Los Angeles Dodgers: 4 Ways to Save the Team in 2012

Despite the Los Angeles Dodgers' mess of a situation with their management, they don't have a bad team taking the field next season.

A year off a third-place finish, the Dodgers have a lot of promise for next season. Not to mention, they do have the NL MVP and Cy Young winners on their team.

That being said, it won't ensure that the Dodgers will have a good season in 2012. There are still several things this team needs to do to save their franchise from itself.

Here are four things the Dodgers need to do to return their franchise back to glory.

Adios, Frank McCourt!

Frank McCourt was already the worst owner in the MLB, but now a new scandal has hit. According to ESPN, McCourt looted his own team for $190 million to pay for personal expenses having to do with his divorce, amongst other things.

This is just another negative chapter in the story of McCourt's owning the Dodgers.

Now he is taking money away from his team and depriving his fans of the money necessary to bring in players that will win a World Series.

All the moves I mention in this list probably can't happen if McCourt is still running this team. He has got to go, plain and simple, if the Dodgers want to make moves that will put them over the top. The day McCourt is gone is the day the Dodgers can revive their franchise.

Bring in More Offense

The Dodgers offense was horrible in 2011, ranking 21st in the MLB.

Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols will command a ton of money from the free-agent market this offseason. It would be difficult for any team to sign these guys, let alone a team whose owner has money issues.

That being said, it needs to be priority No. 1 for the Dodgers to bring in offense. Matt Kemp is one of the best young players in the MLB, and any combo of Fielder or Pujols and Kemp would be devastating to opposing pitchers.

If the Dodgers can't make that happen, then they need to go after the second-tier bats on the market. That could be either Aramis Ramirez or Carlos Beltran.

If the Dodgers can bring in a tier-one and tier-two player, they will be in serious business.

Re-Sign Hiroki Kuroda

Hiroki Kuroda has had a successful stint with the Dodgers. There aren't many Japanese pitchers who have done well in the MLB, but Kuroda is an exception.

In his career, Kuroda is 41-46 with a 3.45 ERA. Those are not the numbers of a pitcher you let go.

Kuroda has the potential to be a 15 to 20-game winner on this team; they just need to score runs.

If the Dodgers can bring in more offense, signing Kuroda would be ideal. If they can score some runs for him, they might finally see the full potential that Kuroda possesses.

Bring in Another Starting Pitcher

C.J. Wilson should be the second focus of the Dodgers in free agency, right behind offense.

Wilson is a native of California and probably wouldn't mind returning to his home state to play for the Dodgers. He would be the perfect No. 2 compliment to Clayton Kershaw and could give the Dodgers the edge to be an elite team.

Signing him will be dependant upon what Los Angeles does with Hiroki Kuroda. If the Dodgers re-sign Kuroda, they will already have their No. 2 starter.

If Kuroda re-signs, the Dodgers won't need that much more help. Pitchers like Mark Buehrle and Roy Oswalt would be perfect No. 3 starters for LA.

But if the Dodgers go all out and sign both Wilson and Kuroda, again, they will be in business.