For all the fans who have been patiently waiting, the Dodgers have finally made their grand splash of the winter, acquiring outfielder Matt Kemp from the Braves on Saturday afternoon in exchange for Adrian Gonzalez, Brandon McCarthy, Scott Kazmir, Charlie Culberson and cash.
Welcome to December. A time in which the snow starts to fall and holiday shopping is atop many to-do lists. December is also the time when the entirety of baseball convenes at one location for the Winter Meetings. Contrary to its name, the Winter Meetings are when the hot stove is alive and unignorable, like a warm summer day in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles.
Continue reading “Winter Meetings Come and Go Quietly for Dodgers”
The Dodgers have apparently made their first free agent acquisition of the offseason, signing 31-year-old swing man Tom Koehler to a one-year contract pending a physical.
While the Dodgers left the 2017 Winter Meetings with only a consolation prize of a mid-level infield prospect, many fans have taken to social media to express their respective concerns heading into 2018, especially in the area of the bullpen. It took several years for the team to finally find a competent setup man in Brandon Morrow, yet the veteran righty was able to walk away from Los Angeles and land a lucrative deal with the Cubs for the next several seasons. Andrew Friedman and his troops seem fairly confident in the internal relief options heading into 2018 spring training, but questions loom as to whether the impending bullpen will be talented enough to help guide the squad into next season’s playoff picture.
Continue reading “Dodgers Bullpen: Putting Together an All-Prospect, All-Righty Relief Crew”
While the Dodgers didn’t have much interest in participating in the big league portion of the Rule 5 draft on Thursday morning, they did take part in the minor league part of the draft, eventually claiming utility man Angelo Mora before the Winter Meetings came to a close.
Continue reading “Dodgers Claim Utility Man Angelo Mora at Winter Meetings”
Shohei Ohtani is an Angel. Giancarlo Stanton is a Yankee. The Dodgers? They’re still the reigning National League Champions. I think most of us believed that at least one of the two, Ohtani or Stanton, would become Dodgers. If not both. Then again, a logical case couldn’t be made for either. Ohtani wants to hit and pitch, something an AL team would be able to help him do better than a National League team. As for Stanton, the Dodgers wanted to decrease payroll, and couldn’t match the deal that the Yankees offered the Marlins.
Continue reading “Dodgers Are in No Hurry to Fine-Tune Player Roster”
Now that the winter hot stove is finally beginning to heat up, many followers of the Dodgers are wondering if the Los Angeles management crew will make any significant moves to bolster the club’s roster before pitchers and catchers report to Camelback Ranch in just a few short months.
Continue reading “Dodgers 2018 Roster: Let’s Start Building a Bullpen”
Baseball’s Winter Meetings start today, and the Dodgers have yet to make any moves. For a team that had the best record in baseball last year, and were one win a way from winning it all, that wouldn’t normally be a big concern. To the Los Angeles front office, I’m sure it isn’t. With fans, it’s probably a different story.
Continue reading “Dodgers Front Office Taking Conservative Approach, and That’s OK”
As strong and as deep as the Dodgers‘ farm system is considered, there are a few spots, however, which may be little light on talent. Second base sticks out the most, but the system also lacks a solid third baseman who has both a capable bat and an impressive glove. Sure, there are guys like Edwin Rios, Matt Beaty, Rob Segedin and the ever-versatile Kyle Farmer, but the absence of outstanding defensive ability may be the biggest factor in keeping players like these from thriving at the big league level.
Continue reading “Dodgers Prospect Watch: Cristian Santana on the Rise”
Now that the two biggest headliners of the winter’s hot stove market—Shohei Ohtani and Giancarlo Stanton—have made their respective 2018 destinations known, baseball fans can shift their attention to the Winter Meetings on Sunday, and start considering the secondary wave of available players, which really should have never been secondary at all.
Continue reading “Dodgers 2018 Payroll: To Spend or Not to Spend?”
Think Blue Planning Committee 