The Los Angeles Dodgers have pitching depth after signing Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu. Is it possible that we can see the the Dodgers ship away some of their starting pitching for a position player? When looking at the Dodgers infield, there is no doubt that they need help on the left side of the infield.
Firstly, the Dodgers racked up some serious pitching depth as they have proved everything but frugal in this offseason.
They have Clayton Kershaw as their ace along with Chad Billingsley, Aaron Harang, Chris Capuano and Ted Lilly. They added Josh Beckett in that blockbuster deal with the Boston Red Sox and just added these two more starters.
So who's the odd man out?
Well there might be two. Harang and Capuano are owed $16 million combined in 2013 and 2014. They're both 34, won 10-plus games, posted a .500 winning percentage, had ERAs under 4.00 and pitched close to 200 innings in 2012.
A shortstop or a third baseman is necessary for the Dodgers to balance out their diamond.
Juan Uribe and Nick Punto are the third basemen for the Dodgers. For Uribe and Punto, their time in the majors has faded as they should be relagated to bench roles and not starters.
So how about getting a third baseman or maybe a shortstop from a team in need of starting pitching?
Immediately Asdrubal Cabrera, the young shortstop from the Cleveland Indians, comes to mind. The Indians are interested in shopping him out of Cleveland and rumors have flowed of a possible blockbuster with the Arizona Diamondbacks who want a shortstop.
The Dodgers have Hanley Ramirez at shortstop, but he can play third base. He would solve the question at third and provide some pop as well from that position.
Cabrera provides more highlight than anything else on defense, however, he is capable of hitting, which can bring some help to the lower half of the batting order. Cabrera also makes sense as far as money since he will be owed $16.5 million in the final two years of his three-year deal.
Dee Gordon would be an ideal leadoff hitter and long term shortstop, but he has struggled at bat, which makes the Dodgers wonder if the youngster can hit major league pitching.
Cabrera could bring relief as Gordon ripens in the minors.
As for the Indians, they can have veteran pitchers in their staff led by Jason Masterson and Ubaldo Jimenez.
Though the Dodgers might be done with free agent signings, it will be interesting to see if they remain active in the rumor mills.