Manager: Joe Torre
Arrivals: C Gary Bennett, OF Andruw Jones, SP Hiroki Kuroda
Departures: OF Luis Gonzalez, SP Mark Hendrickson, RP Roberto Hernandez, 1B Shea Hillenbrand, SP David Wells*, SP Randy Wolf
Offseason grade: B+
Starting rotation
If Hiroki Kuroda turns out to be the pitcher the Dodgers think he is, he will shore up this rotation very nicely, making it one of the strongest in the National League.
Kuroda comes over from Japan, where he went 103-89 with a 3.69 ERA over 11 seasons with Hiroshima. While it's a stretch to think Kuroda will put up numbers like he did in 2006 (13-6, 1.85 ERA), he should settle in nicely as the Dodgers' No. 4, winning his fair share of games and posting a respectable ERA.
In front of Kuroda is the scary trio of Brad Penny, Derek Lowe, and Chad Billingsley.
Penny was ridiculously good last year, earning the All-Star game start en route to going 16-4 with a 3.03 ERA. While those numbers may be far above Penny's career averages, there's no reason to think he can't still put up big numbers as Los Angeles' No. 1 starter.
He's won 16 games each of the last two years, and don't be surprised if he wins more in 2008 with an improved offense backing him up.
Derek Lowe has been very good since coming over from the American League in 2005, posting ERAs below 4.00 in each of his three seasons with the Dodgers.
Lowe did struggle down the stretch last year, going 4-6 with a 5.23 ERA after the All-Star break last year. However, that may have been a product of the Dodgers' team struggles. Expect Lowe to be back as a solid No. 2 starter this year.
Billingsley is one of the best young pitchers in the game and could be the second-best pitcher on the Dodgers' staff. In 20 starts last year, the young right-hander went 8-5 with a 3.38 ERA. With a full season of starting ahead of him, look for Billingsley to take off and give Joe Torre another excellent starting pitcher.
Rounding out the Dodgers' rotation appears to be Esteban Loiaza. Loiaza was horrible in his five starts with Los Angeles in 2007, throwing 22.1 innings and allowing 21 earned runs (8.34 ERA). Despite Loiaza's numbers of 125-112 with a 4.64 ERA, it's not entirely likely that he'll have success this year as those numbers were bloated by one good season–2003–with the Chicago White Sox.
Jason Schmidt is still in the picture after missing much of 2007 following shoulder surgery. If healthy, Schmidt could be a real [expensive] surprise at the back end of Los Angeles' rotation.
At the best, Schmidt could join the team on Opening Day, but more than likely, he'll join the Dodgers sometime in mid-late April and assume the No. 5 spot if Loiaza can't get the job done.
Keep an eye on Clayton Kershaw, though. Kershaw, who will turn 20 on March 19, is the prize of the Dodger farm system and a player the front office refused to part with when discussing a trade for former Rangers first baseman Mark Teixeira.
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