Because I Can

"Wait til next year" was the motto of the Brooklyn Dodgers. What about next year? There are some players under contract, some likely to be traded before the deadline, some that aren't under contract but not eligible to be free agents, and some eligible free agents.

Players Under Contract
Izturis ($4.15 Million)
Furcal ($13 Million)
Drew ($11 Million)
Kent ($11 Million)
Tomko ($4.1 Million)
Perez ($10 Million)
Mueller ($4.5 Million)
Lowe ($9.5 Million)
Penny ($8 Million)
Saenz ($1 Million)

buyouts
Cruz ($ 0.3 Million)
Gagne ($1 Million)

Do the math, and that's $77.55 Million. That's not all. There are other guys the Dodgers have used this year already that could be part of the club

Not Eligible for Free Agency
Martin - C
Broxton - RP
Billingsley - SP
Kuo - RP
Ethier - OF
Kemp - OF
Guzman - OF/3B/1B/SS
Laroche - 3B
Loney - 1B/OF
Hall - C
Hendrickson - SP
Brazoban - RP

Free Agents
Nomar Garciaparra - 1B
Eric Gagne - CL
Takashi Saito - CL
Ricky Ledee - OF
Jose Cruz - OF
Kenny Lofton - OF
Danys Baez - RP
Giovanni Carrara - RP
Ramon Martinez - INF
Aaron Sele - SP

The two players just acquired via trade, Hendrickson and Hall, are themselves likely to be traded. Hall will be a catcher playing for a contract year, and Hendrickson is a left-handed starting pitcher. Realistically, this is what the Dodgers roster will look like next year

Infield
1B - ?
2B - Kent
SS - Furcal
3B - ?

It's the shortstops out of position. Whether or not to keep Nomar is the first question. If not, does Kent move to first and Izturis to second, clearing third for Laroche? Or does Nomar stay, Kent stay at 2nd, Furcal at short, and Izturis stay at third, blocking Laroche? Or is Izturis traded? Or is Laroche traded? It's basically down to whether Nomar Garciaparra, Cesar Izturis, or Andy Laroche is the odd man out, and that will depend largely on the quality of talent available in the draft. Or Rafael Furcal could be the new centerfielder, and all three could stay, but that's not very likely given the farm system's outfield depth.

Outfield
LF - Ethier
CF - Repko
RF - Drew

Kemp may be the 4th outfielder because of he can play all three positions, and Grady will likely give Drew plenty of rest. Drew would likely be traded if his value rises enough, given that he's still a fairly solid player when he's not broken, which could prompt a position switch for Furcal.

Catcher - Martin

It's his spot now, and for years to come. The end.

Bench
Saenz - 1B/3B
OF - Kemp
OF - ?
INF - ?
C - ?

The question here is whether Colletti lets the rookies go loose, or if he keeps some veterans around to help with the transition. Ledee would be a good option for the 5th outfielder, as well as Martinez for the utilityman. The backup catcher will be a non-roster invite unless Hall gets more playing time in LA.

Rotation
Penny
Lowe
Billingsley
4 - ?
5 - ?

Brad Penny is the new #1, but Lowe is solid too. Where Tomko and Hendrickson go is a question mark. One of them will likely be traded. A free agent signing would be a possibility, most likely Greg Maddux.

Bullpen
CL - ?
Brazoban
Broxton
Kuo
Perez
?

Is there any chance of a Gagne return? What about Saito? Will Odalis Perez stick around, or perhaps even be an effective reliever? The "CL - ?" says everything.

Labels: Dodgers