Complete Offseason Guide, Predictions for the Los Angeles Dodgers

For the second year in a row, the St. Louis Cardinals sent the Los Angeles Dodgers tumbling out of October. 

"It ended fast," said right fielder Matt Kemp, via Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times, after a three-run bomb off the bat of Matt Adams sank the National League West winners in Game 4 of the division series. 

Now, the attention of the organization rapidly shifts to avoiding yet another postseason debacle in 2015. Spring training is almost six months away, but there's all sorts of work that needs to be done. The Dodgers will have to account for a looming black hole at shortstop, significantly bolster the rotation and, aside from Kenley Jansen, find a whole new bullpen. 

Payroll Breakdown

Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

The Dodgers' 2014 Opening Day payroll checked in at just under $230 million. Unfortunately for the club's ownership and general manager Ned Colletti, all that money couldn't buy Los Angeles a trip to the NLCS, let alone the World Series. 

"The team with the richest payroll in baseball history turned out to be a beautifully detailed Cadillac without any tires..." wrote Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times in the wake of the Dodgers' defeat to the Cardinals. 

Los Angeles should have the cash to buy some new tires this offseason. The current payroll figure for 2015 is $180.9 million. However, that doesn't include the money that is potentially owed to eight arbitration-eligible players and three with options. 

Arbitration-Eligible Players

Players On Their Way To Arbitration (2014 Salary):

• RP Kenley Jansen ($4.3 million)
• C A.J. Ellis ($3.55 million)
• 2B Darwin Barney ($2.3 million)
• OF Roger Bernadina ($1 million)
• UTL Justin Turner ($1 million)
• C Drew Butera ($700,000)
• RP Scott Elbert ($575,000)
• 2B Dee Gordon ($515,000)

Of all the club's arbitration-eligible players, Kenley Jansen is by far the most likely to land a multi-year contract extension this winter. While Justin Turner and Dee Gordon are locks to receive at least one-year deals, A.J. Ellis could be a nontender candidate. The only way that would happen is if the Dodgers decide to enter the chase for the big-name free-agent catcher who figures to draw plenty of interest. 

Drew Butera and Scott Elbert are also likely to get new deals, but the price tags on Darwin Barney and Roger Bernadina look too high based on their production. 

Free Agents and Players with Options

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

Free Agents

• SP Josh Beckett
• SS Hanley Ramirez
• SP Kevin Correia
• SP Roberto Hernandez
• RP Chris Perez
• RP Jamey Wright
• RP Paul Maholm

The name that jumps out from this list is Hanley Ramirez. Whether or not the Dodgers attempt to sign Ramirez to a multi-year deal, the front office absolutely needs to offer him a qualifying offer to ensure that the team at least gets a compensation pick if he walks. 

Players With Options

• Chad Billingsley ($14 million team option or $3 million buyout)
• SP Dan Haren ($10 million vesting option)
• RP Brian Wilson ($8.5 million player option)

Haren's 2015 option has already vested, as the starter eclipsed the requisite 180-inning benchmark by six frames. However the right-hander has yet to decide whether he will accept the option, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. 

Free-Agent Targets and Predictions

Jeff Roberson/Associated Press

The Starting Battery

After injuries decimated the rotation, the Dodgers need to add one high-level starter to the staff. The top arms available this winter will be Max Scherzer and Jon Lester, who will both command monster deals. While Los Angeles should never be ruled out of those kinds of bidding wars, another target to consider is James Shields. 

Set to turn 33 in December, the Dodgers could look to sign the veteran right-hander on a four-year deal worth $17 million per season. The team also needs to add lower-profile starters to provide insurance for the No. 5 spot. 

As far as the starting battery is concerned, catcher Russell Martin is another player for the Dodgers to kick the tires on. The backstop posted an .832 OPS for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2014 and would provide a substantial offensive upgrade over A.J. Ellis. 

The Bullpen

Fixing the club's dismal relief core won't be easy. Dishing out money to free-agent relievers is often a foolish investment, as the Dodgers know all too well. Some of the pitchers who could be worth checking in on are Dave Robertson, Koji Uehara and Andrew Miller. 

Of course, the best way to build a bullpen is to unearth talented arms on the farm. 

The Shortstop

The final question is what to do about Hanley Ramirez. 

There's no avoiding the fact that Ramirez's defense is suspect at best, but a quick look at the shortstop market on MLBTradeRumors.com shows just how few replacement options there are. One strategy would be to try to ink Ramirez to a three-year deal worth $20 million per season. The plan could be to convince him to move to third base after 2015 when Juan Uribe's deal is set to expire. 

Trade Targets and Predictions

Alex Gallardo/Associated Press

Ideally, the Dodgers would get out from under Andre Ethier's disastrous contract. The 32-year-old, who was a surprise starter in Game 4 of the NLDS, is still owed at least $56 million over the next four seasons. Those numbers make Ethier about as untradeable as it gets. 

Considering the Dodgers are already on the hook for all that money, the team should offer to eat half the remaining amount in an effort to facilitate a trade. It's possible that Los Angeles could even net a low-level prospect in such a swap. 

Predictions on the Future of the GM and the Manager

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Both GM Ned Colletti and manager Don Mattingly made their mistakes in 2014. 

For Colletti, the most glaring failure was the complete inability to build a competent bullpen. Mattingly compounded that problem with some unusual in-game moves. One that stands out was the skipper's decision to call on Scott Elbert with the score tied in Game 3 of the NLDS. The reliever had appeared in just seven games during the regular season. 

"When we decided to put him on the postseason roster, he's there to get lefties out,'' explained Mattingly via Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times. 

At Busch Stadium, Elbert didn't get the job done. Neither did Mattingly nor Colletti in 2014. However, both deserve one more season to prove they can. 

Note: All stats and videos courtesy of MLB.com. All salary information courtesy of Cot's Baseball Contracts on BaseballProspectus.com. 

If you want to talk baseball, find me on Twitter @KarlBuscheck.