Which Free Agents Should the L.A. Dodgers Try To Sign?

James Landon by Contributor Written on October 18, 2008
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The Los Angeles Dodgers will need to make decisions on at least 12 free agents this offseason, the most of any team in the major leagues. Which ones should they try to sign? Here are my preferences.

 

Try to Sign

Manny Ramirez (.396 BA)

Rafael Furcal (.351)

Casey Blake (.251)

Derek Lowe (14-11, 3.24) 

Joe Beimel (5-1, 2.02 ERA)

 

Let 'em go

Jeff Kent (.280)

Nomar Garciaparra (.264)

Greg Maddux (2-4, 5.04)

Chan Ho Park (4-4, 3.40)

Brad Penny (6-9, 6.27)

Mark Sweeney (.130)

Pablo Ozuna (.219)

 

Reasons to Sign:
Ramirez- Dodgers would not have won the division without him. Pay him whatever it takes. Hopefully his attitude will remain positive.
Furcal- When not injured, he had great stats including .439 OBP, usually solid defense at critical position and was an offensive catalyst.
Lowe- He was the strongest starter we had. We also need him to anchor our rotation.
Blake- He is a savvy, solid veteran. He was one of the reasons who helped us win the division. DeWitt is not ready for prime time.
Beimel- Great lefty for a middle reliever, proven veteran.

Let 'em go:
Kent- He was a distruptive influence who shot his mouth off one too many times (even at Vin Scully). The Dodgers also played a lot better when he was not around.
Garciaparra- He is getting too old and has suffered too many injuries.
Maddux- He is just about at end of career. He would not contribute.
Penny-  He has suffered too many injuries, has been inconsistend and has not dependable.
Sweeney- He is of little value and is an aging veteran at age 39.
Ozuna- marginal, did not contribute.
Park- I could go either way on him.

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written on October 18, 2008 Rankings/List

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