Russell Martin Out 4-6 Weeks With Groin Strain

The LA Dodgers learned Sunday that Russell Martin, their starting catcher, has a pulled groin muscle and will miss somewhere between a month and six weeks. Of course I learn this merely minutes after completing tonight's draft. This almost certainly means Russell Martin is out for the rest of spring training and instead will attempt to make his start during the first week of the season. Martin is trying to be ready in time for Opening Day, but at this time, that remains highly unlikely.

According to various reports, Martin acted as if nothing was wrong as he walked into the clubhouse Sunday morning. Martin added that the MRI he underwent showed nothing more than a little strain. Hopefully that's all this is, and we will see Martin recover fairly quickly.

Despite the possible severity of this injury the Dodgers have no plans of making a trade for starting catcher, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports. The Dodgers also do not have any interest in the remaining free agent catchers.

Joe Torre said that the Dodgers are likely to replace Martin with internal options. Torre notably expressed faith in the 29-year old rookie A.J. Ellis. He feels very confident with Ellis as the starting catcher, and will have no problem turning over the catching duties to him. Should Ellis have a difficult time adjusting to the major leagues, the 40 year old veteran Brad Ausmus is more than capable of filling in for Martin temporarily. This is Ellis' shot, similar to what Martin did to Dioner Navarro just a few years ago.

Tough break for Martin as he is hoping to rebound from a dreadful 2009 season. This is certainly not the way he had hoped to get things started. Instead he will hope he has still has a starting job once he is fully recovered from his injury.

No Joke, Dodgers Sign Outfielder Garrett Anderson

According to Dylan Hernandez from the L.A. Times, the Los Angeles Dodgers have signed LF Garrett Anderson to a minor league deal. Alright, really, what in the world is going on in the front office. This move makes no sense under any circumstance. The Brian Giles deal was bad enough, but now Anderson. If Anderson somehow manages to make the big league club he will earn $550K, according to Dylan Hernandez.

I talked about my feelings regarding Anderson in January. I wasn't a fan of this signing even before the Dodgers signed Giles, and now it's even worse. Anderson hasn't been a good player in several years, and I wouldn't count on him rebounding anytime soon, or ever for that matter.

Anderson, 37, hit .268/.303/.401 in 534 plate appearances with the Braves last season. Terrible right? Abysmal is more like it actually. The only possible silver lining in this cloud is the guy hit a .714 OPS against lefties last year. Anderson would probably have a better 2010 season than Giles and Johnson if all three players were give the same chance. Anderson is fourth outfielder material only at this point, and two months ago this signing would've had a better chance of being justified. 


My big thing is, why can't Ned Colletti get off his high horse and give one of these young guys a legitimate chance? It's ridiculous, and frankly it's starting to irritate the crap out of me. Reed Johnson, Brian Giles, and now Garrett Anderson. Perhaps we should give Moises Alou a call, Dave Roberts is still around, and maybe we can pry Raul Mondesi from the Dominican. I guess it could we be worse. Colletti could have signed him to an $18MM contract, and called him the best signing since Andruw Jones.

Ed Price put it best today when he said, "must have needed another guy who used to drive in a lot of runs and plays LF like he doesn't care."

Any Fantasy Baseball Fans Out There?

Fantasy baseball season will be here before you know it. I am bringing back a couple fantasy leagues this year. As I did last year I would like to give you readers first dibs. Both leagues will be played daily on Yahoo.  For information about league sign ups, roster information, or any other league details please see the appropriate links below.

Both leagues are now available in Yahoo's custom public leagues, if you would like to sign up. You can email me as well, and I can provide sign up information.

The first league will be the Dodgers Rumors rotisserie 12 team league. For more information about this league click here. Draft is this Sunday March 7th at 6pm PST.

There will also be a head to head (H2H) league this year for my non rotisserie fans. For more information about this league click here. Draft is the following Sunday March 17th at 6pm PST.

As always if you have any questions or concerns please contact me here.

James Loney 2010 Fantasy Ranking

Earlier today I was discussing a leaner and meaner James Loney, and what we might expect from him in 2010. Now it's time to take a look at what fantasy owners should be able to expect from him in 2010. Rotoauthority.com currently ranks James Loney as the 22nd overall first baseman. He is also projected to be drafted around the twentieth round, which means he could go undrafted in some leagues. Loney is definitely worth a bench spot, as this could be the year that Loney breaks out for a huge year.

James Loney seems to think this will be his year. He was recently quoted saying on this subject, "I feel this is the year." I think Loney is capable of hitting near .300 all season, putting up 90 RBI's, 70 runs, and 20 home runs. These numbers would escalate Loney closer to the top 15 first basemen rankings.  Loney has managed to be consistent in two back to back seasons. There is no reason to think he can't put up the same numbers, or improve upon them in 2010. For this reason if you can get him in the late rounds and stash him on your bench, do it! You know what you are going to get with Loney, and if he is able to improve upon those numbers, you are going to be so glad you read this. 


Don't pay for stats that haven't been put up yet. What I mean by this is, Loney hasn't hit 20 home runs so don't try and draft him early and waste a valuable draft pick. For example in so many mock drafts I am seeing people take Billy Butler (1B from Royals) taken in the eighth round, that to me is fairly early pick for a player who has not been able to prove to be consistent. You probably won't regret the pick, but you are going to be paying for stats and performance that have never been reached before.  Garrett Jones, Chris Davis, and Michael Cuddyer, are all players taken fairly early in drafts this year. Wait until the later rounds and grab a guy like Loney.  Low risk with tons of upside in 2010 fantasy baseball.

James Loney Leaner & Meaner In 2010?

Dylan Hernandez from the L.A. Times has a recent article discussing James Loney in 2010. Loney, 26, could be a huge breakout player in 2010. In 2009 he drove in 90 runs, but only managed to hit 13 home runs, which in the world of baseball doesn't cut it for first basemen. Loney hopes to silence the questions regarding his lack of power in 2010. He arrived to training camp noticeably leaner and has added significant muscle. 


The 2010 Chone Projections are projecting another similar season for Loney in 2010. They are projecting Loney to hit .294/.355/.446 with 13 home runs, 83 RBI's, and 66 runs in 527 at bats. Is Loney going to breakout? Will he find power in 2010? Or will Loney put up another consistent season? Only time can answer these questions, but he is one player to keep your eyes on in 2010.


Loney was recently asked his opinion on the subject by Dylan Hernandez his response, "I feel this is the year."

2010 Dodgers Complete Minor League Signings

Below you will the complete list of minor league signings by the Dodgers. All players below except for Jay Gibbons have received an invite to Spring Training 2010, and will have a chance to compete for a spot on the major league roster. The list is sorted by position, and I will keep it fresh and up to date as we inch closer to Opening Day. Existing minor league players under team control are excluded from this list.

C J.D. Closser
C Justin Knoedler
1B John Lindsey
1B Doug Mientkiewicz
2B Argenis Reyes
2B Dustin Yount
SS Angel Berroa
SS Nick Green
OF Brian Giles
OF Alfredo Amezaga
OF Brian Barton
OF Jay Gibbons
OF Timo Perez
OF Prentice Redman
OF Michael Restovich
OF Garrett Anderson
LHP Juan Perez
LHP John Koronka
RHP Jeff Weaver
RHP Luis Ayala
RHP Scott Dohmann
RHP Ramon Ortiz
RHP Franciso Felix
RHP Justin Miller
RHP Russ Ortiz
RHP Josh Towers
RHP Eric Gagne

What The Dodgers 2012 Team Will Look Like

What will the Dodgers look like in 2012? Will they stay the course of the youth movement? I can't predict the future unfortunately. What I can do is some reasearch and analysis and put it all together. Of course this is purely speculation, but I am sure it will come across informative for most of you. Maybe in 2012 we will take a moment to look back and see how I did. I want to give credit to Ed Price from Baseball America as I used his ratings of the Dodgers top prospects for this post.

What will the Dodgers look like without Joe Torre, Manny Ramirez, Rafael Furcal and others? Some big names and big contracts look to come off the books between now and the end of the 2011 season. Furcal will be gone for sure which leaves us without a shortstop and a leadoff hitter. Manny Ramirez will be creeping on 40 and figures to be playing as a DH in the American League. Subtract huge contracts, star-power, and big stats. Manny Ramirez, Rafael Furcal, Casey Blake, and Hiroki Kuroda all will likely be goners. The four biggest contracts all gone, along with some great players will be difficult to replace.

Now that we have discussed who won't be here let's look at some of the great players down in the minors waiting to make a name for themselves. It's time to dive in and take a look at what's in store the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2012.

Dee Gordon is probably the best pure athlete the Dodgers have in the minor league system. He is in a world class league when it comes to his natural speed and defense. He is a natural fit for the Dodgers batting leadoff, and playing shortstop. Ivan DeJesus Jr. is another solid prospect in the Dodgers system right now, however he recently suffered a major injury and he will have to bounce back well in 2010 in order to make it to the majors. DeJesus Jr. should bounce back, but he or Gordon will have to make a position change in order to fit in the same lineup. DeJesus makes the most sense, but only because Gordon is so good defensively.

The Dodgers have the future of the pitching staff set with all the great young arms they have in the minors. Ethan Martin, Aaron Miller, Josh Lindblom, Chris Withrow, and Nathan Eovaldi. Of course I am going with the assumption that the Dodgers stick with the youth movement and don't trade any of these guys.

Some players who aren't even on the top prospect radar that I could see competing in 2012 are Trayvon Robinson. He is a switch hitting center-fielder with tremendous speed and a natural eye for the ball. I predict him to be the future center-fielder, except 2012 may be a little too soon. There is also a name I am just starting to get familiar with, Kyle Russell. This guy is a stud and has unbelievable power and has some serious speed to go with it. Last season he hit .272 but had a lot of strikeouts, but he tallied 26 homers, 102 RBI, 90 runs, 20 steals, a .371 on-base percentage and a .545 slugging percentage.

Projected 2012 Starting Lineup

SS-Dee Gordon
1B-James Loney

RF-Andre Ethier

CF-Matt Kemp
LF-Andrew Lambo

C-Russell Martin
3B-Blake DeWitt

2B-Ivan DeJesus Jr.

Bench

IF-Pedro Baez

OF-Kyle Russell

C-A.J. Ellis

OF-Trayvon Robinson

Pitching Rotation

SP-Chad Billingsley

SP-Clayton Kershaw

SP-Josh Lindblom

SP-Aaron Miller

SP-Chris Withrow

RP-Scott Elbert

RP-Cory Wade

RP-Ramon Troncoso

RP-Brent Leach

SU-James McDonald

CL-Jonathon Broxton

All in all things look pretty good for the Dodgers. I fully expect that Don Mattingly will have taken over as manager for the Dodgers by 2012, and he has got a pretty good crew to work with. The fact that all of these spots can be filled adequately enough, and still having a competitive team on the field shows that the Dodgers may not be as bad off as some may think. All I know is it's going to be interesting to see how the next few years play out.

Baseball America: Top Dodgers Prospects

The Dodgers have two prospects in Baseball America's Top 100 this year. Shortstop prospect Dee Gordon ranked in at 46 overall. Gordon is by far the best position player the Dodgers have in the minors right now. He got a very good prospect grade of 80 from the BA crew. BA projects his arrival to the majors to happen in 2012. Chris Withrow wasn't too far behind Gordon as he ranked in at number 48 overall. Known for his electric fastball and his ability to throw strikes, BA says we should see Withrow sometime around mid 2011.

Of course former Dodgers prospect Carlos Santana is ranked number 10 overall this year. Another former Josh Bell is ranked number 37 overall. You remember the names Carlos Santana and Josh Bell right? These were two prospects that Ned Colletti decided to send away to the Indians (Santana) and to the Orioles (Bell) because the Dodgers didn't want to pick up all of the remaining dollars on Casey Blake's and George Sherrill's contracts.

Not a whole lot else going on here unfortunately. You can check out BaseballAmerica.com for the complete list.