This is Tony’s first season with ESPN Los Angeles.  He previously covered the Dodgers for five years with the Los Angeles Daily News for more than five seasons.  While this online chat is great, I’d love to hear a podcast of Tony and Jon Weisman discussing the 2010 Dodgers and hear their in-depth thoughts on the upcoming season.  How cool would that be?

The move has been rumored for some time, and we’re thrilled to see Jon take his column to the next level.  No news yet on who is taking over to the LA Times’ blogger slot for the Dodgers.

So as has been widely reported over the past day or so, former Dodger (and Arcadia Little League hero) and 15-year MLB veteran Mark Loretta has decided to retire.

Loretta hit .295 for his career and Dodger fans will not soon forget his heroics in the 2009 NLCS when he had “The Loretta Looper” – that breath-taking, game-winning walk-off single during Game 2 against the Phillies.

And if you’re interested in reading about Mark’s days playing for the Live Oaks Bike Shop in the Arcadia Little League, here are my buddy Don’s recollections of being his teammate.

Mark’s next move will be to the front office as a special assistant to the San Diego Padres’ baseball operations staff.  Loretta has always been widely admired for his baseball intellect, so this should be a fantastic move for him.  Good luck, Mark!

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

On December 23, 2009, Dodgers’ President Dennis Mannion said the following to the Times’ Bill Shaikin:

Ned has demonstrated a fantastic ability to read the talent market. We made back-to-back NLCS appearances for the first time in three decades as a result of Ned’s ability to make the right acquisitions at the right time. We want the same thing our fans want, a team that can compete for a world championship year in and year out, and we’ve been in that position for the last two seasons. We expect that to continue.

From the Dodgers’ official press release:

“Vicente did a tremendous job for us down the stretch and his continued success in the postseason proved that he can pitch when there’s a lot at stake,” said Colletti.

The 32-year-old Padilla has won 14 or more games in four of the last eight seasons, joining Andy Pettitte as the only two pitchers to accomplish that feat among a free-agent pitching market that has included John Lackey, Randy Wolf, Joel Pineiro, Brett Myers, Jason Marquis and Jon Garland, among others.

That’s an interesting statistic, but is losing Wolf and bringing pack Padilla to be the veteran presence among the Dodgers’ starting pitchers a step in the right direction for “a team that can compete for a world championship year in and year out?”  Call me skeptical.  Don’t get me wrong, I think that top to bottom, the Dodgers are in an excellent position to make another deep run in the 2010 post-season – no matter who the Dodgers plug in as the 5th starter.  But is this a team that has the starting pitching to truly and legitimately compete for a World Series by getting by a Phillies team that’s bolstered their starting rotation with the likes of Roy Halladay?  Time will tell, as we see Kershaw, Bills and Kuroda continue to develop into strong veteran starters.

The 32-year-old Padilla has won 14 or more games in four of the last eight seasons, joining Andy Pettitte as the only two pitchers to accomplish that feat among a free-agent pitching market that has included John Lackey, Randy Wolf, Joel Pineiro, Brett Myers, Jason Marquis and Jon Garland, among others.

Now I wasn’t expecting the Dodgers to really make a run at the guys looking for $8-$10 million per year, so the Padilla signing makes sense, especially after looking at the remaining starters on the market and the bargain price of $5 million that Ned was able to negotiate.  Plus he was clutch down the stretch.  I get it.  If he pitches like he did last year, Padilla would be a bargain for a solid #4 starter.

But from an emotional standpoint as a fan of this team, I’ve been hoping since October that the Dodgers would make an impact signing to put this club over the top for the coming year, rather than just filling the remaining holes with less commanding options.  In my opinion, that didn’t happen.  Call me frustrated, but that’s how I feel right now.  I’m sure I’ll come around once Spring Training arrives though!

Photo credit: AP Photo/Tom Gannam

Matt Kemp, center fielder for the LA Dodgers, and Rihanna celebrated his new two-year contract by taking in the Clippers game agains the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers and LeBron James.   What do you think the odds are that Rihanna makes an appearance to watch The Bison at Camelback Ranch?

Photo Credit: SplashNewsOnline.com

Think about it, there really aren’t that many quality starters left on the free agent market and those that are will be looking for long-term deals (Joel Pinero, Jon Garland, etc.).  Then there are the second-tier pitchers (Vicente Padilla, etc.).  That leaves the Big Enigma: Ben Sheets.

Out of baseball since 2008, we really don’t know a lot about how good Sheets is these days and how he’s recovered from his surgery for a torn flexor tendon in his right elbow.  What we do know is that he’s supposedly looking for $10-12 million per year which just isn’t going to happen.  His last year in the majors was 2008 when he started 31 games, going 13-9 with five complete games and 198.1 innings pitched, along with 1 3.09 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP.  Not bad, right?  When not hurt, he’s an innings-eater.  Before the need for elbow surgery was discovered, Sheets was on track to sign a two-year deal with the Rangers before the 2009 season.

What we do know is that Ned loves a good late-season deal.  Let’s look back on Orlando Hudson.  At the time, there was a lot of concern about his surgically-repaired wrist and teams were hesitant to give him a multi-year contract.  Ned worked him out very late in the off-season and eventually signed him on to an incentive-based contract for one year, paying him a base salary of $3.38 million plus another $4+ million in incentives.  Not bad, right?  At the time, this contract looked like a steal. 

In the end, Hudson went on to an All-Star year, playing in 149 games (until being benched by Joe Torre in favor of Rafael Belliard), batting .282 with 62 BI, 9 HR, 8 SB and 35 doubles (a career high).  In addition to being named a 2009 All-Star, he also won a Gold Glove for his defensive prowess.  All of this netted him a whopping $7.99 million.  I don’t have a problem with the Dodgers paying for performance, and I appreciate Ned’s business philosophy of focusing on shorter-term details that are tied to pay-for-performance models and incentives that reward the players for delivering while limiting the Club’s financial exposure when a high-degree of risk is involved.

In the end, it will come down to how well Sheets pitches on Tuesday and how much interest there is from other clubs, but I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see Ned try to land Sheets with a Hudson-type of contract structure if he pitches halfway decently, especially given the rumored financial difficulty the Dodgers are currently facing.

Photo Credit: AP/Morry Gash

I had a chance to attend part of the Dodgers’ third annual Winter Development Program this afternoon at Dodger Stadium.  In essence, this is training for the organization’s top prospects in what it takes to be successful as a Los Angeles Dodger (both on and off the field).  Activities in this intensive ten-day program include workouts with coaches and major league players, seminars, visits from Dodger legends and community visits.

Participants included pitchers Chris Withrow, Josh Lindblom, Javy Guerra, Kenley Jansen, Aaron Miller, Ethan Martin, Armando Zerpa, Carlos Monasterios, John Ely and John Link.  Attending position players included A.J. Ellis, Russell Mitchell, Dee Gordon, Andrew Lambo, Trayvon Robinson, Kyle Russell, Matt Wallach and Jesse Mier.

While I was out at Chavez Ravine today, I also saw Ramon Troncoso and Blake DeWitt working out, and Matt Kemp was reportedly at the facilities yesterday.

Following the workout, I had a chance to catch up with a few of the team’s top prospects, including shortstop Dee Gordon, pitcher Jon Link, converted pitcher Kenley Jansen and pitcher Ethan Martin.  Following are a few quotes:

Shortstop Dee Gordon (Topps Minor League Player of the Year, Dodgers’ Minor League Player of the Year, Midwest League Prospect of the Year, and league co-Most Valuable Player)

On His Favorite Part of the Winter Development Program: “I love the Dodger legends.  To hear some of their stories from Sweet Lou (Johnson), Tommy Davis, Maury (Wills), Aaron Sele, Tim Wallach and Steve Garvey.  Those guys have some great stories for us.”

On His Goals for the Upcoming Season: “Win a minor league championship.” (Gordon was very serious when he said this – I loved the competitive fire inside his soft-spoken voice)

Pitcher Ethan Martin (Dodgers’ 2008 #1 Draft Pick)

On the Winter Development Program: “It’s great.  A great experience.  This is the second time I’ve been in LA and love the city.  It’s just great to be here around the older guys in the organization, but then you got McDonald, DeWitt and all of them that have been up here to  experience this, and it’s just great to see and learn from them.”

On Spending Time with the Dodger Legends: “That was amazing.  Just hanging out with them and hearing all of their stories.  It’s something you dream about.  When you’re growing up, you see all these stories and watch all of this stuff on TV about them, and then all of a sudden you’re eating dinner with them. That was just a shock to me.  Wow, you’re really meeting these guys and really eating with them.”

On the Person Who Has Made the Biggest Impression on Him: “I have to go back to Aaron Sele.  He’s one of our coaches, but just hanging out with him, he can relate to us.  He wasn’t there too long ago, so he knows how tough it is.  Other coaches are saying the same thing, and I do understand, but the way he talks to us…he just comes across so genuine and understanding.  I get a lot from him.”

On His Goals for the Upcoming Season: “Just to go out and try to stay healthy and get my innings in and compete in every single outing I have.  My main goal last year was to just compete and learn my mechanics.  I think I’ve got a hold of my mechanics…they’re not perfected, but I just want to go out and put out a strong outing every single time I walk out on the mound.”

Pitcher Kenly Jansen (Dodger pitcher converting from catcher)

On the Person Who Has Made the Biggest Impression on Him: “The one that made an impression on me always, and I always love and laugh a lot, is Tommy Lasorda.  Always telling great stories and what a great story he had.  I learn a lot from him, listening to what he says.”

On His Transition from Catcher to Pitcher: “It’s going pretty good.  I’m feeling comfortable and natural.  I keep working on it, but it seems like it’s going pretty good right now.  This year I have a lot of time to work on it and especially learn from all the pitchers that have a lot of experience, like JMac (James McDonald), Ramon Troncoso…Aaron Sele.  I’ve been learning a lot at how to work at pitches and how to get prepared as a pitcher.”

On His Goals for the Upcoming Season: “My goal is every time I go out there, just play hard, stay focused, make great pitches…and get better every day.”

Pitcher Jon Link (Reliever acquired from the Chicago White Sox in the Juan Pierre trade)

On the Winter Development Program: “I’m having a good time and enjoying myself out here.  Getting to know the guys and the facilities.  I think that’s big for guys that have a possibility of playing in Dodger Stadium in the near future.  To get to know the people, the facilities and your way around LA.  I think it’s real important, so that way when you get here, you can focus on playing baseball.”

On How Similar or Different the Winter Development Program is to What the White Sox Offer: “Way different.  The White Sox, to my knowledge, haven’t done anything like this.  I was only with them for a short period, two years.  This is one of the few teams that I know of that do it, and I think it’s a great opportunity for a lot of guys to come out and get to know everybody.”

On His Favorite Moment So Far: “Whenever you talk to Tommy, he’s a character and that’s a guy who knows baseball inside and out.  Things that he says you really hang on to. Because he’s such a great motivational speaker, and he knows how to motivate guys and teams, I think anything he says you really have to stick with.”

On Who Has Shown Him the Ropes in LA: “All of the guys welcome you with open arms.  However you get here, trade, free agent, Rule 5, obviously the Dodgers see you, they like you, they like what you can bring to the ball club.  And I think the Dodger organization as a whole realizes that all the way from the front office down to the players.  This organization is really committed to winning.  So anything, or anybody, that they can get in and help them win, they go after.  The guys have been great as far as welcoming us, the new guys, and showing us around.”

Photo Credit: Getty Images

While the baseball and entertainment worlds have been colliding once again over the Matt Kemp and Rihanna news, coverage has hot a new high with People Magazine covering the romance in their latest issue.  Dodger fans will find the story amusing as the story is called “Five Things To Know About Rihanna’s Beau.”  Nothing new for Dodger fans, but it’s interesting to see how the mainstream media is portraying Matt.  Here’s an excerpt:

He’s Nicknamed “The Bison”
During his second major league game in 2006 against the Atlanta Braves, Kemp stole second base, prompting TV announcer Don Sutton to say Kemp looked like “a big buffalo running around the bases” – and a nickname was born.

While I’m certainly happy for Matt, I just hope he keeps things in perspective and doesn’t stray too far away from his off-season conditioning program that he’s been Tweeting about over the past few months.  We need another big season from The Bison in 2010!

Photo Credit: RihannaDaily.com