Must I be LAT'd for everything? :-)

I was referencing a callup of DeJesus in the last thread. Is it too early to bring up DeJesus who just entered AA? If Furcal is out the rest of the season, what are the Dodgers' other options?

The last thing I want is a PVL trade for ANOTHER short term SS...

From last thread as I was LAT'd:

529 While I wouldn't count on him {Furcal}, I wouldn't say that yet either. If he actually needs back surgery for his disc, then it would probably take 8-12 weeks to recovery from what I've been told about that kind of surgery so that would, yeah, knock him out for the year. Unless, perhaps he'd be back if the Dodgers make the playoffs! :-)

One step at a time, I guess.

--
Nice piece on Carlos Santana (the catcher) up on PE.com.

And re: the bad blood story, hey, I wouldn't expect anything less from a group of raptors.

I just have to wonder if the team handled this Furcal injury the wrong way again and if he should have had a surgery to fix the disk back in early May. This injury bug has to be the worst luck ive ever heard of a team having. Or is it really just bad luck?

1 Personally I think it is too early to call up DeJesus. Clearly Berroa is not the answer. Maza is adequate as a stop gap at this point, but if Furcal is going to be out for the year, I don't know, the Dodgers are in a hard place. It's unfortunate that LaRoche and DeWitt can't play SS. I don't want a trade either, but if Furcal is out for the rest of the year, which I hope he isn't, then it's tough. If only flippin' Abreu or Hu were healthy and ready. Sigh.

1 If we have a real shot, I'd call up DeJesus.

4 With backs surgery is always the last resort. You really don't want to go there. I wouldn't criticize them on that; it didn't look nearly as long term and serious back then and yeah you don't want back surgery unless all other options are exhausted. I have a friend who went through that same thing.

But... you're the doctor! ;-)

so what would a likely path be for santana?
AA by the end of the year, all of '09 in AA some time in AAA in '10 than maybe a ML debut in late '10?

Will the debut be with the Dodgers?

7

Yea, that's probably right- just seemed like since this happened at the end of last year and then again early this year that he was maybe already in "last resort" territory... Conditioning is probably always the best way, but Raffy doesn't seem like the type to be out of shape. He's looks like a ball of muscle. Of course this is hindsight, its just getting old watching the DL every year.

9 He played winter ball (well from December) and then Spring Training so he must have felt pretty good then.

Furcal had several reasons to want to avoid surgery, some money related since it is a contract year but also I just think he wants to play.

Too bad Matt Stairs can't play short! (Heh.)

Man, if they did want PVL SS, I'd love Jack Wilson, but don't think he's available.

9 I hear ya on that.

Almost got LATed with this last thread.

Underdog, thx for your responses. No, I have a PC (which at times should be abbreviation for "pretty crappy," but then that's probably due mostly to Microsoft).

For me no problems with audio. IF video will play, audio works. But best I usually can get is a message "your video will begin shortly." But then it rarely does.

Technology is great--when it works. I predict a bright future for programmers as long as new versions of things are put forward, since there most always are bugs-- fleas even--not to mention even newer and "improved" versions of things to program.

I tend to be of the "if it ain't broke" school, but then I'm probably a dinosaur who just doesn't get it. Specifically, I don't "get" dodgers.com video on the new site. Naturally video was just fine on the old one.

Count me on the DeJesus bandwagon as well, even if the Dodgers have no shot.

Letting him play everyday will be valuable experience for the next few years.

I dont think DeJesus can learn much more at the minor league level. His pitch recognition is fantastic as is. Its not like facing minor league pitching is going to help him develop more power.

DFA Berroa (Should have never been here in the 1st place).

Call up DeJesus. At the very least, the Dodgers can bat him 8th and its likely he'll draw a ton of cheap walks given that spot and his patience.

Torre's lineup was the best in a while last night. Like bunching the best hitters at the top, and the worst at the bottom. Hopefully he plays that lineup the rest of the way till the All-Star Break.

There's no need to play DeWitt, Repko, Berroa anymore. Keep them on the bench.

LaRoche has to be given at least 100 straight ABs to get in a groove.

11 The Pirates should be willing to trade everyone on their team.

I have read that Furcal has had a setback of feeling discomfort. Has any more been reported on the subject? I'm not sure why people are assuming he is out for a long extended period or even the year.

13 At least DeJesus is not likely to do worse than what we've seen lately.

Management and everybody else was surprised at what DeWitt was able to do at first,and for a good while, tho pitchers apparently have caught onto him.

That might make mgt a little more likely to "take a chance" on DeJesus.

13 I'm not sure LaRoche needs, nor deserves, 100 at-bats in a row to prove himself. At this point, I'd settle for Torre telling him "you're going to play eery day for the next two weeks. Prepare every day and don't worry about being in the lineup. We'll reevalutate at that time."

I think at this point we are counting on Nomar to give us some games at SS. With that being the case we are going to need a solid backup because he will require rest probably twice a week. Berroa is not the backup, he should be DFA'd. Maybe Maza who has looked good during the last couple of games. However, I wouldn't be opposed to kicking the tires on some outside help.

Worst injury of the season:

The Diamondbacks placed Snyder on the 15-day DL Tuesday with a left testicular fracture.

18 when mr hamm is ready he will play 5 games a week at SS

18 oops, stopped reading after the first sentence, my bad.

18 oops, stopped reading after the first sentence, my bad.

17 Every real prospect deserves at least that much, and really, it's multiple seasons worth. Alex Gordon was really terrible last year, but he's gradually improving.

19 - Gonad Thoughts was last thread :)

I can't find anything on any website (except here) that has Furcal having surgery. Waking up with discomfort (doctor speak for "pain") and being sent to LA for an exam may well mean surgery in the future but has anyone seen anything official about him having surgery?

Jay Bruce and Justin Upton are the two other players in MLB at the same age as Ivan De Jesus, Jr. 21 year olds don't play in the majors that often even those that are really talented still wait until they are a little older.

De Jesus has put up impressive plate discipline numbers but otherwise, he in no way compares to those two players. He has only played a little more than 3 years in the minors.

26 there are not many situations where a play-off contending team is having the players that man that position OPS in the mid .300's however.

25 No, I don't think so. This is a speculative discussion. 2 , for example, "If he actually needs back surgery for his disc..."

19 Nuts!

Is Randy Smith really this tanned or is it just the lighting?

http://tinyurl.com/4lq7dr

11 14 Especially a guy they still owe about $8M. But wouldn't the Pirates need a SS in return? They don't have a SS-apparent ready to go over there, I don't think.

31 There's lots of things they still need. They'd take anything.

32 Well, we know that Ned isn't scared of an $8M flier....

19 - That's horrible. You can't exactly break anything down there, but you sure as heck can rip something out down there. Owwwwwwww.

19 Worst injury of the season is either that one, or this one:

Houston Astros second baseman Kazuo Matsui, will start the 2008 campaign on the disabled list after having surgery on Monday to repair an anal fissure.

Stats on some old friends show Cody Ross with 13 HR in 194 AB and Jason Werth with 11 in 179 AB. Not wishing to rehash their leaving or suggesting they could be '08 saviors or anything, but it's hard not to notice that kind of thing.

Of course they don't play much anymore in NL West parks or in DS at night.

Milton Bradley has 16 HR, which leads to a question about him which was difficult to answer from 2000 miles away at the time he exited the team--

Had he completely burned all bridges in LA, or was there some chance he could have been kept? IIRC, Ned said he understood there was no point in trying to convince Bradley to remain, so he didn't try to.

Not really intending to dis Ned, but shouldn't a good executive at least make a good faith effort to retain known talent? Bradley might have responsed favorably to a phone call offering a clean slate which said I'll just go on what I see, not what I've heard. But Bradley and the Dodgers may have been point of no return. I just never had a real good read on that.

Sure, Bradley's volatile and there proably would have been other incidents. But if he were still here, wonder how he'd respond to Torre and his reputation for handling players well?

Before he hit the DL, Rafael Furcal was likely headed to a very large FA payday, perhaps on the order of 4 years / $50M. The longer he is unable to return, the more apprehensive GMs might be about signing him to many years of guaranteed money. From a Dodger perspective, it may be becoming difficult to impossible for Furcal to be a Type-A FA, so those two draft picks might not be coming if he signs elsewhere. Suddenly, Furcal coming back on a one-year arbitrated contact doesn't seem overly farfetched, especially if can't return soon enough or healthy enough.

35 Oy don't remind me.

Billy Beane and Kevin Towers must be bad judges of talent too, they let Bradley go for a lot less than what Ned got for him.

I agree the Pirates should be willing to trade anyone but had heard that with Wilson doing well and all and with them under the delusion they still have a shot (yeah right) he wasn't being shopped but I'm sure they'd listen, especially as trade deadline approaches. If they ate some of Wilson's contract (and again this is IF Furcal is out for the season) I would trade them a prospect (maybe not a top prospect). I also don't see Torre being tickled to have another first-time-in-the-bigs player starting for him. DeJesus is great but I still think he needs more time to develop, separate from what stiffs the Dodgers are throwing out there right now. And I just don't see it happening.

36 I was under the impression that Bradley and Jeff Kent had a Chukar/Raptor type relationship....

31 - Jack Wilson is pretty popular in Pittsburgh, is a great defensive player, and has actually hit the last two years. He might be tough to pry loose, especially since they don't have that heir apparent waiting. It'd be almost certain that LA would have to give up Hu or DeJesus to fill that need, right?

Chris Young's possibility of infected brain is up there too.

Wilson for a B- prospect is a reasonable deal for someone.

42 What? Angel Berroa wouldn't be enough?

44 - Sorry, Littlefield don't work there no more.

42 Since we have DeJesus, I'd be willing to give up Hu. But the latter has his eye issues and didn't hit a lick earlier this year so his value is lower than he deserves right now. And it's true Wilson is popular in Pitt so he may cost more than he deserves.

Still, I'd love to add him if Furcal is out for year and the Dodgers are still in the race, which it appears they will be.

Littlefield don't work there no more

Did he ever...?

Professional baseball catchers get a fair number of gross injuries to parts of the body for which I have run out of euphemisms.

A couple years ago, Michael Barrett had a problem after trying to catch a foul ball with his groin.

That got a lot of hits for the Griddle when I posted it.

37 A most interesting thought, and more likely the longer it takes him to come back.

By next week:
C-Martin
1B-Loney
2B-Kent
SS-Nomar
3B-LaRoche/Dewitt
LF-Ethier
CF-Jones
RF-Kemp

Maybe catchers shouldn't just wear a regular cup but metal underwear, or armor like a knight.

(They're knights of the round table, they catch when'er able, etc.)

31, 32 - I think I would rather use Nomar to whatever extent possible at SS rather than acquire Wilson. At this point there is really no reason to hold back with Nomar, put him out there and have him give us what he can give us because he certainly hasn't given us much. His offense, by comparison, would be welcome and if we could sub him out in the late innings, maybe we can minimize his defensive shortcomings.

50 - Works for me!

http://itmightbedangerous.blogspot.com/2008/07/july-2nd.html

Today is July 2nd, so the International Signing Period opens. I have a feeling it's going to be an unusually big day for the Padres.

I'll post again when we have official news.

Posted by Paul DePodesta at 8:29 AM

37 - ESPN has Furcal making $15.7M this year (was his contract back-loaded?). Arbitration would guarantee him at least $12.5M if that's true. If he's out for the year with back issues, do you want him back at that price, especially without the draft picks should he refuse and sign somewhere else? Could be a very interesting decision.

50 That works for me too. Its weird that as bad as Jones was, I'm still really optimistic about his return.

52 I agree with this also, throw him out there, see what he's got, and start the pool for his next injury date.

52 - I agree. It's just that I don't expect Nomar to last long in the health dept if he's our everyday short stop. He should really be a part time player. I'm happy to have him back, he'll be better with the bat than the other guys we've had since Furcal but I don't expect much. Maybe he'll surprise us.

Billy Beane and Kevin Towers must be bad judges of talent too, they let Bradley go for a lot less than what Ned got for him

Bad at judging Milton Bradley's talent that is.

54 - Whoops - here's the official news.

http://itmightbedangerous.blogspot.com/2008/07/enjoy-padres-fans-enjoy.html

Nomar should have at least 1 RBI in his first 17 games (if he stays healthy).

Also from Depo:

Somewhat under the radar, the Padres have ramped up their efforts (and their budget) internationally over the past couple of years under the guidance of Randy Smith

No word on Randy's tan.

57 - I don't expect him to last all season either at SS, but if given proper rest (twice a week) we may be surprised. I guess what are we really risking at this point with Nomar, it is not like he has been such a valuable piece that our season will be torpedoed if he gets injured again. The key is to have a decent backup. Maza? Martinez? Uribe? I don't know who that might be.

The Padres better have good news from the international front. They've got nothing else cooking otherwise. And not a lot in the minor league cupboard, either.

How far have we sunk that Jones and Nomar are being regarded as the saviors of the season? Everyone remember that they both stunk before they got hurt, right?

Uribe won't be acquired to be a backup. He's too expensive and mediocre. Better off keeping Maza or using Martinez as backups, yeah.

61
He looks like George Hamilton!

64 Why no, whatever do you mean? ;-)

Nomar just looks good compared to the other SS's, and Mark Sweeney. Jones we know what his potential is. We know the team needs more power. I don't think anyone's forgotten how atrocious he was. But hope springs eternal! Furcal to me was the main savior of the season so it's sad if he's going to be out a lot longer.

Jack Wilson is due $7.25 mils for 2009, and $8.4 mils club option in 2010.

Even though I want the SS job to go to DeJesus for 2009, having Jack Wilson around for 2009 might not be too bad. And I'm sure his club option would not be exercised in 2010.

Hu for Wilson isnt bad. Its too bad Hu didnt hit any, or else he could have been packaged with another player for something better. But right now, Hu for Wilson may be the best the Dodgers can do right now.

If the Dodgers do that trade, then it basically tells Furcal they have no interest in resigning him. It'd be a gross misuse of funds to have a 7mil dollar backup SS on the roster for 2009.

64

Addition by subtraction (of Pierre and Beraza).

Is it Beraza or Mazazoa? The latter sounds like a geologic period where dinosaurs roamed. In other words, when Berroa was born.

---

68 - Obviously, I agree. But I don't think Hu would be enough at this point. I'd be scared at who else the Dodgers would have to throw in.

70 Hu is a top 100 prospect. Turning that down to keep Jack Wilson would be insane. A healthy Hu is probably better than Wilson right now.

So that's it for Hu? Great defense, 150 lousy at-bats, and he's done?

I guess his development at the plate trails that of Cesar Izturis at the same age - Izturis peaked at ages 24-25 - but it's still hard for me to believe.

Well, for what its worth---I never liked Izturis at all. Even in his "peak" years.

If that is Hu's upside, I'd deal him now.

Plus, it makes it much easier with DeJesus in the fold.

Hu's never really had much plate discipline in the minor leagues, and its doubtful he'll hit for much power. Great glove, cant hit a lick SS's are a dime a dozen.

I don't think Hu is done. I like the guy and still think he's going to be great. But we have both Hu and DeJesus, and possibly a crying need for a new SS who is ready now. I'm not in a hurry to get rid of him, either, don't misunderstand. I think he's going to be a good one. But I think DeJesus is the better long term prospect and we might need to use him as a trading chip.

I agree with you Reg except this is the Pirates we're talking about, and they love Wilson, and Hu's value is as I said lower than it should be right now. But we'll see.

73 how is dejesus' glove compared to hu?

I'm not sure what roster moves are going to happen now. Yesterday, it looked pretty clear that Troncoso was going down, but after the pen was used up, now what?

might need to use Hu, that is.

Okay, it's fun playing amateur GM but I should do some work.

If we are going to look outside the organization for a SS to help right now, then I would talk to the Cubs about Cedeno. He is young still (25) and doesn't seem like he is going to be given a chance in Chicago.

I can't believe the Padres have spent over 5 million internationally while the Dodgers toil with "bargains".

64 Jones was supposed to be a difference maker at the start of the season so, outside of his atrocious performance, the expectation w.r.t. Andruw really hasn't changed, at least in some minds.

65 I'd buy that argument except for the Julio Lugo precendent.

79 The Padres don't have $80M on the DL.

I never understood why the overall MLB budget, and the draft budget for the Dodgers are two entirely different albums.

Its like you said---> How can you be willing to pay a Loaiza, but not pay a draftee?

The money is still coming from the McCourts.

81

Well then they need to re-examine how they allocate their funds because by spending more initially and getting the premium talent into your system, you won't have to overspend for over the hill veterans and wind up with 80 million on the disabled list.

Sorry, I have this rant every year (or two times a year, second time when we fail to sign our David Price type picks).

Its a good outlet for me to complain about it.

Writing off Hu is less idiotic than writing off LaRoche because at least one of them got a chance to play.

85 They're equally as bad.

82 - At my job, the budgets for paying staff writers and freelance writers are entirely separate, and it's very problematic. And I've encountered other businesses that have similar dividing lines: The money comes from one place, but they don't let one department borrow from another. It's nonsensical, and it's pervasive.

Maybe McCourt is gun shy about giving out huge bonuses due to the Joel Guzman Experience.

88 That's a really, really bad reason. Even if we hadn't gotten the draft picks for Guzman, all it cost us was a Beimel sized salary for a guy that could have been great.

62. He's too expensive and mediocre.

We are talking about the Dodgers, right? We will spare no expense for mediocrity.

Sorry, that was for 65.

Nothing wrong with paying for mediocrity if it's better than what you have and you're trying to make the playoffs.

83 Yes. Although reading between Logan White's lines, I'd hazard a guess that the Dodger philosophy is that the international signings are even more of a crap shoot than the amateur draft, so they have a different premise going into a risk/reward assessment on international signings and they'd rather spread the money across more prospects. Anyone see a stated budget for the Dodgers to compare to the Padres' purported $5M?

There is something wrong with paying only for mediocrity or worse.

87
I work for the government. I could tell you a lot about different accounts and how people get paid.

And then you would start weeping.

I'm all for International signings, but what about our FIRST ROUND PICK? It better not go all the way to August 15.

Any thoughts on Marco Scuttoro from Toronto. He was a great