5 Dream Free-Agent Pickups for the Dodgers
With the World Series now over, MLB free agency can officially begin. The Los Angeles Dodgers are sure to be players in the market as they search for ways to improve their roster after a second consecutive disappointing playoff exit.
When looking around the diamond, positions of concern for the Dodgers include shortstop, catcher, the back end of the starting rotation and the bullpen.
New president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has a prime opportunity to make a good first impression after Los Angeles reportedly paid him $35 million over five years, according to ESPN's Buster Olney.
The Dodgers extended a qualifying offer to Hanley Ramirez worth $15.3 million, per Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times, but the shortstop is expected to turn it down and sign elsewhere. Without many other free-agent options at shortstop, Los Angeles may roll with Miguel Rojas, Alex Guerrero or Erisbel Arruebarrena while waiting for the eventual promotion of top infield prospect Corey Seager.
Rather than focusing on a potential replacement for Ramirez, Friedman and the Dodgers may have their eyes on other marquee free agents this winter.
David Robertson, RHP
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Relief pitching was easily the Dodgers' biggest weakness last season, and there are multiple free-agent relievers whom the Dodgers would welcome as an upgrade over most of those involved in last year's shoddy bullpen corps.
One of them is David Robertson, a right-hander who pitched for the New York Yankees last season. He went 4-5 with a 3.08 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 13.4 strikeouts per nine innings and 39 saves in his first year as Mariano Rivera's replacement.
The Yankees extended Robertson a qualifying offer worth $15.3 million, per Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com.
While the Dodgers have recently had a poor track record when it comes to taking chances on former closers (see: Brian Wilson, Brandon League, Chris Perez), the team may be highly interested in Robertson as a setup man because he is coming off his best season as a professional. Robertson posted the league's seventh-best strikeout rate among pitchers that threw more than 60 innings, according to Sports Illustrated's Ben Reiter.
While Robertson, 29, may not be able to find another one-year deal worth $15 million on the open market, the Dodgers are a team that could potentially offer him a multiyear deal that would pay a higher annual salary than the $5.25 million he earned last season.
Andrew Miller, LHP
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Another relief pitcher that the Dodgers should have their eyes on is Andrew Miller, a southpaw who most recently pitched for the Baltimore Orioles after being traded midseason from the Boston Red Sox.
Miller is arguably the best reliever available this winter, and the Los Angeles bullpen could use another left-hander to complement J.P. Howell after Scott Elbert elected to become a free agent rather than accept a minor league assignment, per Eric Stephen of True Blue LA.
Miller finished the 2014 season with a 2.02 ERA and 0.80 WHIP. His 14.9 K/9 led the league. Similar to Howell, Miller is effective against both right-handers and left-handers. Righties hit just .145 against Miller's slider last season, while left-handers batted .163 against it, per Reiter.
Left-handed pitchers with fastballs that touch 97 mph don't come around very often, so the Dodgers would feel pretty good if they were able to land a reliever like Miller.
Russell Martin, C
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Russell Martin may be headed for a reunion with the Dodgers this offseason.
A former Los Angeles draft pick, Martin played for Los Angeles from 2006-2010 before departing to the New York Yankees. Last season for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Martin turned in a career year, which will likely net him some serious coin this offseason. Martin tallied a .290 average, 11 home runs and 67 RBI.
His 5.5 wins above replacement (WAR) were the most among all projected free-agent position players this past season. Since 2011, only Yadier Molina and Buster Posey possess a higher WAR among backstops, per Reiter.
Pittsburgh extended the $15.3 million qualifying offer to Martin, per MLB.com's Tom Singer, but the small-market Pirates could very well get outgunned financially for the catcher's services by a team like the Dodgers.
Los Angeles will likely be interested in Martin as a result of A.J. Ellis' poor performance at the plate in 2014. The popular Dodgers backstop struggled his way to a .191/.323/.254 slash, but he hit very well in the postseason.
Still, it was probably not enough for Los Angeles to shift their focus away from a clear free-agent upgrade in Martin.
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Jon Lester, LHP
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Jon Lester will be the most sought-after left-handed starting pitcher on the free-agent market, and the Dodgers will surely be in the mix for his services.
There was speculation at the trade deadline that Lester might end up in Los Angeles, but the Boston Red Sox ultimately shipped him to the Oakland Athletics in an unexpected turn of events.
By season's end, Lester had put together another solid campaign that saw him go 16-11 with a 2.46 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 9.0 K/9.
He was even better with Oakland, posting a 2.35 ERA in 11 starts.
The Red Sox have maintained optimism that they can re-sign Lester this offseason, but the deep-pocketed Dodgers may have something to say about that Beantown reunion.
The strength of Los Angeles' rotation falls off considerably after Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu. Dan Haren exercised his player option for 2015, so he will be back in the fold. But if the Dodgers sign Lester, he would most likely supplant Ryu as the No. 3 starter, thereby relieving the pressure on the 34-year-old Haren.
Max Scherzer, RHP
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Max Scherzer will be the top free agent on the market. The Detroit Tigers have also extended him a qualifying offer, according to Jason Beck of MLB.com.
The 2013 Cy Young Award winner came back just as strong in 2014, finishing with an 18-5 record and 3.15 ERA. His 10.3 K/9 last season were even better than what he compiled during his Cy Young year, and he exceeded 30 starts for a sixth consecutive season.
According to Reiter, Scherzer reportedly turned down a six-year, $144 million extension last March, so the right-hander may be in line for an even bigger payday this winter. Once again, the Dodgers are one of the teams with the most to offer when it comes to the checkbook.
Los Angeles should value Scherzer more than Lester because he offers the team a second elite right-hander in the rotation alongside Zack Greinke. The Dodgers already have two proven lefties in Kershaw and Ryu.
If Friedman ever wanted to make a splash with all of the television money he just inherited with the Dodgers, Scherzer would be a cannonball.
All statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise linked/noted.
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