Dodger Checklist For The Winter Meetings.

This has been a very quiet Winter for the Dodgers thus far & I get the feeling that the Winter meetings are gonna be just as quiet. There are some things that need to be done & here some of them are:

THIRD BASE

• Nomar Garciahamm can't be expected to contribute anything as his hitting is declining with age & he's extremely injury prone.
• Miguel Cabrera will not be a Dodger as long as the asking price is as high as it is. The Marlins want at least 3 or 4 major league ready prospects & that's too much to give up for one player, even if that player is a potential Hall of Famer. It's also possible that the Marlins aren't really sure they want to Cabrera just yet, especially if you listen to recent comments from Arte Moreno.
  
• Joe Crede was said to be available a couple of weeks ago according Barry Rozner of the Chicago Daily Herald. He mentions Kershaw, Kemp & Loney who at this point should be untouchables, but maybe Andy La Roche & Delwyn Young or James McDonald. Crede had a down year last year, but was injured, he could bounce back and would be a nice pick up.
  

CENTER FIELD

• Juan Pierre is bad at baseball, very bad. His OPS is abysmal & his fielding is literally costing the Dodgers runs.
  
• Aaron Rowand is looking for something in the range of 5/70-75 million which is a little pricey, but if you look at his WARP-1 numbers and his run production, he consistently performs. Combined with Loney, Martin, Kemp & maybe someone like Crede this could be a dangerous lineup.
  
• Andruw Jones has Scott Boras as an agent. Need I say more? Well I will. His numbers tanked last year & he's been regarded for quite a while as a lazy ball player. he may be able to be acquired at a discount, but once again do we want him? The Braves won't be offering him arbitration so he can be acquired without giving up any picks. It won't be cheap & he may not be worth the clubhouse headache.
  

STARTING PITCHER

• Jason Schmidt can't be counted on for next season & Esteban Loaiza if healthy could be a decent number 5 starter.
• Johan Santana is going to the Yankees. Nuff said.
• Hiroki Kuroda was offered four years by the Mariners, which is a bit aggressive and risky as far as I'm concerned & I can't see him wanting to play for a team that is going nowhere fast.
  

So that's it! Don't expect many surprises. I've never been a huge fan of Colletti's (2nd pic look at the ring) but that could change if he does the right thing and doesn't move any of the quality young talent & stops wearing that damn Giant ring. Fucking traitor you're a Dodger now!!

Juan Pierre news

Jayson Stark is reporting that since Coco Crisp is considered to be a big part of the ongoing discussions between the Sox & Twins that the Rangers are considering interesting alternatives: Rocco Baldelli, Jim Edmonds, and Juan Pierre. If only Ned Colletti could get someone to take his Pierre contract. I've thought of them as a possibility perhaps taking back the equally bad contract of Vicente Padilla back. Padilla has slightly more upside than Pierre considering he wouldn't have to pitch in that bandbox of a stadium in Arlington but the cavernous Dodger Stadium, a pitcher's dream.

Santana News

A source with knowledge of the Twins' position told the Los Angeles Daily News that the club is asking the Dodgers for a package of three or four players from a pool of six: Chad Billingsley, Clayton Kershaw, Matt Kemp, Andy LaRoche, Jonathan Broxton and Andre Ethier in Johan Santana discussions.

No wonder the Dodgers aren't looked at as a front-runner here. The New York Post is reporting that the Twins are asking the Yankees for well more than "just" a Phil Hughes-Melky Cabrera package. Considering that Santana is likely to demand something in the neighborhood of $150 million in an extension as part of a trade, the price in talent to acquire him is simply too high right now.

It looks like the Boston and the Twins are working towards something focusing on Coco Crisp, Jon Lester and a couple prospects. One of those prospects may be Jacob Elsbury.

Dodgers looking to Kuroda for the back of the Rotation

According to Ken Gurnick from mlb.com the Dodgers are looking to sign Japanese pitcher Hiroki Kuroda.

Here's a little info on him: He's 32, pitched for Hiroshima where he compiled a record of 103-89 over 11 seasons & was a teammate of super closer Takashi Saito. Kuroda is a true free agent and is not subject to the posting system. Among teams pursing Kuroda are Seattle, Arizona and Kansas City. He'll probably get somewhere around 3 years/30 million which is better than anything we would give someone like Kyle Loshe.

Happy 80th Birthday Vin Scully

To the best announcer in baseball history and part of the Dodger family for over 50 years we here at Pedro For Delino wish you a very happy 80th Birthday. You are the man.

INTERVIEW WITH COLLETTI

Check out this interview with Ned Colletti from the NY Daily News. He actually might be starting to make some sense.

Rumors

• The Dodgers have an interest in Tony Clark. Dylan Hernandez also notes that the Dodgers' talks for Erik Bedard have stalled because the Orioles want to see what happens with Miguel Cabrera first. Instead of pursuing talented young players. Colletti seems determined to turn us into the Giants. A worthless bunch of aging veterans.
  
• Ned Colletti expects Jeff Kent back & I expect his mustache to come back sometime after that.
• The Dodgers have a great bit of interest in Hiroki Kuroda & could be right behind the Mariners, according to the L.A. Daily News. They scouted him quite a bit last season & while the Mariners sent GM Bill Bavasi and manager John McLaren out to meet with him his preference is said to be Los Angeles.
  
• This from Jon Heyman @ SI, The Dodgers also have what it would take to land Cabrera, and like their neighbors 45 minutes down I-5, also have money left over from their truncated run at A-Rod. But the Dodgers have been reluctant to surrender their better prospects: outfielders Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier, first baseman James Loney, third baseman Andy LaRoche and pitchers Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw.
• I've said it before and I'll say it again DO NOT TRADE KERSHAW!!!
  

First Post

First I'd like to welcome everyone to my newest venture. I hope you all get some joy out of knowing about the greatest team in baseball. I mean the Dodgers...yeah those Dodgers...yes the same Dodgers that have only won one playoff game since '88. At least we're top 3 in attendance every year.

For the real stuff here is my declaration: AHEM...Ned Colletti...Do not trade Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp in the same trade. Bill James -- uber sabermatrician has projected these numbers for the 24 year old Matt Kemp this year --- .322 avg., .365 OBP., .508 Slug & a .873 OPs. Over a career that equals Cooperstown. You keep him in right, pick up Aaron Rowand at a cheaper price than the Angels foolishly paid for Hunter & try to move Pierre maybe to the Twins. Of course, you'd have to suck up some of that $44 million you gave him last year but it's worth it if we could get a new bat boy out of it.

Remember when we traded Pedro Martinez straight for Delino Deshields because everyone thought the 22 year old Pedro was too skinny to be effective and Deshields had just come off a solid year? Boy were they right. Pedro only went on to win a few Cy Young Awards and Deshields got ran over by Raul Mondesi and was always hurt and bad at baseball. Trading a 19 year old Kershaw with the upside he has would be a mistake.

It is a well known fact that Joe Crede is available in Chicago and can be had for much less than Miguel Cabrera in Florida. He may not be the same caliber of player but he's a hell of a lot better than what we have now. I'm just saying be a little patient Colletti. You're a Giant anyway so any move you make is suspect.