The Dodgers have re-signed catcher Rod Barajas to a one-year contract, according to a team press release. Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter) reports that the deal is worth $3.25MM. That's some nice work from agent Dan Lozano given that the catcher had to settle for a $500K minor league contract from the Mets last February.
Barajas, 35, excelled in 72 plate appearances after the Dodgers acquired him for the stretch run. He had three hits, including a homer, in his first game as a Dodger and batted .297/.361/.578 overall. He doesn't reach base often, as his career .284 on base percentage shows, but he has some power.
Barajas, who drew interest from the Red Sox earlier in the offseason, is one of many catchers Los Angeles considered, particularly given yesterday's non-tender of Russell Martin, The Dodgers would not have obtained compensation for losing Barajas (a Type B free agent) to another team, since they did not offer arbitration.
Hernandez was the first to report that the Dodgers were close to a deal with Barajas, and also had the information about the contract's length (Twitter links).
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk contributed to this post
Seems like the 2011 Dodgers are going to be last in the league in OBP, but first in most veteran free agent signings.
WINNING EXPERIENCE!!!
Seriously though, if that’s the case, I’d like to see them sign Johnny Damon.
Damon will have to go to an american league team as a DH and back up outfielder. Dodger stadium is too big for him.
I literally cringed when I pictured Damon attempting to play LF in Dodger Stadium
odd, I literally laughed when I pictured JD in LF at Dodger Stadium
Save a few million, have a little bit more sock… and alot less headaches from a moody and defensive Russel Martin. One less Primadonna is a good thing for the Dodgers.
Seriously? Want to trade Matt Kemp for John McDonald? I mean Kemp is a diva and McDonald is the nicest guy in the league. After all, you’re putting so much stock in personality.
I made this comment yesterday, but should the Dodgers re-sign Martin, the two of them would make for a fine situation at catcher, providing Martin is healthy. If the two of them split time at C, Barajas brings the power and Martin the OBP. Overall they’d combine to give the Dodgers pretty solid production out of the catcher’s spot.
now if only we can turn them into one player…
Hahahahaha, this is horrible.
Haha….Dodgers aren’t letting any grass grow under their feet, huh?
Who’s had the worse off-season? Marlins or Dodgers?
Marlins. The Dodgers actually did a decent job building their rotation with some known products and improved the production they’re going to get from 2B.
Bad offseason for the dodgers? Are you serious?
Uh, yeah. Uribe isn’t worth 3 years, they couldn’t move Martin, gonna bring back Barajas to replace him. Well they did good with the pitching, there offense signing have been questionable.
Uh, yeah. Uribe isn’t worth 3 years, they couldn’t move Martin, gonna bring back Barajas to replace him. Well they did good with the pitching, there offense signing have been questionable.
Martin would’ve been hard to move considering he was a non-tender candidate.
Martin would’ve been hard to move considering he was a non-tender candidate.
the only bad deal was Uribe. While I want Martin back, I understand how they wouldnt give him 5M. However, Barajas should NOT replace Martin. He should be the backup. Anyways, we assembled one of the deepest rotations in the league and got rid of Theriot and Sherrill. Martin still has a very good chance of coming back
I personally see the Dodgers offense as Eithier plus a ton of C to B- players.
Their Rotation is deep but after Kershaw i see a lot of promise but nobody that scares anybody
The bullpen was pretty sketchy last season and who knows if they can rebound.
Overall this offseason the Dodgers have deff thrown their weight around, but if i were a Dodgers fan i would still want them to sign a middle of the order bat and a top notch setup man… and even then, I don’t think they’re going to scare too many people. At best they have to be considered the third best team in their own division.
Matt Kemp is still every bit as good as Andre Ethier. Furcal is still above average when he’s healthy. The rest, however, are questionable.
I’m not too worried about the bullpen as a Dodger fan. Broxton struggled the 2nd half, but that was really his only prolonged slump since he was called up 5 years ago. Belisario also struggled, apparently due to some personal issues, but he had an ERA around 2.00 in 2009.
Kuo is absolutely filthy, one of the best relievers in the game, and a full season of Jansen, who has dominated at every level he’s played, should bolster the bullpen. The Dodgers have some other solid relief options in the minors, and if they sign Padilla as a long man (as rumored), they’ll be looking good.
And, perhaps the biggest boost to the Dodgers bullpen: the absence of Joe Torre.
i see it as Andre and Kemp, plus a lot of guys. Furcal has promise, but no health promise.
The rotation? Id be scared of Kershaw and Billingsley, and then Kuroda, Lilly, Garland? Thats really strong… an ace, a solid #2, and 3 #3s? Ill take it
The pen is something Im not worried about that much. Broxton, Jansen, Kuo and Belisario is very strong. Belisario had a bad year, IMO, because he had so many issues during the year. Broxton, I have faith in him, I look at him and Kemp similar to how Billlz was last year. A lot of talent, a lot of fans angry at him, but a lot of promise. Jansen and Kuo are just nasty.
Ever heard of Kemp, that stud?
Uribe may not have been that great contract-wise, but he improves the Dodgers lineup. Blake and Furcal are also free agents after the season, which is a reason they probably didn’t mind committing additional years to Uribe.
A lot of Solo HomeRuns
Home runs none the less, Russ hasn’t been able to hit let alone hit Home Run’s lately, plus think of the money they save now
I am talking about the solo homeruns that all dodgers are going to produce all these players have horrible OBP.
Last year, Russell Martin posted a .306 wOBA. That was a career low. It is eight points better than Rod Barajas’ career wOBA. Which one of them can’t hit again?
Barajas can hit hr’s and is a good, not great, but good catcher…Russ has been in the decline and this injury could be a scary one…it also saves money…not a bad move, but they need to go after a bat and dump loney…
Agreed, Loney should have been non-tendered. Pena, LaRoche, Lee……Those are the 1B the Dodgers should have been looking at. None of them would cost all that much and would be vastly superior to Loney.
I agree, especially on Derrek Lee. He posted an OPS over .900 as recently as 2009, and he’s from CA (albeit the northern half).
And had a very good stretch run with the Braves. He was one of the reasons we stayed afloat as the injuries started to pile up late in the season.
I agree, especially on Derrek Lee. He posted an OPS over .900 as recently as 2009, and he’s from CA (albeit the northern half).
I disagree with Loney. The Dude had 41 doubles last yearand lead the team. In every full year hes hes had over 88 rbis. He is a very good defensive first baseman, and seems to come thru in the clutch, and in important games. Just look at his playoff stats. He is well worth the 6 mill or so, he could get through arbitration. We, as Dodger fans have been preached to, about how these young kids (Martin, Loney, Kemp, Broxton, Ethier)are the future of the franchise, and that they would be part of the orginization for years to come. Now Martins gone, and this Dodgers fan isnt happy about it. I feel like Ive been lied to. If Loney was non-tendered after 1 bad season, and after all the time thats invested in them.. I would want Neds head.
with Loney, make that 1 bad half season.
loney sucks
Dude, his OPS has been at the bottom among regular starting 1B for the past 2 seasons. His numbers have dropped across the board every single year since 2007. He’s a young player, he’s supposed to be improving, not declining every season…
Them call them prospects. Sometimes prospects don’t work out. Both Martin and Loney suck donkey balls. At least they did the right thing and let Martin go. I’m afraid we will get stuck with Loney for another season, the Mario Mendoza of Firstbasemen.
Wait a minute, who sucks?
fangraphs.com/graphsw.aspx?playerid2=4616&pla…
Wait a minute, who sucks?
fangraphs.com/graphsw.aspx?playerid2=4616&pla…
Would not mind the Dodgers trying to sign Martin to a more team-friendly contract than his demanded $5 million plus a million in incentives. Gotta think that the other 29 teams are also going to try to get him on the cheap as his hip is a huge question mark.
His hip is a huge question mark? I’m trying to picture that but having no luck!
His hip is a huge question mark? I’m trying to picture that but having no luck!
Poor Loney, he would be a 20+ HR Hitter anywhere but Dodger Stadium. Look at his splits, he can’t hit at home. They def need to trade him and sign one of the many DH/1B types out there. I think an BJ Upton for Loney swap works for both teams. I just don’t understand why LA isn’t going after Mark Reynolds considering they don’t seem to care about OBP this offseason with the Uribe signing, Barajas Re-Signing, and dumping Martin. Who is LA’s 3B since they want Casey Blake to be in a platoon?
My guess is that Blake will start at 3B most of the time, but will get days off with Uribe starting at 3B and Carroll at 2B. Blake may also start at 1B against lefties, again with Uribe at 3B and Carroll at 2B.
Wow, Dodgers keep it going. Give up on young gun coming off a bad year, but keep the vet that, while destroyed in LA, has done below average eleswhere. Man, Ned really doesn’t look real well into the future. 3 yr to Uribe, backloading contracts, etc.
Russ has had a bad couple of years and they were getting worse…His injury is scary and he wanted a lot of money…Rod can at least hit for “some” power and is a good cathcer that won’t cost us a lot at all and knows how to work pitchers… This isn’t a bad move…The Uribe for 3 years was a year more then he should have gotten, but Ned is doing the most with what he has…solid 5 for once, a 2b and a catcher. Just hope he isnt done…
i think this is a good sign and i really dont mind if they dont bring martin back or not because his health worry me
Martin = LoDuca part 2.
Except DePo was smart enough to dump LoDuca BEFORE he turned to crap.
so can we get lee and trade loney for a LF
Every sensible Dodger fan is shouting at Ned Colletti to trade James Loney to someone (anyone really) for either a relief pitcher or halfway decent LF’er.
Once done, any of the following 1B would be an improvement: Konerko, LaRoche, Lee, or even guys like Cantu or Wigginton would suffice. I think adding a RP or LF and one of these 1B would improve the Dodgers more. Personally I would like the Dodgers to trade Loney for Willingham, and sign Paulie to a 3/$40-$45 million deal. We know we have a solid 1B or LF prospect in Jerry Sands, but he is at least another year or two away.
NED GET IT DONE!
i like the idea but i would pick lee more because he has a good bat and he a good defense of 1st base guy. and just trade loney for any kind of outfielder we can get that can play LF with a good bat and can hit about 12 to 15 HR
If you want to trade Loney to the Rays for Shields.
any day of the week!
I hate the idea, but I guess that makes me insensible.
I hate the idea, but I guess that makes me insensible.
Let’s not forget Ned doesn’t have a lot to work with…Doing what he can with what he has, has made some good moves and maybe a head scratcher with URibe
s length, but were better for these moves not worse off…
true and it might not be big name players but at least there making moves while other teams in the NL west sit back and do little or nothing to make there team better
UGH, that debut was against the Brewers – thanks for reminding me. The mighty Dave Bush was pitching. At least he’s gone.
just a thought what about Lastings Milledge. for about 2 years 4 to 6 mill he young and maybe can do better then he did with his last team
I’m OK with the move. Despite being nothing more than average anywhere else, Barajas was a hitting machine when he came over to the Dodgers, and he clearly loved playing for his home team. Whether or not he’ll make the bulk of the starts remains to be seen, but I’d happily take him back.
Martin has solid OBP but his offense otherwise was deteriorating and he didn’t seem to be making any adjustments at the plate. I also don’t think Martin would’ve been non-tendered had the Dodgers not had serious concerns about his health. I suspect they doubt he’ll be able to be a regular starting catcher again. And I know myself and other Dodger fans have been complaining about Martin’s overuse for years…
i agree dude need to sit more games if he want to get his bat back
I think we’ve all been expecting the Dodgers to at least try to sign Barajas — but do any of us see him an everyday starting catcher? Other pieces are needed, and I don’t think Ellis is the other one.
Ellis is basically the same player as Martin had become. Draws walks, good OBP, good defense, not much else. No reason to think Ellis WON’T be the one sharing time with Barajas. Not much else out there after Buck, Torrealba, Varitek and Pierzynski signed. Olivo and Molina, that’s about it…
That’s kind of what I mean. I doubt Ellis has much upside, but we know Martin can be a lot better, because he was. I believe no team will take a flyer on Martin as their starting catcher. He has to be paired with someone who can start a lot of games. The Dodgers now have that (or will soon) with Barajas. Ellis stays in the hole. I’m not sure if Ellis can be sent down to AAA now though.
barajas is a great backup and a great bat off the bench who was pop and can compliment gibbons, but if he is our starter its not great news.
I think we’ve all been expecting the Dodgers to at least try to sign Barajas — but do any of us see him an everyday starting catcher? Other pieces are needed, and I don’t think Ellis is the other one.
I’m OK with the move. Despite being nothing more than average anywhere else, Barajas was a hitting machine when he came over to the Dodgers, and he clearly loved playing for his home team. Whether or not he’ll make the bulk of the starts remains to be seen, but I’d happily take him back.
Martin has solid OBP but his offense otherwise was deteriorating and he didn’t seem to be making any adjustments at the plate. I also don’t think Martin would’ve been non-tendered had the Dodgers not had serious concerns about his health. I suspect they doubt he’ll be able to be a regular starting catcher again. And I know myself and other Dodger fans have been complaining about Martin’s overuse for years…
I am assuming this deal would have been less than what Martin would have gotten going to arbitration. Which means this deal is solid. People can complain about this all they want but the simple fact is that Russell Martin has been watching his OPS+ slipping from its 2007 level of 116 to now sitting at 89 following up two years of decline. Coupled with his injury, that does not bode well at all. Obviously no one expects Rod Barajas to play 154 OPS+ ball for the Dodgers over a full season, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect something around 100 even.
And at a cheaper price than Martin, this deal + Martin’s non-tendering is a smooth move.
That said, the next move for Ned is to move James Loney for a relief pitcher or left-fielder and sign one of Konerko, Lee and LaRoche (in that preferable order). It seems like they would have the money to do so, and I would say that Konerko coming back to the team that drafted him might be enough to get him to take a slightly cheaper deal than another team might offer.
i like that but since konerko is older how about getting laroche to and them two sharing time or just getting lee would be fine for me if it under 9 mill for about a year or 2. nvm i just saw konerko stats we would be just fine getting him. but the thing is who would be the back up 1st baseman. because we have guys who can play 2nd, 3rd and ss but who can play 1st other then whoever the starter is
Gibbons
gibbons, blake, barajas, Russ Mitchell, to name a few ……
i like that but since konerko is older how about getting laroche to and them two sharing time or just getting lee would be fine for me if it under 9 mill for about a year or 2. nvm i just saw konerko stats we would be just fine getting him. but the thing is who would be the back up 1st baseman. because we have guys who can play 2nd, 3rd and ss but who can play 1st other then whoever the starter is
I agree, this is a solid move by the Dodgers, at least their back in the game making trades to try and get better.
So whats going on with billingsley?
leave bills alone he’s a solid pitcher
i know, i’m not saying he isn’t. I just didn’t see him being mentioned about being tendered.
I imagine because it is a no-brainer… no doubt in anyone’s mind he’ll be tendered.
I think he signed a 2-year contract last year. Not sure though.
nah, that was Broxton, Ethier and Kemp… not Bills.
good job by collrti—now trade loney for lf and land lee or konerko and we are good to go
Bench player, folks. Platoon at best. Calm down.
Stretch drive? I don’t remember any stretch drive for LA…
You don’t? Then why would they have acquired Octavio Dotel and given up McDonald AND Lambo? Doesn’t sound like smart management…
Colletti has clearly set his goal this off season to bring in as many Sub-.300 OBP players as possible… Perhaps he is looking to speed up the games at Dodger Stadium so that the stadium will remain full to the end of the game…
Before people continue to praise Colletti’s pitching additions. Keep in mind that Jon Garland’s MRI was so bad that no other team was even interested. Garland in his own words on XM Radio the other day said when asked why he had to settle for a one year deal off a good season, “my MRI results were so bad that it scared other teams off.” It was on the Stern-Bowden show. We know with the Jason Schmidt signing, Ned likes to sign pitchers with bad MRIs and/or known health issues.
It is incorrect that “no other team was even interested”. Many teams expressed interest, and I’m sure he got offers from some. I highly doubt the Dodgers are paying much more than Garland was offered from other teams, but he wanted to sign with a local team.
I don’t know why you’d want to keep Martin. His bat production has steadily gone down every year. who said he has a great OBP or defensive skills. do you not see his batting average or his ability to throw anyone out. The teams run wild with Martin. With major hip surgery to overcome and poor plate production why keep a Martin. Didn’t anyone watch or listen to Rod Barajas when we picked him up. He dreamed of being a Dodger, always hoped to be a Dodger, his family is local to the area. He wants to be a Dodger. That kind of chemistry is hard to have and keep. Personally, I want the Dodgers to keep a Rod Barajas
Uhhh, Martin’s CS% last season was 39%, which is very, very good.
That being said, I like Barajas.
The Dodgers have made an effort to upgrade their club because to compete in the West we simply have to improve. Garland wasn’t a bad move because he’s a innings producer. And we got him without breaking the bank. I don’t know why we felt we had to move Theriot, especially when he is a good defensive 2nd baseman and shows some speed to steal bases. We could have kept him and played Uribe at 3rd and traded Casey Blake. Blakes age and numbers aren’t gonna be a plus. While a decent defensive 3rd baseman his production at the plate is declining.
Why aren’t we trying harder to move Jonathan Broxton? The guy isn’t a closer. He doesn’t have the mentality to be a closer and the Dodgers apparently haven’t worked hard enough to understand you can’t be a one pitch pitcher to be a closer. Sure, he throws a slider and a change in addition to his fastball but seriously if a guy can’t throw these pitches for strikes when he needs to and everyone sits on his fastball. Major League batters can adjust to swinging at 95+ fastballs. He’s not that special. He sucks and he might be of interest to someone else but please get rid of Broxton. And while you’re at it send the pitching coach, Honeycutt somewhere. We need an real pitching coach!! BTW Dodgers…..Aardsma of Seattle is available. His stats on a bad team is impressive. A proven closer, get in the hunt for him.
While Kuroda is a horse pitching every 5th day and a decent ERA, I had to wonder whether it’s smart to pay him 12M a year at age 35 or 36.
You don’t take Casey Blake out of the lineup in favor of Ryan Theriot. Casey Blake may be declining, but he still provides more offense than Theriot.
I’m confident Broxton will be moved at the trade deadline if the Dodgers aren’t in contention.
Honeycutt is fine. Have you forgotten our pitching staff lead MLB in ERA in 2009? I have more concerns about the bullpen coach, given the inconsistency of Broxton, Troncoso, Sherrill, etc.
Kuroda had a 3.39 ERA last season. I think half the teams in baseball would be thrilled to have got him on a 1 year/$12m contract. We got a deal there.
I just don’t see Casey Blake the way you do. I think when you have a team with low run production you have to be good defensively. Ryan Theriot is a natural 2nd baseman(30 yrs. old) and he turns the double play better than most. His salary of 2.6M/.271 batting average is EZ and he also brings base stealing to his game thus he also becomes a table setter at the top of the lineup to fill the 2nd spot behind Furcal. I think we gained the production of more power with the acquistion of Uribe, who BTW can play third. Blake is 37 and his power numbers and batting average has declined steadily the last two years. His salary of 6.25 million should be easy to move in a package for a reliever. Blake only hit near .250/17hr/ and isn’t a top of the lineup hitter so I still think he’s decent trade value. It’s a moot point since the Dodgers have let Theriot go to St. Louis for Hawksworth but I think I just have to agree to disagree with you on that. We’ll see how it works out. Go Blue
I realize Casey Blake is mediocre and only getting worse… it’s just that Theriot is downright terrible. Theriot’s defense may be good, but it isn’t incredible and is hardly worth settling for his awful bat. And Blake isn’t all that bad a fielder, either.
I mean, ideally I’d like us to sign Beltre and platoon Loney and Blake at 1B… but that is just not going to happen. I also wouldn’t mind had we signed Betemit (too late) or if we traded for another 2B/3B. But Ryan Theriot just doesn’t belong in the starting lineup of any contending team, IMO.
Also Ryan Theriot has a reputation as a terrible baserunner, and he only averages 20 SB. Over the last 3 seasons he only has about a 60% success rate. Kemp can do that.
Kemp has a much better SB percentage hahaha. 66% was Theriot’s success rate over the last three years. Kemp’s was 70%, and that was including last year’s horrible rate at 55%, which was an anomaly.
Allow me to clear up any confusion for you in thinking that Theriot would serve better at replacing Casey Blake in the lineup. Let us compare their 2010 WAR (wins above replacement) values:
Theriot: 0.0 Exactly dead even
Blake: 2.8
Winner: Blake
How about the wRAA (which is comparing the runs created by said player against the average for other players)?
Theriot: -17.8
Blake: -2.0
Winner: Blake
Remember, these are 2010 stats. Let us even go back to 2009 and see what we dig up…Theriot and Blake’s respective WAR’s were 2.3 and 4.6, while their respective wRAA’s were -5.9 and 11.8. Clearly Casey Blake is the far superior offensive player.
Hi, but let me clear up something. I never implied that Theriot carried the offensive numbers as Blake. Theriot is 31 and Blake 37. Blake will hit for more power but Theriot has a bad ending and batted .271, Blake .248. You say 20 stolen bases? Well, how many did Blake have? It’s about where Theriot bats (tablesetter at 1 or 2) a singles hitter. He was making 2.65M, Casey Blake makes 6.25M. If you have low run production the one thing pitchers rely on is good defense. I like Casey Blake as a third baseman. But its whole package I’m talking about, youth, batting average, costs, and where and what they contribute in the lineup. You need someone on base near the top to make conditions better for the power hitters behind you. It’s a moot point since the Dodgers have traded Theriot.
I would highly doubt most Dodger fans would agree we need more top-of-the-lineup guys than we need power. We need more power in our lineup than a #1 or #2 hitter. Furthermore, 20 stolen bases is a moot point if you are getting caught 40% of the time!
Lastly, even though Blake batted about 20 points lower than Theriot he still posted an OBP ONE POINT lower than Theriot. What’s more is that Blake posted an OPS that exceeded Theriot by 100 points. And let us dissect your reasoning here:
-Tablesetter? We have Furcal and Kemp, more than capable of handling the #1 and #2 spots.
-Youth? You could argue that, but Theriot aint no spring chicken either, and Blake is one of the most durable players in the league.
-Batting average and contributions to the lineup? How is Theriot more valuable when the numbers clearly indicate that he is not? Again, this isn’t bashing Theriot, but rather I am trying to show you it makes no sense to say Theriot should be in the lineup in favor of Casey Blake.
As I said, we need power, not some guy who hits only singles, gets caught 40% when he does steal, and has weak power. For what we need, we need power more than more singles.
First of all it’s a moot point to argue whether Theriot should play ahead of Casey Blake. Theriot is gone. They play different positions and clearly bat in different slots in the batting order. You can say what you want about OBP or OPS and there is no denial here about those numbers but it doesn’t do much good to bat Kemp 2nd and waste his power if there no one on base. Ask any pitcher and there is so much to be said about how you pitch to batters if you have a good infield defense behind you. Turning double plays. It’s all part of the value of a player. You can’t possibly have power production at every position. It just doesn’t happen. I wasn’t saying Theriot outhits Blake but its about fit and what else they provide to their value. It’s not like Furcal hits with much power these days or steals alot of bases but would you want to give up that kind of defensive arm at shoirtstop? I’d hope you say no. If it were me I’d wish the Dodgers had a Ryan Zimmerman at third. But I’d don’t think that’s gonna happen. Blake is 37 years old….you saw the numbers for a power hitter like Manny slide quickly. it happens with a blink of an eye ..the bat speed. It happens with age. I don’t dislike Casey Blake. I love the Dodgers and would love them to contend but every team has positions that you have to accept some liability. We could probably argue James Loney. I like him but he doesn’t have power. But he drives in runs and is a good defensive first baseman. He’s not getting paid an arm and a leg and so we have to accept that. You can’t always go out and get a perfect player. If so, Adam Dunn was on the trade market to everyone last year…….why didn’t the Dodgers get him? Because he’s awful at first base and he strikes out a ton. Mark Reynolds is out there but I don’t see the Dodgers chasing him down. Plenty of power but do you want someone who strikes out a ton in the power spot of your batting order. I don’t think so.
Its about time teams started non-tendering young guys who get paid big $$ in arbitration. 5 million+ for Martin who had 1 good year 3 years ago isn’t worth it.
Lets face it the Dodgers may contend with some of their signings, but unless the youthful talent steps up, and they rebuild the farm system which they have torn apart. The Dodgers will not put together a winning formula for years to come, and I can promise the team they have at the momment will not win the series. I am a Dodger fan and have always been. If they want to make an impact and not get lights out pitchers they need to add a really big power threat to the line up. Also LA is the 2nd biggest sports market which means their pay roll whould be way higher. Isnt anyone scared about when Ethier and Kemps contracts are up? they are going to want 4 to 8 years I bet. Colleti will say, ” We only like to offer 2 to 3 year deals”. Kemp and Ethier will say thank you and Goodbye!
3.8 million?!
Clearly, Ned was not thinking.
It’s called a market, my friend. If more than one team is interested in signing a player, his asking price goes up. We heard the same complaints about the Uribe contract, but then it turned out that the Giants were offering him virtually the same money and number of years. Anyway, baseball fans should stop complaining about salaries and concern themselves more with the team on the field.
“baseball fans should stop complaining about salaries and concern themselves more with the team on the field.”
Ha, ok. In that case the Marlins should sign Werth, Crawford AND Lee, for as much money as they want.
Do you really not see how the “team on the field” and salaries are related?
God dang overpay, should have got Torrealba if brining back Martin was in doubt. U. G. H.
wow that salary is not pretty.
Stop picking on Loney…he has plenty of extra base hits [doubles] year after year and drives in runs…a very solid first baseman. As for catching..don’t under estimate Ellis…he’s up and coming…Go DODGERS!
I’m fine with Ellis. He’ll put up a decent OBP for a catcher.
But Loney just stinks. He doesn’t belong as a starting first baseman on any team that is trying to contend. He’s been dead last among regular starting 1B in OPS for 2 straight seasons, and his numbers have declined across the board in every season since 2007. Players his age are supposed to be improving, not declining.
I’ve followed Loney since he was in the minors and had very high hopes for him. He’s a great guy, but really… it is time to move on.
Loney is fine for a league average hitter (he only has decent RBI numbers because he bats towards the middle of the lineup). But when you own the LOWEST ISO (isolated slugging average) for a 1B in the MAJORS (at full-time playing time), then you know something is wrong. Loney owned a .128 ISO last year; the lowest in the majors for full-time 1B, and comprable to players like Ian Desmond, Kurt Suzuki or Howie Kendrick. 1B is a POWER point for a team, which James Loney clearly is horrible at.
Now, I like Loney, but he needs to hit at least .300 consistently to make up for his woeful slugging % which has hung BELOW .400 the last two seasons. Even a guy like Dexter Fowler had a better slugging % last year.
I See alot of people are laughing at this signing but ill tell you one thing, I Wish my team would of brought him back. he is not an on base machine. i will give you that but the guy will give you 18-23 home runs and 55 to 80 ribbis consistently and he is great with a pitching staff and always hits in the clutch. The big negative is he will go 3 week strecth with only 3 hits and does not draw many walks . I Think 3.5m was way too much to pay him also.
Meanwhile, in a story I don’t think MLBTR has run, Martin says he’s open to a utility role with the Dodgers.
latimes.com/sports/la-sp-1204-dodgers-russell-mart…
Loney hits a lot of doubles and drives in runs…a great defensive first baseman. stop picking on him. Ellis will do a good job behind the plate. Ned has done a good job rebuilding the starting pitching so far…needs to improve bull pen…Broxton should be packaged with a couple of minor leaguers for a good left fielder…build the club with good pitching, speed and defense. Look what the Giants did last year with pitching! Go DODGERS!
Again, this isn’t about saying how bad of a player Loney is. He is pretty good defensively, but your notion about being a doubles machine can be misleading. Because Loney plays at a power premium position, he would need to bat at least .310-.320 in order to compensate for hitting only 10, maybe 15 HR.
Let me give you perspective on this. Loney’s WAR was in the bottom 5 for regular 1B last year; ahead of only Cantu, Wiggington, Cuddyer and Pena. His batting rating from FanGraphs was only ahead of Cantu, Wiggington and Pena (the mendoza man). Furthermore, you speak of his doubles numbers somehow making up for his lack of HR. Try this on for size: his slugging percentage has been below .400 TWO YEARS STRAIGHT. His ISO was .128; LAST among regular playing 1B in the majors. Even a guy like Daric Barton who shared Loney’s HR totals and edged him for next to last in slugging % still made up for it by walking over 100 times and posted a 4.9 WAR. Even having Barton as apposed to Loney would have made a difference of about 4 wins for the Dodgers.
Honestly, Loney is not a good fit, and the Dodgers should really look into trading him so we can have a veteran fill 1B until Jerry Sands with his big boomer bat can man the post.