age 31, then injuries set in. Omar Infante hit .318 for the Tigers at age 31, signed a big contract with the Royals and has been terrible the past two seasons.

    Like Kendrick, those were good players but not big stars. Like Kendrick, they weren't super athletic types who had a broad range of skills. Kendrick's best talent has always been the hit tool. He's not especially fast, he's never been a Gold Glove defender, and he hasn't been particularly durable.

    Once the hit tool goes -- and there's evidence it's already starting -- Kendrick just won't be all that valuable, which is why I think his 2016 value is much closer to his 1.1 WAR of 2015 than his career-high 5.3 of 2014. Would he be an upgrade over Hill and/or Owings? Probably. But not a big one, certainly not enough to give him a three-year, $45 million contract or something along those lines.​
     
  17. doyerfan

    doyerfan MODERATOR Staff Member Moderator

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    Source: Kendrick finalizing deal with #Dodgers

    From Rosenthal
     
  18. doyerfan

    doyerfan MODERATOR Staff Member Moderator

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    Sources: #Dodgers, Kendrick in agreement on two-year contract, pending physical.

    Two years is nice
     
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  19. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    howie/utley platoon with kiké going back to the super utility role?
     
  20. Dodgers99

    Dodgers99 DSP Legend

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    Just a 2 year deal, so I am good with it. Allow Kike to move all around 3B/SS/OF against LHP (Turner was better against RHP).
     
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