No question on the bold. But I can't say I expected this to happen to Howie. I haven't looked it up, but it's gotta be a chore to find somebody who produced at the rate he did with men on base. Just an outstanding bat for the 5 or 6 spot in the order. Shocked the hell out me, even considering his age and position. His defense was closer to average than it was bad...
About damned time we resigned him!! Fuck the Douche bags Fuck Utley Let Kike spell Howie when and if needed
Me neither, TBH. I thought he was gone for sure. But now it's a clear pattern, unless you are a top elite player the QO tag will affect you in a major way.
Expect the players union to make a big push to get rid or somehow change the QO the next time the CBA is negotiated. Players like Howie are missing out on ten's of millions.
This off season is pretty much a guarantee that the QO system is going to be changed in the next CBA. Probably will be something like a 2nd round pick that gets sacrificed.
I think most of us agreed if Kendrick was looking for a 4 year deal and one last big contract he was as good as gone and we were all happy to let him go at that price tag range and get the draft pick. But Kendrick coming back on a 2 year deal is a win for the Dodgers. I'm happy. His age 32 and 33 seasons should be still quality. This also probably pushes Utley to more of a strict bench role, which is good. And let's Kike play all over the diamond like y'all mentioned, which is probably his best role for the team. Yay
Man, at one point in the season when he was just droppin clutch hit after clutch hit I was talkin 3yrs/50-60MM on the overpay if needed. 2yrs/20M...this following Kazmir and Maeda...all things considered I'm tryin to figure out which deal is the most impressive.. It may be this one, QO aided, but still pretty great
Meh. Average kind of player, nice cheap signing. At least you know what you're going to get. Kike or that new kid could have probably put up a similar WAR at the position but at this price it really is little risk and potential reward. Problem is, I don't like the look of our team with him as the cleanup hitter. Would make a great 6-7 guy.
solid character, clutch player, who wouldn't want him around and it shouldn't have taken this long utley off the bench and spot start works much better than thinking about him everyday
Howie Kendrick's return a plus on multiple levels for Dodgers by Doug Padilla | ESPN Staff Writer — 15 minutes ago LOS ANGELES -- On the offensive side for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Jimmy Rollins might be gone, but Howie Kendrick's return means that most of the band is back together from a club that took a punch to the gut from the New York Mets in the National League Division Series. Now if only the Dodgers can stay healthy. Kendrick’s return was first reported by Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, with additional reports confirming that the second baseman will make $20 million over his new two-year deal. In reaching agreement with Kendrick three weeks before pitchers and catchers are due to report to Arizona, the Dodgers struck a favorable deal to bring back a player who batted .295 with a .409 slugging percentage over 117 games during his inaugural season with the club. Kendrick turned down a one-year, $15.8 million qualifying offer at the start of the offseason. That qualifying offer, once declined, meant that any team that signed Kendrick would have to part with a draft pick as compensation to the Dodgers. It appears to have been too much of a commitment for any team looking to bring aboard an infielder who will turn 33 during the upcoming season. In the end, it all worked out as well as the Dodgers could have hoped, although the inventory of infielders, particularly second baseman, is downright gluttonous. Kendrick’s return nixes what had been shaping up to be a platoon between Chase Utley and Enrique Hernandez on the right side of the infield. And that doesn’t even account for the presence of more second basemen in Alex Guerrero and Micah Johnson, the latter acquired in a trade from the Chicago White Sox. Injury potential is always present when it comes to a 33-year-old infielder such as Kendrick, who missed over a month late last season with a hamstring issue. But the club has plenty of other options, if necessary. It’s a luxury that is not lost on ace pitcher Clayton Kershaw. “Last year, we saw what injuries can kind of do to a team,” Kershaw said Friday between the L.A. City Council meeting that voted to create Vin Scully Avenue and a lunch with members of the Wounded Warrior Project. “We just have to do what we’re supposed to do. I know that sounds pretty vague, but the way our team is put together, if we do what we’re supposed to do, we’ll be alright.” At the time of his hamstring injury last year, Kendrick was among the National League leaders at second base with a .759 OPS. He returned Sept. 19 and batted .289 in 12 games, but had just two extra-base hits over his final 45 at-bats and both his slugging percentage and OPS tailed off. That was until the postseason, when it picked right back up again. That has always been Kendrick’s forte, to deliver incredibly consistent offense and avoid the steep peaks and valleys. His defense has never been spectacular, but he handles the glove adequately. “I’ve seen it from the other side,” new Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Kendrick. “I’ve always admired the way he has played the game.” Now Roberts will get more of an up-close-and-personal look. “He’s a heck of a ballplayer,” Roberts said Friday as rumors of a potential Kendrick deal circulated. “I know that he enjoyed his time here last year. If something does work out, it makes us a better ballclub.”
Think that 2 spot is all Corey's this year, I like HK 5 or 6 personally If I had my way.. Puig Corey Turner Adrian Ethier HK YG Joc Would flip flop Puig and Joc if Puig doesn't have his act together and Joc does. Good looking lineup tho with some upside, just searching for some consistency from the young crew. Don't really trust Puig in any prime RBI spots, but that's just me