MLB NEWS/RUMORS Thread

Discussion in 'Los Angeles DODGERS' started by irish, Nov 2, 2017.

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If the Dodgers could acquire one player at the deadline, who would you prefer?

  1. Machado

    43.5%
  2. Front line starter (degrom, thor, et al)

    56.5%
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  1. Dodgers99

    Dodgers99 DSP Legend

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    Was it on "MLB Tonight"? If so, i'll have to check out the replay later.
     
  2. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    3 offseason questions for Dodgers to answer
    by Ken Gurnick | MLB.com — 12 hours ago

    LOS ANGELES -- Even when you reach the World Series for the first time in 29 years, there's always next year. And even if the Dodgers have fewer offseason issues than most clubs, the issues still exist.

    For the most part, however, the tasks for president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Farhan Zaidi are modest, and the bigger issues revolve around health.

    Free agents: Yu Darvish, Logan Forsythe ($8.5 million club option with a $1 million buyout), Curtis Granderson, Franklin Gutierrez, Andre Ethier ($17.5 million club option with a $2.5 million buyout), Brandon Morrow, Chase Utley, Tony Watson.

    Arbitration-eligible players: Luis Avilan, Pedro Baez, Tony Cingrani, Josh Fields, Yimi Garcia, Yasmani Grandal, Enrique Hernandez, Joc Pederson, Alex Wood.

    Does Corey Seager need elbow surgery?
    He's been playing in pain for months now and even Seager himself has hinted that surgery is on the table. The fact that both he and the club have been extremely vague about the severity of the injury has only fueled suspicion that it's more bad than good. Should Seager not be healthy enough to play when 2018 starts, the fallbacks could include Chris Taylor, Charlie Culberson, Hernandez or someone from the outside.

    Will Rick Honeycutt return?
    The most successful active pitching coach in the game has been as vague about his future as Seager has been about his elbow, and even club officials don't seem to know if Honeycutt will return next year, as his contract expires after the World Series. One thing is more certain: whenever the 63-year-old retires, he won't be easy to replace.

    How will the Adrian Gonzalez drama be resolved?
    Things keep getting more awkward with Gonzalez, who was left off the postseason roster because the club felt it had better options than someone with a bad back that plays the same position as Cody Bellinger. Gonzalez went to Italy with his family during the first two postseason series, showed up on the club's pre-Game 1 telecast for the World Series and suddenly was back in uniform working out with the team by Game 2.
     
  3. Chiefdodgerslkrs24

    Chiefdodgerslkrs24 Among the Pantheon

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    I really hope so
     
  4. darth550

    darth550 Baba Yaga

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    Q is: Does going after Darvish, and/or having Maeda and half of Roberts already on the team matter to Otani?
     
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  5. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    He said it on MLB radio this afternoon while hosting. The evening guys said they think Otani goes to the Dodgers or Yankees, just based on what they know.

    I guess before I started listening, Bowden said he thinks that the Dodgers are going to be the eventual landing spot for Stanton.

    Sounds like the Dodgers will be in the news plenty, if only for the rumors, but most folks close to the club think they’re going to be very quiet.
     
  6. darth550

    darth550 Baba Yaga

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  7. Dodgers99

    Dodgers99 DSP Legend

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    Probably will be, maybe they flip Grandal for a cost-controlled OF or SP, and whatever they don't get, they get in Free Agency. If they get an OF for Grandal(plus, if needed), then maybe they sign Alex Cobb (or someone else relatively low-cost, not Darvish or Arrieta) but I think they need a starter, though they may disagree as they can probably get by on ~100 starts by Kershaw/Hill/Maeda/Wood and slap together the other 62 from McCarthy/Ryu/Stewart/Stripling/Kazmir(?)/Urias(in august)/Buehler(?).
     
  8. rube

    rube DSP Legend Staff Member Administrator

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    Yes.
    Darvish is his idol.
    The other two are gravy.
    Roberts probably knows some of the language.
     
  9. rube

    rube DSP Legend Staff Member Administrator

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    Thats the obvious thing. I dont know why people here think the GM absolutely would not do this. They dont understand that it is part of their plan. The plan is not static if you think they gonna do the same thing they done before you will be surprised.
    The Dodgers were not supposed to be this good this year. We lucked into a lot of guys having career years.
    This coming year is the year the team shifts from building from within with young prospects to bringing in big time free agents.
    Trading for Darvish was the start of that. They burned a prospect for not just Darvish but also the attention of Otani.
    Otani may trump everyone and go to the WS champions in order to have his best shot at winning rings.
    Neil Walker will be cheap this offseason. He is 32 and will probably get paid like Logan. 8 to 10 million a year for 2 or maybe if hes lucky 3 years. He can give you baseline good production in case of injury. Zach Cozart is another guy that wont be paid too much because of his injury history and only 1 year of high level production. He would get like 3 or 4 years at 10 to 12 million a year.
    This gives you insurance in case of Taylor being a fluke, Turner getting injured, Seager having surgery, the need for a DH, more veteran leadership. These guys replace the much older veterans of previous years teams.

    RF: Stanton
    CF: Puig
    3B: Turner
    1B: Seager or Walker/Forsythe
    LF: Bellinger
    SS: Cozart
    2B: Taylor
    C: Barnes

    Cozart becomes the new full time SS so we can turn double plays. Taylor will help immensely at 2B.
    Seager has a bad arm, his elbow needs surgery if he is to continue playing SS. Then the rehab and the playing tentatively afraid of re injury. Forget that. Move him to 1B. He is tall and can make himself into a good target. He would be the most nimble 1B in the league and would check the Astros move of putting Gurriel there.
    Turner, Taylor, Cozart, Seager... that infield will turn a lot of double plays.
    Bellinger, Puig, Stanton... that outfield will be great defensively with great arms any runner would be scared of.
    That offense/defense combination can match the type of lineup the Astros have built.
    Walker/Forsythe would be our DH and main PH and reserves alongside one of our young catchers. With probably Toles and/or Trayce as the OF reserves. BTW Walker used to be a catcher so he could be the emergency 3rd.

    Kershaw, Hill, Darvish, Otani would be the main rotation. The 5th spot would be for whomever was left after the Stanton trade. They might want Alex Wood.
    A deal centered around Verdugo, Joc, Grandal and Wood would get the ball rolling. But it may take Walker Buehler too.

    We would match up way better with the Astros.

    CF: Springer is better than Puig but Puig competes.
    RF: Reddick vs Stanton is no match obviously with their guy just trying to compete.
    LF: Marwin with Bellinger is in our favor.
    1B: Gurriel and Seager is a match in the Dodgers favor.
    2B: Altuve and Taylor is obviously in favor of Altuve but Taylor competes.
    SS: Correa and Cozart would again be big in their favor with our guy trying to compete.
    3B: Bregman vs Turner is again a good match and one that is pretty even.
    C : Gattis/McCann and Barnes/Grandal/prospects is about as evenly matched as well.

    They can go nuts and add a JD Martinez to DH. Shit can get real crazy real fast if the Dodgers are not proactive.
     
  10. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    so zack cozart is this year's jonathan villar?
     
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  11. rube

    rube DSP Legend Staff Member Administrator

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    We can go after Villar instead if you want.
     
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  12. fsudog21

    fsudog21 DSP Legend

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    ebonics?
     
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  13. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    i see now why you like cozart
    fresh donkey dairy milk/cheese for your compound...

    [​IMG]
     
  14. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    i can already see it...
    toles comes back from injury, struggles mightily, but roberts continues to play him over taylor
    nerds suggest giving taylor more pt, roberts refuses and files a racial discrimination lawsuit

    oh, and we lose in the lds :suicide:

    Toles begins swinging in Batting Cages
    by Matt Borelli | Dodger Blue — 2 hours ago

    [​IMG]

    With the offseason now officially underway, the Los Angeles Dodgers will soon begin constructing their roster for next year. As it currently stands, the club has decisions to make on six free agents that reached the open market on Thursday morning.

    That number could potentially increase in the coming days, when the Dodgers determine whether to pick up club options for Andre Ethier and Logan Forsythe.

    One player that’s already under team control and figures to factor into the Dodgers’ plans next season is Andrew Toles, who looks to reclaim a role in the outfield rotation after undergoing season-ending surgery in May to repair a torn ACL in his right knee.

    The 25-year-old, after months of rehab and recovery, has resumed swinging in the batting cages, which he shared on Instagram:
    toles.png
    Before his unfortunate injury, Toles looked primed to put up big numbers in 2017. In just 102 plate appearances, he batted .271/.314/.458 with three doubles, five home runs and 15 RBI.

    In his rookie season with the Dodgers in 2016, Toles hit a robust .314/.365/.505 with nine doubles, one triple and three home runs over 115 plate appearances. He accumulated 1.4 WAR (Baseball-Reference) for his efforts and displayed solid defense in all three outfield positions.

    That earned him a start against the Washington Nationals in Game 1 of the 2016 National League Division Series, and he went on to start in eight of the Dodgers’ 11 postseason games.

    Through parts of two seasons in the Majors, Toles owns a .294/.341/.483 batting line with 21 extra-base hits and 36 runs scored in 217 trips to the plate.​
     
  15. Doughty8

    Doughty8 DSP Legend

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  16. darth550

    darth550 Baba Yaga

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    Last edited: Nov 4, 2017
  17. fsudog21

    fsudog21 DSP Legend

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    authored by the great Sarabeth Pollack.
     
  18. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    rube writes for espn?

    The Dodgers' drought didn't end at 29, but here's how it can at 30
    by Bradford Doolittle | ESPN Staff Writer — 4 hours ago

    We know the Los Angeles Dodgers can bounce back from adversity. We saw it just a few days ago, when they blew two big leads in losing a 13-12 classic in Game 5 of the World Series, then came right back to beat the Houston Astros' Justin Verlander to force a Game 7.

    That the Dodgers lost 5-1 in the series finale was a massive disappointment for a high-profile franchise that hasn't won a title in 29 years. By next October, the Dodgers will be staring at a three-decade-long championship drought.

    Nevertheless, that the Dodgers came up one victory short against a great Houston Astros team should not be looked at as a red flag. There is nothing wrong with the Dodgers, nor is there anything that needs to be fixed. As with all teams, there are key decisions to be made this winter. L.A.'s think tank front office will certainly work to get better on the margins.

    Even if the Dodgers brought back the exact same team in 2018, they would be a heavy favorite to win a sixth straight National League West title. They would also be viewed as a prime World Series favorite. In fact, depending on which Vegas odds you look at, L.A is either already the favorite, or is a close second in the early betting lines.

    The problem for the Dodgers, Astros, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees and any other team staking claim to a spot on baseball's current elite tier is that they can all make the exact same claim: They aren't going anywhere anytime soon. The four teams named all have dynamic young cores, their best players locked up for the immediate future and all have the resources that come with being in one of the most populous markets in America.

    As Cubs president Theo Epstein has often said, the postseason is a crapshoot, and the best you can do is put your team in position to win every year. The Dodgers should be in that position again next year, no matter what happens between now and spring training.

    So the Dodgers will set out to once again improve on the margins, as suggested. But know this: There is no formula for building a roster so perfectly suited to baseball's postseason format that it ensures success. We don't know jack about what it takes to win in October. No one does. Think you need three closer-grade, lock-down relievers? That seemed to be the new trend, but the Astros just won a title with zero lock-down relievers.

    With all this understood and agreed upon, let's wade into the waters of the offseason and look at ways the Dodgers might maximize their position for their next October go-around.

    Roster overview

    The top five players in WAR for the 2017 Dodgers are locked up through 2020, either by long-term contract or team control. That core consists of: Corey Seager, Justin Turner, Chris Taylor, Clayton Kershaw and Cody Bellinger. Of those, Taylor will have to prove he's not a flash in the pan, but the other names on that list are the primary reason you can count on more Dodger runs in the seasons to come. Add closer Kenley Jansen to that list.

    The key decisions the Dodgers face this offseason are related to their key free agents: Yu Darvish, Brandon Morrow, Chase Utley and Tony Watson.

    Darvish is a tough call. Even after his disastrous World Series, he figures to be the top free-agent pitcher in a thin market. That could lead to an onerous external offer that the Dodgers don't want to match. Just how much do you want to invest in a pitcher who not only flopped on baseball's biggest stage but is only marginally more valuable in regular-season terms from some of L.A.'s other internal options?

    The Dodgers could let Darvish walk and still roll out the base rotation they had before they traded for him: Kershaw, Alex Wood, Rich Hill, Kenta Maeda and Hyun-Jin Ryu. That's only a jumping off point, given how the Dodgers shuffle starting pitchers. Even so, L.A. still has options like prospects Walker Buehler and Brock Stewart, veteran Brandon McCarthy and possible injury returnees in Scott Kazmir and -- perhaps later in the 2018 season -- recent phenom Julio Urias.

    Really, it will come down to price tag and how much the L.A. honchos decide they want to invest in Darvish. If he goes, L.A. might not replace him immediately with another high-price starter but instead would wait until next season to see who pops up on the in-season trade market.

    But there's a wild-card factor in the Darvish situation we'll get to at the end of this piece.

    Beyond Darvish, the Dodgers have to consider the workload this year for resurgent set-up guy Brandon Morrow, but certainly it would be preferable to bring him back. Watson may be expendable, given the emergence of fellow lefty reliever Tony Cingrani and internal options who should be healthier like Grant Dayton and Luis Avilan.

    As for Utley, he looked like an old player during October. However, his oversized presence in the Dodgers clubhouse might convince L.A. to bring him back anyway. Either way, the Dodgers aren't likely to spend big on Utley, nor are they likely to give him anything close to the 353 plate appearances he got this season.

    The Dodgers have to make calls on club options they hold on Andre Ethier and Logan Forsythe. Ethier, respected as he is in the clubhouse and in the city, is probably a goner -- his option is for $17.5 million, or the team must pay him a $2.5 million buyout. They'll pay the buyout.

    Forsythe's option is for $8.5 million, with a $1 million buyout. In 2017, he produced just 2.1 WAR, hitting .224/.351/.327. In the three years before that, he hit .262/.334/.419. Which player is he? As a 31-year-old middle infielder, $8.5 million might be a little expensive to find an answer to that question.

    If the Dodgers don't pick up Forsythe's option, they'll be looking at a second base free-agent market headed up by Milwaukee's Neil Walker, with Cincinnati's Zack Cozart a possibility to shift from shortstop. Those options would be even more expensive than simply picking up Forsythe's option. Beyond that, the Dodgers are looking at a repeat of last winter, when they waited out the trade market for second basemen before dealing for Forsythe.

    Finally, the Dodgers will have to figure out how to dispatch with Adrian Gonzalez and the $22.4 million left on his deal for 2018. You don't want to bring him back as a reserve, you don't have a position for him and his trade market is probably nil. In the end, the Dodgers are probably looking at eating a hunk of money.

    What needs upgrading

    The Dodgers could use more certainty at second base, but as we've covered, their options there aren't overwhelming. If Forsythe doesn't return, maybe you could cover second with some combination of Charlie Culberson, Enrique Hernandez and Chris Taylor, but you'd still need to add a lefty hitter to the mix. (Beyond Utley.)

    With Taylor solving the center-field hole, the Dodgers now need to work on adding to their corner outfield mix. Joc Pederson moving around into that rotation now seems like a pretty good option, given his World Series play, but he'll have to show that wasn't a small-sample fluke. He could also be one of L.A.'s more alluring trade chips.

    All eyes next spring will be on outfield prospect Alex Verdugo, who could give the Dodgers a third straight Rookie of the Year contender if he can lock down left field, at least against righties. A Verdugo-Taylor-Yasiel Puig base outfield looks pretty sweet.

    Still, there is one area, regardless of position, where you'd like to see an upgrade: A high-impact contact hitter.

    Hear us out: This is not a knee-jerk reaction to L.A.'s problem with cashing in runners in scoring position during the World Series. The Dodgers ranked 17th in the ratio of their OPS in those spots to their overall OPS. The Dodgers' lineup is all about the secondary skills, but not so much about getting balls in play. That disparity was evident at times in October. If there was one stark difference between the Dodgers and Astros during the World Series, it was that.

    Possible "fixes"

    If there is one big financial splash the Dodgers should consider this offseason, it's that issue with creating a more versatile lineup. Who fits the bill of what we're talking about? Here's a few names of players who might be worth targeting, whether it's with free-agent cash or with a splashy trade offer: Marcell Ozuna, Jose Abreu (which would put Bellinger in the outfield, so it's not a great fit) and Cozart.

    Beyond that, there is one splash the Dodgers could make that might only be a indirectly a big financial commitment: The successful wooing of possible Japanese free agent Shohei Otani.

    The Dodgers can only offer Otani a $300,000 bonus because of their current restrictions under the rules governing each team's international spending pool. They are one of 12 teams so restricted this year. However, no one can blow away the market with an offer because of the new limits imposed by the most recent CBA. On top of that, insofar as we know what the somewhat mysterious Otani will prioritize, it's said that money is a side issue.

    What the Dodgers could offer is a great team on the field, a healthy and diverse clubhouse culture and the city of Los Angeles -- which has the largest Japanese-American population in the continental United States. The Dodgers also have one Japanese player who seems perfectly happy in Maeda.

    And then there is Darvish, who also says he likes the Dodgers, wants to return and has worked out with Otani in Japan in the past. How much could re-signing Darvish help sway Otani's decision? Right now, that's impossible to say. But if it emerges as a factor, that could make Darvish's price tag more palatable.

    If the Dodgers were to land Otani, part of the pitch will likely be to allow him to function as a two-way player. That's surely going to be part of other teams' recruiting and L.A. may be forced to make that promise. That's not a bad thing, if Otani proves to be as capable of it as his numbers in Japan suggest.

    No team leverages versatility more than the Dodgers. You could see Otani possibly rotating from left field to right to first base, pinch-hitting and either starting in the rotation, serving as a multi-inning reliever or even emerging as another lights-out set-up guy for Jansen.

    The good thing about the Dodgers' situation is that they can be as creative as they want to be. They don't have to make any kind of splash unless they find the one they want to make. They don't pare down payroll, because they have so many good, cost-controlled players that salary expense is decreasing in an organic fashion.

    Next season, the Dodgers will be back in the mix. But do they make one big move this winter, or several smaller ones? Do they stand pat? With the club at a high point in its history, we know this: L.A. will be dealing from a position of strength.
     
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  19. rube

    rube DSP Legend Staff Member Administrator

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    Stanton, Otani, Walker, Cozart, Offseason.
     
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  20. irish

    irish DSP Staff Member Administrator

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    btw
    if you got one of these cards
    they stopped working nov 1
    002.png
     
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