MLB NEWS/RUMORS Thread

Give him a large black coolie hat.

 

Morrow restates interest in re-signing with Dodgers
by Matthew Moreno | Dodger Blue — 11 minutes ago

The 2017 season was one that saw multiple unsung heroes play pivotal roles for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chris Taylor was first to vastly exceed expectations, and he was followed shortly thereafter by Brandon Morrow.

The right-hander was signed to a Minor League contract and began the season with Triple-A Oklahoma City. It was Morrow’s first time since his rookie year in 2007 where he pitched exclusively out of the bullpen.

Morrow was called up and added to the Dodgers’ 40-man roster at the end of May, returned to Oklahoma City in mid-June but quickly rejoined the club. He emerged as a dependable option for high-leverage and late-inning situations.

After a successful season, the 33-year-old was among the players to become a free agent. In the immediate aftermath of losing the World Series, Morrow expressed a desire to re-sign with the Dodgers.

He reiterated that stance and also highlighted what he’ll weight most in deciding which team to sign with, via MLB Network Radio:

“Obviously, you’d love to go back to the place where you had success. The Dodgers are set to be good for a very long time, and it’s obviously very attractive to be with a team that’s going to compete. That’s very high on my list. At 33 years old, to get back to the playoffs and try to win one, that’s probably going to be the leading factor in my decision making. I don’t care about closing. I’m cool with pitching whenever, I’m just looking for the best fit.”​

Morrow went 6-0 with a 2.06 ERA, 1.55 FIP, 0.92 WHIP, and 50 strikeouts in 43.2 innings across 45 games in the regular season. He limited opponents to a .111/.143/.222 batting line, amassed eight strikeouts and sported a 1.08 ERA in seven appearances through the National League Championship Series.

Morrow’s heavy usage continued as he became the second pitcher in MLB history to appear in seven World Series games in a single year. A catastrophic performance in Game 5 led to Morrow sporting an 8.44 ERA. He otherwise allowed one earned run or threw shutout work in six games of the Fall Classic.

The New York Mets are among the clubs with reported interest in Morrow.

 

Zaidi doesn’t believe roster has any glaring offseason needs
by Daniel Starkand | Dodger Blue — 1 hour ago



The Los Angeles Dodgers fell one game short of their goal this season, losing to the Houston Astros in Game 7 of the World Series. It was a disappointing finish to what was an extremely successful year for the Dodgers.

They won a Los Angeles franchise record 104 games, finished with the best record in baseball, and claimed an unprecedented fifth consecutive National League West title. While the Dodgers didn’t snap their World Series drought, the team remains in strong position moving forward.

“We’re fortunate to be in a position where a lot of the team is going to be coming back,” general manager Farhan Zaidi said.

“Every offseason you kind of take a look at your roster and find potential target areas. As we look at our roster, we don’t feel like we have any glaring needs.”

Unlike last winter, the Dodgers are returning the core of their roster. A few key contributors, namely, Yu Darvish and Brandon Morrow, are currently free agents.

While Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and Zaidi are stereotyped as valuing advanced stats over other matters when determining player personnel, the duo sees value in retaining the club’s free agents. Particularly after nearly winning the World Series.

“I think it’s not just the personal connections that you have with players, which we do, but also your competitive side. If you’re on a pickup basketball court and you come up just short, you want to be able to run it back,” Zaidi said.

“You want to take the same group of guys and be able to go at it again. We all have that instinct a little bit. We really believe in this team, this was a championship-caliber team.”

Confident and comfortable as Zaidi may be in the Dodgers roster, it’s not to suggest potential signings or trades won’t be explored.

“We’re going to continue to be opportunistic,” he said. “Like we always are, for ways to improve the roster.”

 

or so we thought...

 

Because getting the guy who wants to come here is what you call a sure thing.
Harper and Machado have a wide list of potential suitors and they want to be courted by all of them.
Stanton wants to be courted by just us.
And we do not need any more wins above replacement. That 3 win upgrade is meaningless and not why we would get Stanton.
We won a lot of games last season, we dont actually need to win more next.
What we need is to win when it counts. To put up a lineup that has more consolidated firepower and less spread out depth.
But if after getting Stanton they want to get Machado I will not be mad.

BTW, sure we can get these two guys if we are lucky in year.
But by then the Astros would have won yet another WS, if not them someone else.
We want to be the ones winning this coming season.
Stanton and Otani will keep us competitive with the rest of the contenders who will also be upgrading.