DODGERS NEWS/RUMORS Thread

Discussion in 'Los Angeles DODGERS' started by irish, Oct 12, 2019.

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  1. rube

    rube DSP Legend Staff Member Administrator

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    Racist
     
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  2. Nirvanaskurdt

    Nirvanaskurdt DSP Legend

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    Friedman bout to be the president of baseball operations, GM, Manager, pitching coach, and he's going to be the Jewish Ohtani and become the ace of the pitching staff while playing 1B on his off days :eek:
     
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  3. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    It's definitely what's needed. The 30+ year World Series title drought + all of Kershaw's choking, reasonable to think they're a dark cloud over the clubhouse in the fall. Just means they're gonna have to be open to changing the dynamics of the team..if they actually care about winning a World Series, which can be debated.

    Would be wise to target a few pros that are loose because this club is under some pressure/scrutiny and not everybody will be able to handle it. Not even completely sure if handing out a monster contract and adding that sort of pressure to what's already going on is the way. What's a Votto trade look like?
     
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  4. VRP

    VRP DSP Legend

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    Told you we should look at that Kendrick guy. He’s a stud.
     
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  5. BlueMouse

    BlueMouse 2020 World Champions

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    As mad as I am at Kershaw, I’m not recommending it as punishment. But if our starting rotation is filling up, I’d rather move Kershaw to the pen than our young guys. Maybe moving to the pen can help him add a few ticks back to his fastball, and he could find a role where he can be a plus pitcher in the playoffs. I understand his value to the rotation, as he can still be a 200 inning workhorse, and a full rotation is rarely if ever a problem... so it’s me just spitballing.
     
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  6. fsudog21

    fsudog21 DSP Legend

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    Not sure a bullpen role would be advisable considering how Kershaw has struggled in his first innings recently.
     
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  7. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    Time to be creative in a big way, if they give a damn, that is. Plenty of payroll flexibility to do that. Maybe they sign Rendon to take 3B since they're reportedly high on him, and then deal for Votto since they've been striking a bunch of deals with Cincy in recent years. Seager and Turner, both out, flipped for young pitching. Muncy + others go to Boston for Mookie.

    Rendon's been lauded for his loose approach to the game. Maybe he'd be immune to the big contract pressure and all the other 30+ year/Kershaw shit hanging over LAD? Mookie is obviously thriving in arguably the most pressure filled market, so he can't be bothered. And we know Votto doesn't give a fuck, the ultimate troll in MLB, and he could potentially be a great guy for lefties Joc/Belli/Lux to learn from. Shed old man Turner and his remaining money, as well as Pollock, Kenley, Seager and sell high on Muncy. Muncy + Verdugo + Rios + Josiah Gray for Mookie.

    L Joc LF
    R Mookie RF
    L Votto 1B
    R Rendon 3B
    L Belli CF
    R Taylor/Kike 2B
    L Lux SS
    R Willie/Ruiz C

    The lineup by September given good health, of course. Offensive positions/least important defensive positions at the top half of the lineup, most important defensive positions in the bottom half. Pitching..is what it is since they choked by giving Kershaw the extension. They don't want to spend big, so just rely on Buehler and May to lead the staff into the fall, and maybe Julio or Gonsolin slots in @ #3. Let Ryu and that money move on..one soft tosser from the left is enough. Make Kersh a Game 4 starter, at best. Should prefer to send Kersh to the hill on the road..that way the LAD offense gets a crack at scoring 1st because he's obviously going to get raped early in games. At least our O will have a shot at playing from ahead on the scoreboard in Kersh's games. Closer..I don't care as long as Kenley is gone. Maybe see if Maeda can slide from starter to closer in the fall, or use Gonsolin there if/when he fails to crack the post rotation. Whatever the case, I trust Friedman will once again figure out a way to put a pen together that'll get them to the dance. But yeah, that's what I'd do. I'd blow a lot of this shit up. But then again, I'm someone that cares. Guggs doesn't give a fuck.
     
  8. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    As much as I love Votto, that one ain't gonna happen and for good reason. He is coming off an awful season that was preceded by his worst full season since his rookie year. He's 36 now and is still owed $107M over the next 4 years. He is basically Muncy without the power or defensive versatility. I think if anyone comes knocking asking for Votto, the Reds would be insane not to listen.
     
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  9. VRP

    VRP DSP Legend

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    If Mookie would resign (and we’d pay him which they wouldn’t) I’d give up Seager++ in a heartbeat
     
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  10. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    It would need to be a three team trade then. Red Sox don't have a need for Seager.
     
  11. VRP

    VRP DSP Legend

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    Devers to 1B?
     
  12. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    I guess that could work, but the Sox are then paying more of a premium for Seager since he is a top tier SS, just to move a decent 3B over to 1B when they could probably get solid bat 1B for a lot less.
     
  13. VRP

    VRP DSP Legend

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    Xander is a free agent after 2020. Lots of moving parts.
     
  14. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    He signed an extension last spring. He is not a FA until at least 2026
     
  15. VRP

    VRP DSP Legend

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    Oooo. It’s not on baseball prospectus contract page, weird
     
  16. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    I want Votto in over Seager in the postseason, don't give a damn about the price. That's just the way I look at it because I'd be swapping Muncy+ for Mookie. Rendon in for JT. I'd send Turner to Cincy, don't care, old guy for old guy.

    Granted, Votto has had a bad year and a half by his standards..which is really all it was because he made the all star team in 2018..you're still taking Votto over Seager in the lineup and you want Votto over Muncy @ 1B defensively. For me, it's the offensive player version of Verlander, so take advantage this time
     
  17. rube

    rube DSP Legend Staff Member Administrator

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    Or you could sign Donaldson to give you that veteran hitter for the playoffs.
     
  18. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    The only problem with Donaldson is that he is likely not really a long term option and his injury history is scary. Rendon gives you the long term safety net that you can also then move on from Seager for. With Donaldson you still create the log jam of having to move Seager, but not necessarily having a long term option at 3B unless they fully believe in Kody Hoese. Tuner and Donaldson on the corners is one of those things that could go bad really quickly if the injury bug nips them. With that said, both those guys in the postseason would be awesome to have.
     
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  19. ColoradoKidWitGame

    ColoradoKidWitGame DSP Legend Administrator

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    What are some the best choices in Free Agency? These are the guys I would take a look at and the prices. I think we may see a much more aggressive front office than we have seen in recent years. They have a lot of money coming off the books and a ton more over the next couple of years. Granted their young guys are getting more expensive, but this reason paired with the disastrous finish to the season could finally push them to have to spend on great talent instead of middling bullshit.

    The Elite

    Sign Gerrit Cole (7 years $225M):
    This one is probably never going to happen since we do not give long term contracts to pitchers and even I hate the idea of going much longer than this. The Yankees are probably going to go all out after Cole and may offer some number that no team is comfortable matching. I like the idea of offering him an opt out in 2-3 years so he could get back out there again and front load the shit out of that thing(like $40M per the first 3 years) so if things DO go well or horribly bad, there are provisions in place to potentially help the club or the player. His stuff has only gotten better with age and he has seen a steady velo since first coming up as he is down only 1 tick over 8 big league seasons. He has 5 pitches that he likes to use which helps as a player ages, making him a safer long term contract than a guy who has, say only 3 pitches... Anyway, this would give the Dodgers a legit 2 headed monster with Cole and Buehler, plus a potential 3rd in Dustin May. The Dodgers would become a power pitching rotation in a single offseason and have potentially the best 3, maybe even 4 starters in the division.

    Sign Stephen Strasburg (6 Years $200M)
    It is not a sure thing that he opts out, but it is highly likely as he has 4 yrs and $100 M remaining on his contract including a whopping $45M of that coming in 2023. I think the only reason he does not opt out at this point is he is worried that he is not going to pass a physical with a new team, which for him and the mileage on his arm, is no sure thing. He has still been a wrecking machine in the playoffs and never once dipped below being an above average pitcher at any point in his career. He has been seeing a steady drop in velo as he is now 5 full ticks below his average velocity from when he first came up, but really you should look at it more like the 2 ticks since returning from his TJ 2012. The fact that he has 5 go to pitches means that when the velo continues to drop(it will), he has the weapons to keep players off balance. If the Dodgers walk away from this offseason with one of these top two guys, we will be in great shape.

    Sign Anthony Rendon (7 Years $245M)
    The importance of Rendon is on a sliding scale to me. I want him on the club, at the same time we have a lot of infield options and I am wary of long term deals for anyone at this point. Rendon is coming off the best season of his career and is one of the main reasons why the Dodgers are not 3 games up on the Cardinals right now. He would give the Dodgers a steady RH bat that would help offset the glut of lefties on the roster and help ease the pain of Turner going bye bye likely after the year ahead. There are rumors that the Dodgers have had him in their sights for the last year+ as option B to Nolan Arenado's A. If that is the case, just how far do the Dodgers go to sign him? They will not have the Yankees or Red Sox to contend with, nor likely the Angels or Giants. So options could be thin here, but a WS berth will likely motivate a Nats team that was said to be willing to let Bryce Harper go last offseason so that they could retain Rendon in the year ahead. Missing out on all 3 of these players could be semi-catastrophic for the org as they will then need to use a trade market that has not been easy for the org to navigate due to the Dodgers Tax.

    The Well We Whiffed, What Now?

    Sign Nicholas Castellanos (3 Years $33-40M)
    This one would be a hard one to swallow. His bat is unquestionably great and put into the hands of the Dodgers analytical department, he has the potential to be a legit bomber. He bitches about analytics, but it was the Tigers horrid analytical department that he has to thank for those feelings. Once going to a more established system, he took off, looking a lot like another former Tigers slugger of recent memory. He doesn't have the long term results that JD did, but he has still been good and the potential to unlock much more is there. Signing Castellanos would likely put him at 1B as the Cubs couldn't even save his horrid D in LF. This would also mean another year of Turner at 3B and Seager being shown the door OR Muncy getting moved to LF if they refuse to move on from the postseason choker. Adding another bopper to them middle of the Dodgers order would also mean that Seager could be thrown to the 8 hole if he continues to plateau as a hitter in the postseason. The Muncy to LF scenario would also mean that the club would have to find a new place for Pollock, which needs to happen no matter what. This would turn into a good-great signing to me if this was paired with a Stras/Cole signing.

    Sign J.D. Martinez (3 Years $75-80M)
    Hey, it's not my money, so why the hell not? Everything I just said about Castellanos applies to Martinez, only that he is older, a much more dangerous bat and has shown no ability to play the IF. This would be a risky as fuck move, but if he can show any ability to handle 1B, his bat would absolutely be worth it. The theme for this season is no longer, "we can add a good bat and be fine". That is not it anymore. They need a great pitcher and a guy that slots into the 3-4 hole and can do massive damage if Bellinger never pulls his head out of his ass. I don't think Martinez is opting out, but you never know. He has a career .925 OPS in the playoffs across 90 PA's.

    Sign Marcell Ozuna (3 Years $55-60M)
    I am probably way undervaluing Osuna, but his outfield defense is awful and he is prone to long streaks of futility. He is not that 3-4 guy I was just talking about above, but his signing would need to be paired with a flurry of other moves. He has had one fantastic year(2017), one good(2014) and a whole lot of ehhh(this year included).... He would be an upgrade over shitty ass Pollock and while he has dealt with some injuries over the years, he has for the most part been able to stay on the field. I would take him over Pollock any day and his upside is higher than any outfielder that we have in the pipeline.

    This Better Not Be All That You Get

    Sign Will Smith (3 Years $27-30M)
    I do not like paying relievers. Call it recent memory bias, but some great relievers started dying early into their contracts recently. I think relievers are going to start seeing valuations not extending beyond 3 years and Will Smith is absolutely no different. His FIP outperformed his ERA, but he gave up HR's at a higher clip than Kenley and that was with playing half his games in Oracle. The other scary thing is that Smith was both much worse on the road AND righties touched him up with an OPS over .700. His numbers are very skewed from keeping the ball in the park at home and absolutely DOMINATING lefties. His history gives me enough relief that he should at worse be a LOOGY that can handle a couple weaker righties between, but now we have a 3 batter minimum in 2020, making the chances for error go up. I think he should be paid in line with the solid relievers of recent seasons, but he is not of the caliber as a Chapman, Melancon, Jansen or Kimbrel from when they came out.

    Sign Drew Pomeranz (2 Years $10-12M)
    As recently stated, I do not like paying relievers. With that said, the Dodgers have a lefty reliever problem and they could use one that can also take on a RHB or two if it means getting some good lefties out in the process. Pom once again was moved to the pen for the second year in a row after disaster struck in the rotation to start the year. Unlike last year, Pom was chucking 95-96 instead 90-92 and ditched all his secondaries except for his curve. He seems like a good potential buy low candidate that could be an under the radar dominant force for the pen.


    Outside of these guys, it would be a case by case basis. There are some players that I would love to see in Dodger blue on the market, but a whole lot of chips would have to fall to make me cool with their signing. I have said this the past couple years that we should see a lot of movement, but instead the FO has proven me wrong. This year seems different and Friedman saying that there could be a roster restructure is an eye opener. Saying something like that and then not doing a damn thing after what happened in the NLDS would be a magnificent black eye for the organization and a spit in the face to fans.
     
    Last edited: Oct 15, 2019
  20. Fall Winslow

    Fall Winslow McRib

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    The Come and Get Him

    Trade for Kenley Jansen ( 2 Years $38M)
    Come get this BAMF. That's it.
     
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