The Dodgers have had a tough but surprisingly fluid off-season, with the Matt Kemp extension being a huge sign to LA fans that despite ownership changes and struggles, the team isn't incapable of making great decisions.
As it stands, we have a lineup that relies on a bit of everything going right (which should sound familiar to fans of most teams), an amazing payroll worksheet over at True Blue LA, and a great graphic of what changes will mean to scoring opportunities over at Beyond the Box Score (sabermetrics):
-
Presenting your 2012 Dodgers lineup - latimes.com
"Dodgers lineup: The Dodgers are counting on a lot of things to go right for their lineup in 2012, but it's not hard to forecast what it will look like even if still in 2011." -
Dodgers Payroll Worksheet - True Blue LA
A look at the Dodger payroll, from 2011-2014 -- An amazing set of work by Eric Stephen, updated throughout the off-season. Must read.
-
The perils of manifest destiny: What happens after new ownership arrives - ESPN Dodger Thoughts Blog
"The Dodgers should have a vast upgrade in resources in the coming years, from future owners and dramatically rising TV dollars. Will that lead to increased greatness or increased waste? It’s a real concern, and it all depends on the execution originating from the offices on the Club level down the left-field line." -
Marcus Thames - TBLA 2011 Community Review - True Blue LA
"The experts were wrong, the community was wrong. At some point Michael White confused Marcus Thames with Craig Monroe but little did he know that he was being prophetic. I'm not even going to post some of the projections, safe to say everyone thought he'd at least hit against LHP." -
A Graphic Look on Replacing Runs in FA: Los Angeles Dodgers - Beyond the Box Score
In the ninth graphic in the series, we look at how to replace runs the Los Angeles Dodgers will be losing due to free agency. While not really making big splashes this offseason, they did manage to get a deal done with Matt Kemp, while also filling some holes in their IF and C positions:
-
Dodgers News and Notes: Ronald Belisario faces 25-game suspension - MLB Daily Dish
In other news...despite the fact that Hiroki Kuroda would seem to be a good fit for the Dodgers, he's going to cost too much for the team....and fifteen Dodgers have received invites to developmental mini-camp, which is held for the team's prospects in the second week of January.