Kuzul

Some 25 years after he retired from the game, I saw the Great One enter a baseball locker room and like an apparition, dissolve and disappear behind a shuttered door. When he reemerged—looking nearly the same as he did when he threw his last pitch for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1966—Sandy Koufax glided resplendently onto a baseball field, his iconic number 32 majestically emblazoned on his back, like righteous wings.

On that late February day in 1991, I was part of a throng of boomer worshippers attending a Dodgers Adult Camp in Vero Beach, Fla. When Koufax appeared we bowed, gathered around, and reverently gawked as he mingled and posed for photos. He gave a brief talk on the fine points of pitching—something akin to Da Vinci giving a brief talk on the fine points of painting—and then was gone, vanishing back behind the shuttered door and back to his Salingeresque-reclusive ways.

Through the years little has changed in the debate as to who was—or is—the supreme left handed pitcher in the game; for most of us, it has always been Koufax, then and now.

But the paradigm may be shifting a bit as of late; there may be small, growing fissures in the argument as to who is better, who is the greatest, and which southpaw would you rather have on your team: Sandy Koufax or the newcomer—a stylish, soon-to-be 26-year-old with watertight mechanics named Clayton Kershaw.

Armed at an early age with a prodigious curveball and this spring with the largest contract ever awarded a pitcher, for now Kershaw is the freshly anointed one. And as blasphemous as it may be, there are whispers by some who dare say he will eclipse the memory of Sandy Koufax as the greatest pitcher—left-hander or right-hander—in the history of the Los Angeles Dodgers, if not all of baseball.

A cursory glance at statistics—baseball’s omnipresent life thread of measurement and information—will show that Kershaw is indeed far ahead of Koufax at this stage of their careers after just six years in the major leagues. Entering the 2014 season, Kershaw’s overall record is 77-46, a sterling, eye-popping winning percentage of .626.

Koufax? After six seasons he was barely hanging on, languishing as a reliever and infrequent spot starter. When he was signed as a “bonus baby” in 1954 by the Brooklyn Dodgers and following the team’s move west, Koufax’s overall record was a derisory 37-42 with an ERA that ballooned to 4.48 in 1958. But he had shown flashes of brilliance, flashes of something incredibly electrifying and the team’s manager Walter Alston and general manager Buzzie Bavasi stuck with him, believing if his untamed left arm could ever find the strike zone, they would have something very special.

Kershaw? There have never been doubts or hesitations. Starting with the remark prominently attributed to former manager Joe Torre back in 2008 that the then-19-year-old fireballer “reminds me of Koufax,” Kershaw has had—fairly or unfairly—the shroud of greatness hanging around his neck like a noose.

Not so with the young Koufax, who didn’t begin his ascension until his breakout 1961 season when he went 18-13 with a league-leading and major league record of 269 strikeouts. Overall he fashioned a remarkable winning percentage of .655, in spite of his poor record prior to ’61. For six seasons—1961 through 1966—baseball had seen nothing like him, nothing close to the magic of his curve or the brilliance blaze of his fastball. His numbers during that stretch are beyond extraordinary, beyond incredible. Simply put, Koufax grew from below mediocre at best early in his career, to possibly the most overpowering pitcher, ever.

When he was forced to retire at the zenith of achievement because of his hexed arthritic left elbow—at just age 31—Koufax left a legacy few thought could ever be matched. Significantly, too, he left a frustrating, arcane question: what if? What if he had been able to pitch one, two, three or more seasons and put up similar incomparable numbers?

No one knows what could have been. We’re left only with a meteoric glimpse at genuine greatness, a baseball deity that has been unequaled. But this, we do know: very few pitchers dodge the injury plague—including, obviously, Koufax. And that brings us back to Clayton Kershaw.

Baseball’s history confirms how dicey it is for pitching phenoms to continue awe-inspiring success trajectories when just starting out; the list of once-heralded hurlers forced from the game early because of injury is frightening in its totality, scary in its reality. So the stormy, dark cloud of injury always hovers and Kershaw’s growing legion of admirers are faced with ominous questions:

• With his extraordinary mechanics, described by many pitching gurus as “nearly flawless,” can Kershaw sustain his astonishing early success and avoid injury, long-term?
• Can he add to his already impressive career that includes two Cy Young awards (and a second place in 2012), just one shy of Koufax himself?
• Can he stay focused and maintain a strict discipline?

Here’s the kicker for those jumping on the Kershaw band wagon: No matter how glittering his numbers, no matter how many Cy Young plaques may hang on his wall, until Clayton Kershaw wins a World Series he will always lag behind the three rings Sandy Koufax can boast.

Mythical or not, the Koufax aura sets an almost impossible standard. But if the conjectural heir apparent can match or surpass Koufax in championship wins and maintain a semblance of his early success, then the coronation and crowning of a new Great One can begin.

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Pretty much any story about the Los Angeles Dodgers these days is obligated to at least mention the club’s never-ending financial funding and bottomless bank account. All that money has helped the Dodgers acquire the talent to put them in position as favorites in the National League West.

One thing all that money can’t buy, though? A 10th starting position on the diamond—preferably in the outfield.

When it comes to their outfield, you see, the Dodgers have one of those, ahem, too-much-of-a-good-thing problems. In Matt Kemp, Yasiel Puig, Carl Crawford and Andre Ethier, the club has four outfielders who have shown they’re worthy of starting every day. Alas, the rules of baseball allow a maximum of nine men on the field at once, three of which typically inhabit the large, expansive area covered in green grass.

What, then, are the Dodgers to do? Which of the four outfielders mentioned above might become the “odd man out” with the team due to start spring training in—get ready!—a little more than a week?

For a large portion of this offseason, there were all sorts of rumors that one of this quartet could get swapped as a way to help clear things up, as Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports wrote in November.

The two names mentioned most frequently were Kemp and Ethier, as noted a month later by Buster Olney of ESPN.

That speculation, though, has quieted down in recent weeks. At this stage, it’s looking more and more likely that the Dodgers will go into the 2014 season—their “Opening Day” series against the Arizona Diamondbacks begins on March 22—with all four outfielders on the 25-man roster.

While that can be problematic in some cases, it’s not necessarily a bad thing here. Sure, there are egos and (millions of) dollars on the line, but neither of those should be used to decide anything for a team that has World Series aspirations.

While Puig is clearly the least invested-in outfielder of the bunch (strictly monetarily speaking), there’s no way he’ll get shortchanged with playing time. Not when in only four months of action last year, the electrifying 23-year-old was easily the Dodgers’ best, most productive outfielder—and arguably their top position player—in what was his first taste of the majors.

That leaves Kemp, Crawford and Ethier to divvy up two spots. That still might seem like overcrowding, but then again, maybe not.

Kemp, remember, hasn’t been healthy for almost two full years by now. The 29-year-old has played just 106 and 73 games, respectively, in 2012 and 2013, while battling shoulder, hamstring and ankle problems.

Crawford, 32, has had injury issues himself, including elbow surgery in 2012 and a hamstring ailment last season. He made it into only 116 games in 2013 and a mere 31 in 2012.

The 31-year-old Ethier, on the other hand, has been rather durable, having managed 291 out of a possible 324 games the past two years.

Given this recent history, it seems highly probable that all four outfielders will be able to get their time in, even if that means it comes at the expense of one of the other three missing some action due to injury.

The other factor that helps this logjam? Kemp and Puig hit right-handed, while Crawford and Ethier bat from the left side. In theory, then, even when all four outfielders are healthy and playing well at the same time, manager Don Mattingly could find a way to rotate based on pitching matchups.

Crawford and Ethier continue to struggle against southpaws, posting OPS of .679 and .644 against lefties for their careers. It’s a good thing, then, that Kemp (.976 career OPS) and Puig (1.001 career OPS) absolutely obliterate opposite-armed pitchers.

The same thing holds true in reverse. Where Kemp (.795 career OPS) and Puig (.897 career OPS) aren’t quite as beastly against righties, Ethier (.906 career OPS) and Crawford (.809 career OPS) can pick up the slack, if need be.

Obviously, it’s not advisable to stunt Puig’s development while his career is still in its infancy by sitting him often against righties, but if he’s slumping, this could be a savvy maneuver.

Where things admittedly get a little tricky in all this is with defensive positioning. None of these four is a true center fielder. Kemp, the starter there for each of the last five years, has become below-average with the glove recently, and who knows what to expect from him in the field after multiple major injuries?

Ethier, the starter in right since 2007, actually covered capably enough for Kemp last season, meaning he’s likely the best option to back up at the spot in 2014. Plus, it works well that he and Kemp hit from opposite sides.

Ethier, though, should also see time in either corner, primarily as a way to give Crawford a day off in left, and occasionally, Puig in right.

By filling in at all three positions without necessarily being considered the definitive starter at any one of them, Ethier would appear to be the “odd man out” of this foursome.

Thing is, between Kemp’s and Crawford’s injury issues the past two seasons, as well as what could be growing pains and cold spells for the streaky Puig in his first full big league season, Ethier still is in line to see plenty of time.

Essentially, look for the Dodgers to employ a rotation where one of the expected starters—Kemp, Puig and Crawford—gets a day off every four or five days, with Ethier shifting across the outfield while still playing three or four games in a row to keep him in a rhythm.

Calling the situation “a good problem to have,” Mattingly told CBS Los Angeles in December about the potential plan heading into 2014:

I know somebody is not going to be happy the days that they don’t play. But also within that…we found out if we can give Carl an extra day off here or there, he seems to be even better. We think Matt will probably need the same type of thing, where you’re getting a day here and there. Andre, the same, days here and there.

These too-many-pieces “problems” do tend to work themselves out one way or another.

For evidence, just rewind to the start of Dodgers spring training last year. Heading into camp, Los Angeles had approximately 37 starting pitchers to fill its five-man rotation, and everyone was wondering how in the heck all of them would fit.

OK, really, it was more like eight rotation candidates: Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Josh Beckett, Chad Billingsley, Chris Capuano, Aaron Harang and Ted Lilly. Those first three worked out pretty darn well, but the other five? Well, there were injuries (Beckett, Billingsley, Lilly), inconsistent performances (Capuano) and trades (Harang) all within the first portion of the regular season.

Before the Dodgers knew it, what looked like a silly surplus turned into a severe shortage. Remember when they were forced to give starts to the likes of Stephen Fife and Matt Magill?

Point is, the Dodgers would be lucky to have an actual “odd man out” situation in the outfield in 2014, because that would mean all four prove productive and remain healthy for the entire season.

Even all that Dodgers money might not buy that kind of result.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

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It’s no secret that the Los Angeles Dodgers have made the cash-strapped days of the Frank McCourt era a distant memory. As if the baseball world needed another reminder, the team recently made its superstar pitcher, Clayton Kershaw, the highest-paid player in the history of the sport.

His seven-year, $250 million contract extension, first reported by ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, even includes an opt-out clause after five years. This means that Kershaw could potentially be in line for an even richer deal if he decides to opt out as a 30-year-old in 2018.

Of course, a deal this lengthy and this expensive does not come without risk. The Dodgers are taking a big gamble, but for a soon-to-be 26-year-old pitcher who has won two out of the last three Cy Young Awards and has never landed on the disabled list, it’s a move they had to make.

As the dust settles and the 2014 season approaches, here are three bold predictions for Kershaw’s record-setting deal:

1. Clayton Kershaw will win at least two more Cy Young Awards

Baseball teams only hand out seven-year, $250 million extensions to the best pitchers on the planet, and Kershaw happens to be the best pitcher on the planet. 

The 2011 and 2013 Cy Young Award winner should have also received the honor in 2012, but the baseball world decided to champion the R.A. Dickey feel-good story, despite Kershaw compiling a lower ERA and WHIP than Dickey. Perhaps Dickey received the award because his knuckleball was able to strike out 230 batters, while Kershaw only fanned 229.

In any event, Kershaw responded to his snub by posting a 1.83 ERA in 2013, the league’s lowest since Pedro Martinez’s 1.74 in 2000.

Besides a nonexistent injury history, the scary part is that Kershaw won’t turn 26 until March.

Most pitchers are only entering their prime at this age. Kershaw is already there.

And with so much money invested in their prized southpaw, the Dodgers will be sure to continue their responsible usage of Kershaw. He has just five career starts of 120 or more pitches.

If Kershaw progresses at this rate, it won’t be a question of whether or not he wins multiple Cy Young Awards during the next few seasons. It will be a question of how many.

2. Clayton Kershaw will help the Dodgers win the World Series

Every Dodgers fan remembers how last season ended.

Kershaw, the team’s most reliable pitcher, shockingly imploded in the biggest game of his life. If Dodgers fans thought it was rough, imagine how Kershaw has felt these past few months.

His last memory of the 2013 season was walking off the field as the St. Louis Cardinals were piling onto what would end up being a 9-0 shellacking to end the Dodgers’ playoff run.

Albeit $250 million probably washed some of the bad taste from his mouth, but a competitor like Kershaw doesn’t forget the bad. (See: Dickey 2012)

He knows the deep-pocketed Guggenheim ownership group has gone all in to put a legitimate contender on the field. And with most of the key pieces locked in for the next few seasons, a championship is well within reach. The team proved its potential last season, coming within two wins of its first World Series appearance in 25 years.

If the Dodgers find themselves in another win-or-go-home game come October, you can bet Kershaw will be on the mound, eager to live up to the hefty expectations placed upon his shoulders with the new extension.

And you can bet he won’t let the season end prematurely on his watch again. Instead of sitting in the dugout watching another team celebrate at his expense, it will be Kershaw doing the dancing with his teammates sooner rather than later.

3. Kershaw will opt out in 2018

Assuming the first two predictions come true, Kershaw will enter the 2018 season with at least four Cy Young Awards and at least one World Series ring by the age of 30.

That’s the kind of resume that launches pitchers into the Hall of Fame at the end of their careers.

For Kershaw, it’ll be the kind of resume that he can use to to test the free-agent market, which would almost certainly assure him an even richer contract—if that’s even possible.

The opt-out clause after five years was an essential part of the deal for Kershaw, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.

The Dodgers, fresh off finalizing a multi-billion-dollar television deal, should have no problem outbidding other suitors for the Texas native’s prized left arm in the event that he opts out in 2018.

For Kershaw, it’s a win-win situation.

For the Dodgers, it’s a win-win intuition. 

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Is anything going to stop the deep-pocketed Los Angeles Dodgers from signing Japanese star Masahiro Tanaka? And if they do land the coveted right-hander, is anything going to stop the Dodgers—period?

Tanaka is in town to undergo medical tests that will be released to all teams interested in negotiating with the recently posted pitcher, per Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times. It’s no surprise, then, that the Dodgers figured now is as good a time as any to make it known they’ll be going hard after the former top arm in Nippon Professional Baseball, as Bob Nightengale of USA Today alerts Friday: 

To be clear, the Dodgers will have competition, as plenty of other clubs are lusting after Tanaka, a 25-year-old who went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles last year.

Among the other teams most often mentioned? Oh, just a few: The New York Yankees, the Seattle Mariners, the Los Angeles Angels, the Chicago Cubs, the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Texas Rangers and the Boston Red Sox. Really, the list goes on.

Of course, Tanaka does have a say in the matter of where he winds up, which is a new concept for Japanese players who are posted by their teams prior to reaching free agency. John Shea of the San Franciso Chronicle points out the preferred destinations of the projected front-of-the-rotation arm:

But the Dodgers just might be the favorites for any number of factors, including their current status as a contender, their location on the West Coast (which Tanaka has been rumored to prefer) and, no doubt, their money.

If Los Angeles inks Tanaka, continuing a spate of spending and splurging in the past 18 months that shows no signs of stopping, the Dodgers instantly would jump from serious contender to no-doubt World Series front runner.

As is, the Dodgers are positioned to once again be the class of the weak NL West, which they won by 11 games last season—after being 9.5 games out in late June. But add Tanaka to a star-studded roster, and, well, the rest of the National League might be playing for second place.

Remember, Los Angeles already has a rotation filled to the brim with top-notch starters in reigning NL Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw, masterful right-hander Zack Greinke and second-year southpaw Hyun-Jin Ryu. Beyond that, there’s the trio of veteran bounce-back candidates in righties Dan Haren, Josh Beckett and Chad Billingsley.

Inserting Tanaka into that talented, deep group means the rich would only be getting richer, which is nothing new for the Dodgers these days.

In fact, with a front foursome of Kershaw, Tanaka, Greinke and Ryu, L.A. might enter the 2014 season with the best quartet of starters in baseball, even ahead of the impressive rotations in Detroit and Washington, among others.

The last time a team’s top four starters were that good? Last year’s Tigers, featuring Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Anibal Sanchez and Doug Fister, merit consideration. Prior to that, there’s the 2011 Philadelphia Phillies, who rolled with Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt.

It may not be a coincidence, then, that a Dodgers team with Tanaka, playing in a division they’re poised to dominate, could threaten to become the first club to crack the 100-win mark since—wait for it—those very Phillies.

In other words, if they pony up for Tanaka, the Dodgers could be setting themselves up to take over the top seed entering next October.

Of course, neither that Phillies club nor last year’s Tigers team managed to make it to the World Series. Detroit, remember, lost to the Red Sox in the Championship Series last season, while the Phillies fell out even earlier in 2011 when they were upset by the St. Louis Cardinals in the Division Series.

The common thread? Both Boston and St. Louis went on to win it all in their respective postseasons. Goes to show that even with a first-rate five-man rotation, nothing is a given.

Here’s where it should be noted that the Dodgers actually led all teams in rotation ERA last year—their 3.13 ERA was more than eight percent better than the next-best—and they, too, came up short of the Fall Classic.

So even with Tanaka in tow, nothing is guaranteed for the Dodgers. Plus, they might be shaping up as a 2014-or-bust team, given that Kershaw and shortstop Hanley Ramirez are set to hit the open market after next season.

After all, one imagines that giving $100-plus million to Tanaka might impact even the Dodgers’ ability to keep both Kershaw and Ramirez, each of whom will command their own nine figure contracts, in town for 2015 and beyond.

At this point, the Dodgers have to be considered one of the favorites—if not the favorite—to land Tanaka, who would put them in position to win the winter and then dominate the spring and summer.

Still, with a bunch of high-priced talent already on the roster and two of their top players on the verge of free agency, paying up for Tanaka now could burn the Dodgers in the future if they don’t win it all this fall.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

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That sound you didn‘t hear following the four-day wheeling and dealing fest known as the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings is what made the Los Angles Angels so intriguing.

It was the cricket’s chirp, disguised as a collective thumbs up, instead of the disapproving roar.

The organization arguably pulled one of the biggest, if not the biggest, move in the last four days—sending Mark Trumbo to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a three-team deal with the Chicago White Sox that landed the Halos starting pitchers Tyler Skaggs and Hector Santiago.

It was impressive.

It was quick. 

Oddly enough, the Angels got “it” done, with most of the reactions toward the deal on the positive side—from what I saw, at least.

Sure, there wasn’t a major barrage of giant free-agent maneuvers or major trades the last four days by any MLB team, skewing the magnitude of what was accomplished by the Angels.

But they stayed away from self-inflicted stereotypes, moving from large, possibly draft-pick-surrendering, deals and made a solid cost-controlled effort to fix their starting pitching depth.

Both Skaggs and Santiago, based on the need to simply improve behind C.J. Wilson and Jered Weaver, are a good start.

Although dealing Trumbo seemed to be a 180 from what was passed along by Angels’ general manager Jerry Dipoto no less than a week ago (The Orange County Register‘s Jeff Fletcher thought better of it via Twitter), it turned out to be the best option for getting young arms in return—in this instance anyway.

And, in the time of “Move Now,” the organization did not have the luxury of playing out a storybook scenario, where it keeps the local guy, and he miraculously rewards the gesture by leading it all the way to the World Series.

Will Trumbo be missed? Absolutely.

Power is always a good thing to have on the field, and a class act of a guy is always a good thing to have off the field. Trumbo embodied both areas.

The business side of things moves on, though.

The Angels needed starting pitching; moreover, they needed two starting pitchers. And, with one deal, they accomplished filling that need.

It’s a win—the first move in what seems like 1,000 of them where the criticism didn’t outweigh the praise.

Also, with that one move, the organization indirectly addressed another issue surrounding the 2014 roster: infield depth.

Now that Trumbo is gone, it would be hard to imagine a scenario where Howie Kendrick gets traded.

That beneficial flip-flop in trade chips gives the Angels flexibility in the infield, allowing David Freese to hold the hot corner, Erick Aybar to play shortstop, Kendrick to keep the veteran presence at second, with a nice platoon of Grant Green and Andrew Romine off the bench.

That, for now, is another win.

If the timing of everything allows Kaleb Cowart to progress in Double-A, with Romine and Green carrying their weight and progressing as well, then I would say dealing Trumbo could eventually be viewed as an organization-shifting move.

It leaves the need to fill a void of 30-plus homers that Trumbo carried, no question. And that won’t be the easiest aspect to fill.

If Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton continue to fade, then I can also say this move could be viewed as the organization shifting in the wrong direction, too.

Isn’t everything in the guessing game like that? It’s a risk.

But, even with that possibility of the unknown, there has to be some feel of confidence among the Halo community.

Perhaps there really is a collective agreement in philosophy between the GM and manager Mike Scioscia.

That might be the biggest win of all, which can trickle down into a more positive clubhouse environment.

Mind you, that could have been a front for the media, saying the right things in an environment where the day is spent answering the same genre of questions.

I get that.

However, I also understand where the team was coming from, with reminders popping up every day, like the one Fox Sports’ Gabe Kapler sent out on Twitter:

That is the reality this organization cornered itself into. Now, it’s about making strides to right the ship. And the Angels are doing that, in my mind.

The organization was smart to acquire the Toronto Blue Jays‘ Rule 5 draft selection, Brian Moran, for international slot money. The left-handed reliever “annihilated left-handed hitters in Triple-A,” said Jerry Dipoto, according to MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez.

That’s never a bad thing to have, in the grand scheme of bullpen depth.

Sure, there is more work to be done with the offseason a long, long way from over. Adding another pitcher like Matt Garza would be a solid finale to the offseason—which became an actual possibility, as the money available under the tax threshold for the Angels is now around $20 million.

Until then, however, you still have to like what the Angels have done up to this point.

I do.

Winter Meetings Grade: A

Unless otherwise noted, all stats and contract info were courtesy of baseball-reference.com.

Follow Rick Suter on Twitter @rick-suter.

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For the past year-and-a-half, money has been more or less no object for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Freed from the confinement and embarrassment that had come to be under previous owner Frank McCourt, the Dodgers and their new ownership, headed by Magic Johnson and the Guggenheim Partners, have once again established themselves as a big-market franchise that has been—and will continue to be—major players when it comes to player acquisitions.

It would be great to be able to put an exact figure on the amount that has been spent since the regime change, but then again, it’s hard to even count that high. Here’s one figure, from Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal:

Since [the new ownership group purchased the organization for $2.15 billion in May 2012], the Dodgers have taken on more than $600 million in long-term salary commitments and replaced the New York Yankees as the sport’s dominant financial power.

Here’s another number: The club’s 2013 payroll was about $217 million, second-most in Major League Baseball, according to USA Today‘s salary database. While the Yankees’ $228 million payroll was actually slightly higher—by only about, oh, $10 million or so—the Dodgers’ was more than twice as much as the amount they spent on player contracts in 2012. That kind of year-over-year jump is simply unprecedented at that scale.

Such splurging was made possible by the new owners, as well as a massive television deal that could bring the team as much as $6 billion in the end, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times.

“We needed to invigorate the club,” Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti told Costa. “We needed to invigorate the city. We needed to get a little bit of our reputation back, and we needed to act quickly.”

Mission accomplished.

But what do the Dodgers do for an offseason encore now that the winter is here? Well, there’s more money to be spent, both on bringing in new free agents and locking up their own players long-term.

Let’s start with the latter avenue. Many of the players already under contract are signed for multiple seasons, but the club’s best hitter and pitcher aren’t among them.

Shortstop Hanley Ramirez, the team’s offensive MVP while hitting .345/.402/.638 with 25 doubles and 20 homers in only 86 games during an injury-riddled 2013, is inked through 2014, but that’s it. Both Ramirez and the team, though, have indicated an extension is a possibility.

Ace left-hander Clayton Kershaw, soon-to-be Cy Young winner for the second time in three years, is under team control through next season only, too. In Kershaw‘s case, there have been reports that the two sides have been trying to work toward a monster deal, perhaps even upward of $300 million.

Making sure those two stars stick around is more important to the Dodgers’ future than bringing in new blood via free agency, but doing so would mean at least $20 million a year for Ramirez and at least $25 million per for Kershaw. That’s tacking on $45-$50 million more per season to a roster that already has approximately $160 million on the books for 2014, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts via Baseball Prospectus.

If we can be so bold as to have those deals completed this offseason, that would bring the Dodgers’ payroll for next year right around where they were this year. And that’s not counting new signings, trades and raises via arbitration and performance bonuses, among other monetary obligations and roster additions.

Sure, the Dodgers can shed some salary, too. In fact, they already have by declining the options for second baseman Mark Ellis and left-hander Chris Capuano, which were $5.75 million and $8 million, respectively, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. The buyouts were for $1 million each.

In his story, Hernandez points out that newly signed Cuban import Alexander Guerrero, who inked for $28 million over four years, is expected to be in line to take over the second base job. Capuano, meanwhile, was deemed expendable because, as Hernandez notes:

The Dodgers have five starting pitchers under control for next season: Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Chad Billingsley and Josh Beckett. Billingsley and Beckett are recovering from major operations, but the Dodgers are expected to attempt to re-sign Ricky Nolasco and pursue Japanese right-hander Masahiro Tanaka.

The 25-year-old Tanaka, who went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, is not a free agent, but his Japanese club is expected to post him this winter, giving all 30 MLB teams the opportunity to bid for exclusive rights to negotiate with him.

To that end, Steve Dilbeck, also of the Times, points out the following:

The fact that [the Dodgers] gambled on Hyun-Jin Ryu ($36 million) and Yasiel Puig ($42 million) last year and won, only figures to encourage their international efforts. They’ve already spent on Cuban infielder Alexander Guerrero ($28 million) this off-season.

And now comes the next latest, greatest thing in Tanaka.

Whether it’s landing Tanaka, re-signing Nolasco or hooking any number of other enticing, pricey free agents is pretty much a fait accompli for the Dodgers. Certainly, they can’t afford every big name, but there are millions more to be spent. It’s not a matter of if, but when.

L.A.’s payroll is bound to bump again next year, but what was a financial blastoff last winter likely will be merely another step or two up this time around. Maybe the number reaches into the $230-$250 million range, depending on how the Ramirez and Kershaw negotiations play out. That still would be the highest ever in MLB history, surpassing the Yankees, who may—or may not—be going a bit more cost-conscious this winter.

Regardless, this Dodgers team doesn’t need a heck of a lot more help, considering 2013 ended with a trip all the way to the National League Championship Series even after the club was floundering for the first two months of the season. No wonder they’re the odds-on favorite for next year’s World Series.

They could use a key piece here, an under-the-radar addition there, with the most pressing needs being at third base, in the middle of the rotation and the back of the bullpen. But the roster is chock full of stars who are in their prime—if they’re even there yet.

And that just might be what prevents the Dodgers’ payroll next season and beyond from making even the New York Yankees look like cheapskates. No amount of money can buy another roster spot, so the Dodgers will have to work with 25 players.

When it comes to spending, that may be the one way they’re just like every other team.

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David Freese left Game 3 of the NLCS between the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers Monday with a sore right calf muscle. The loss of Freese left the Cardinals without one of their most prolific postseason bats at a time when their offense was at a historic low.

Freese left Game 3 after driving a base hit in the fifth inning and moving up to second on a single by rookie first baseman Matt Adams. Mike Matheny then made the decision to pull Freese from the game and utilize Daniel Descalso to pinch run and take over in the field. Steve Gilbert of MLB.com spoke with Freese after the game:

It was just during that AB, then I took off running and it was pretty tight. It just kind of tightened up on me, and obviously Mike felt it was necessary to take me out just in case we needed someone to score.

The severity of the injury was downplayed very early and Gilbert reported Freese was day-to-day with his injury. Gilbert continued to share the status of the Cardinals’ third baseman later in the same article:

“I think it’s just tight,” Freese said. “I don’t think I strained it too bad, but we’ll check it out tomorrow. I hope I can play tomorrow, but we’ll check it out.”

Said Matheny: “Right now, it’s day to day, and we expect him to be ready to go.”

Freese reported to the park for workouts Tuesday and Frank Cusumano, a reporter from St. Louis NBC affiliate KSDK, confirmed via Twitter that Freese felt ready to go.

The news is good for the Cardinals. Their offense has struggled early on in the series. Despite Freese‘s lack of production, backup Daniel Descalso offers very little help. Descalso is known more for his defensive ability and versatility than his presence at the plate. Alternatively, the Cardinals could turn to rookie Kolten Wong at second base and shift Matt Carpenter over the third base, his natural position. Once again, though, this offers little offensive relief, as Wong has failed to discover his stroke at the major league level.

Freese has offered many memorable October moments in his short career. His presence in the lineup gives the team a feeling of capturing another of those moments at any time.

The Cardinals are in need of one of those moments.

Follow me on Twitter to discuss all things MLB during the postseason.

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When it comes to acquisitions this offseason, don’t expect the Los Angeles Angels to act like an organization planning for an episode of Supermarket Sweep.

After a long season riddled with injury, pitching issues, and lack of production from high-priced pieces in Josh Hamilton and Albert Pujols, we know the team will certainly look to restructure from a 78-84 record.

But a winning formula won’t involve rushing around the offseason market, attempting to fill the proverbial shopping cart with expensive, top-tier players. 

It can’t, actually.

From a tax threshold perspective, that’s not the kind of reality afforded to this team—not when they are still on the hook for past moves like Vernon Wells (18 million), present moves like Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton ($71 million total) and questionable tie-ins for next season like Joe Blanton ($8.5 million).

Instead, with $125 million already on the books for next season, the Angels’ offseason shopping list will be more of the money-saving variety, filled with smart moves that may not make a huge splash among the media, but will help the team progress into next season and after that.

Problem is, though, we still aren’t 100-percent sure who will be orchestrating this new cost-controlled method, or overseeing any of the looming arbitration.

The Angels’ season wasn’t even a day past old before we started to see the question of the Angels’ offseason pop up:

As it stands today, any such drastic and quick-to-the-point actions by Arte Moreno toward either Jerry Dipoto or Mike Scioscia have not happened. And I’m still on board with keeping both of them next season, giving more attention to development and less to moves that will waste time due to acclimation this winter.

However, I don’t think my opinion is of the majority out there.

If there were a change, then, oddly enough, the first category on the Angels’ list would have to be names of free agent GMs and managers.

But the list would not be equal parts.

Managers, at least the kind that could handle Moreno, aren’t really in abundance. And Joe Girardi isn’t coming to Anaheim via New York. Simple enough.

So by default, and a lot of cash left on his contract, Scioscia looks to be safe. Or, at least, safer.

Jerry Dipoto? Well…

The real interest should come from the GM position, in my mind, and now ex-Marlins GM Larry Beinfest.

Though nothing has been whipped up yet, the idea of Beinfest replacing Dipoto—the more expendable of the two sacrifice candidates—is a possibility.

(The interesting thing: Much like the Dipoto/Scioscia head-butting, I have read that Beinfest had similar issue in Florida.)

Either way, we should expect to see more and more of the dysfunction—the behind-the-scenes drama played out in front of the cameras. And, of course, a verdict from Moreno.

After that, it’s all about the pitching—yep, baseball stuff, I know…very cool.

The Angels’ pitching staff did have the unfortunate obstacle of injury throughout the season. Players who were brought in to help the bullpen—Sean Burnett and Ryan Madson—didn’t have the impact the Angels expected simply because of health, and the rotation suffered setbacks seemingly every month too.

Jered Weaver, the one arm that needed to be healthy for the rotation to have a chance, suffered a broken elbow.

Jason Vargas, a complement to C.J. Wilson as a left-handed option had a blood clot in his armpit, and his fellow first-year Angels pitcher Tommy Hanson had both on-field and off-field circumstances.

It was a mess, no question. And sometimes, when there has been such a string of bad timing, the question then becomes: What if?

What if the rotation stayed healthy?

What if the bullpen stayed healthy?

There is nothing wrong with that feeling, either.

When you look at some of the improvements from Garrett Richards in the rotation, the continued growth of Ernesto Frieri as a closer and the ability of relievers Dane De La Rosa and Michael Kohn, things aren’t as dire as one might expect.

When Jerry Dipoto addressed the media, he sounded like he had confidence in some of the current options on the 2013 Angels’ roster:

There’s a championship core there. And now we have to figure out, amongst ourselves, as we collaborate throughout the offseason, what are the moves that we can make that will improve this.

Improving on a tight budget? It can be done (see 2013 playoff-bound teams).

Sure, it would be nice if things could fit into a category like Chevy Chase’s rubber gloves in Fletch (he leased them, with an option to buy). But that isn’t the case for the Angels, unfortunately, so the team will have to be extremely delicate with each decision.

Vargas, the one and only free-agent option, is second on the list behind a manager or GM—if applicable.

The left-hander showed decent stuff this season, with a curveball that actually improved the life (the look of it, at least) of his fastball.

He wasn’t completely strong following the blood clot that sidelined him this summer—he went 3-4 with a 4.60 ERA in his final 10 starts, ending at 9-8 with a 4.02 mark—but lefties are always a commodity when it comes to offseason moves, making Vargas an intriguing free agent.

It also makes him expensive—too expensive for the Angels?

I imagine the team will attempt to negotiate with Vargas, though it’s doubtful they will have the flexibility to offer the $14 million before Vargas hits the market.

That leaves only the unknown—something manager Mike Scioscia knows is difficult:

Free agency gets complicated. There’s no doubt that he’s given our rotation a boost as he’s come back into it from being injured. You’d love to see him in an Angel uniform, but we’ve been through this before. You just never know how free agency works out.

If Vargas does fall through it’s not the end of the world. The Angels have other options to acquire cost-controlled arms through trades and even the international market.

The latter of the two sheds light on an interesting story: The Angels, a team that has not exactly been an international presence in the past, reportedly will bid for the service of 24-year-old Masahiro Tanaka of Japan.

Though his posting fee, as LA Times’ Mike Giovanna explains, would be around $25 million, none of that cash would go toward the luxury tax threshold ($189 million).

Tanaka, then, could be the best game-ready, cost-controlled arm—assuming the Angels would be enticing enough to win the bidding war. That, like everything else in the offseason, is still an unknown.

If that doesn’t play out in favor of the Angels, the option would be to trade a player or package a deal of players for pitching.

This scenario will sting a bit.

As I had previously written, Mark Trumbo stands as the best chip for the Angels. His bat and youth are certainly worth a quality, young arm.

The Pirates had reportedly shown interest in him around the trade deadline, but nothing came of it. (In light of their current playoff position, I am not sure the Pirates would be willing to part with an arm like prospect Jameson Taillon now like they would have then.)

The option will need to be explored by the Angels, though. Whether favorable or not, the spending ceiling the Angels have only allows for so much wiggle room.

Trumbo will help alleviate some of that pressure. And, because of the progress of Kole Calhoun and the hope of Albert Pujols returning to form next season, Trumbo is actually an expendable player.

Not happy about that? I get it.

The next option would be to throw Howie Kendrick into the discussion.

The veteran second baseman was on his way to a really solid season before the leg injury that caused him to miss most of the final month.

Out of that situation, however, came Grant Green—who has the ability to take over the second base role next season.

That leaves Kendrick, like Trumbo, in sort of an expendable position. If he can’t be moved in a one-for-one type trade, then perhaps a package deal—with the likes of Peter Bourjos, J.B. Shuck, Kole Calhoun, Kevin Jepsen, etc.—could get done.

Again, there isn’t a real certainty there. The Blue Jays reportedly had interest in Kendrick at the trade deadline (and after), but the Angels were not willing to negotiate.

With the Blue Jays current debacle, I wouldn’t think their biggest priority would be landing Howie Kendrick. Like the Angels, I would imagine it’s more about pitching, pitching, and more pitching.

Isn’t that true for every team, though? Pitching is key.

Mike Scioscia explained that (per Mike DiGiovanna):

If you look at any team that wins, they’re pretty good at controlling the game on the defensive end. And that begins with your rotation.

Sounds like 2012 going into 2013, doesn‘t it?

It’s like a bad joke: Pete and Repeat walk into a room. Pete leaves. Who’s left? Repeat.

The Angels need pitching…again.

They need rotation help…again.

Taking another crack at solidifying the bullpen won’t hurt either…again.

And when you really dissect the entire offseason maneuvering, the Angels shopping list is actually less of a list and more like one post-it note.

P.S: “Don’t forget to pick up some pitching while you are out.”

Note: All stats provided were courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise noted.

Follow Rick Suter on Twitter@rick_suter

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There is a headline that constantly scrolls in my mind every time predictions begin to swirl around the Los Angeles Angels’ offseason moves—each scenario popping with the lights of a ‘50s-style camera.

Big names. Big money. Big moves. Big…mistakes?

Pop!

It never fails—especially in the past few seasons—making the Angels one of the more intriguing organizations to watch in the winter.

What will they do for an encore?

Remember: This is the Los Angeles Angels we are talking about here. If they went out on the first day of the offseason and acquired four top-tier pitchers for cash and the eating of a few contracts and Vernon Wells, would you really be surprised?

I wouldn’t.

However, to me, this offseason will be different. Not less interesting, but definitely different. For the first time in at least three seasons, I don’t think we see any major hype.

Sure, the cameras will be there, it’s 24/7 sports news in the offseason—they need filler. But the idea of big moves and bigger headlines coming from Anaheim just doesn’t make sense.

Granted, whenever it comes to predicting the Angels’ offseason moves, I also immediately think of those studies that explain the chances of winning the lottery.

Both instances, regardless of how you think it will go, are never an easy hit. Most often, it’s a miss—about a 1-in-175 million chance of getting it right.

In the case of the Angels, with owner Arte Moreno always poised for the unknown and astonishing, that number may be a little greater—like 1-in-180 million.

But I won’t let the odds keep me from throwing in my two cents. It’s fun. No shame in that.

And though I don’t think something drastic will happen—it’s way too early to completely exhaust every angle and detail anyways—I do feel there are three key scenarios that will lead to this revolution (let’s call it that) of an offseason.

So, let this be the first of probably thousands of prediction-based articles for the Angels this offseason.

Arte Moreno will surprise the guessers, as usual in the offseason, and keep both Jerry Dipoto and Mike Scioscia

What’s the rush on this? This team is not going to be fixed overnight, and it certainly isn’t going to get some high-powered boost if Moreno cuts loose either Scioscia or Dipoto (or both).

In fact, any such moves might set the team back even worse—if you can believe that.

Sure, I’ve seen the same reports, from the same writers as you, but I struggle to understand how this debate is clear to so many when there is obvious doubt towards the effect seeping from the cause.

We know the team is a ship without sails at this point. They have little room for spending money in the offseason, and the best efforts will be parting ways with good talent in order to secure the now and the future.

There is Albert Pujols, causing worry and concern.

There is Josh Hamilton, causing worry and concern.

There is a need for pitching, while understanding that Mike Trout is going to get more expensive.

It’s a difficult situation, no question.

But why take a ship with no sails and start removing the boards from the haul for the sake of blaming why the sails went missing in the first place?

Wouldn’t that ultimately just sink the ship?

In recent months, it seems as though both Dipoto and Scioscia have made nice, at least in the PR-latent form we hear spewed to reporters from time to time.

(It’s like watching two cast members on a sitcom, who dislike each other, smile pretty when the camera is rolling and the questions start flying their way. “No, no, we have had our differences…but I think we have a good thing going here and I think…”)

The truth is Scioscia likes to control the situation—the entire situation. But so does Moreno. To that, I imagine Dipoto would like a little flexibility to control things too, though his chances are slim.

They all like the idea of control.

In the end, it will always be a three-way struggle between Scioscia, Dipoto and Moreno, and ultimately that will be the downfall of the working relationship.

But that doesn’t mean the group needs to break up right now, dissipating like a baseball version of Guns and Roses.

There are more important things.

Dipoto has one year left on his contract. Scioscia has until the end of the 2018 season left on his—with some heavy cash to go with it.

The smart move would be to let both continue to attempt rebuilding the squad and act accordingly if failure continues in 2014 like it did in the past—a la Dipoto’s pitching acquisitions not performing well, or Scioscia struggling to manage effectively in one-run and extra-inning games.

If that kind of failure continues, then Moreno can unleash with fury, at the expected times—Dipoto at the end of 2014, followed by Scioscia not long after that.

It doesn’t need to be a surprise every time a move is made. After all, it’s thinking like that on Moreno’s part that originally cut the sails on this ship in the first place.

Mark Trumbo will overshadow Howie Kendrick on the market

I had some original doubt that the Angels would be completely willing to trade Howie Kendrick during the trade deadline. His value—in the clubhouse and on the field—seemed too great of an asset to the team.

Trading him, in my mind, equaled the same kind of sour deal that occurred with Torii Hunter.

Then I heard about the potential, almost-fulfilled, trade between the Los Angeles Dodgers and—well, I threw my doubts out on the 5-Freeway, along with the Angels’ pride, apparently.

Kendrick, almost by some “you tried to send me to the enemy default,” will be traded this winter.

And why not? There aren’t too many scenarios—especially with the teams Kendrick can block in a trade going from 13 to six—where I see the second baseman not gaining interest.

With that interest, there should be a chance for the Angels to pick up talented, young (that’s talented first, young second) arms to add to the pitching staff.

However, I don’t see Kendrick gaining the most interest of all possible trade candidates; that crown goes to Mark Trumbo, who comes with the same high-risk reasoning that got the Angels in trouble these last few years: ditch the small ball, dig the long ball.

Trumbo is certainly a long ball kind of guy. If the 29, 32 and 33 (and counting) home runs he has produced for the team the past three seasons doesn’t tell you that, then the 2012 Home Run Derby display should jog the memory.

The guy can crush a baseball.

The problem is, however, Trumbo’s average has suffered—even by new-aged power-hitter numbers—and his second-half dry spells the past two seasons have not helped the Angels.

Power aside, he is not the type of player that can provide much else. And the Angels have got other players—C.J. Cron and Kole Calhoun—that can fill in with better consistency.

There is also light at the end of the tunnel: Teams in search of a power bat will not care about the batting average. They look at the power potential and that is it.

And Trumbo has definitely got that—not to mention he will be turning 28, while Kendrick will be 30 (turning 31) next season. All of those factors could be enough to land Trumbo on the most-prized trade chip this offseason.

If you go by this next guy’s words of wisdom, it may also help the Angels get back to a winning form of old.

Jered Weaver’s thoughts and advice will impact how the Angels move forward

While there will be plenty of guessing from the talking heads, writers and fans about the Angels’ offseason moves and future, it really comes down to what the players think.

They are the ones in the clubhouse, and on the field, who have the best idea about what needs to be done for the betterment of a team.

Jered Weaver is that guy for the Los Angeles Angels.

If you didn’t get a chance to read the article MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez wrote about Weaver’s thoughts on the Angels’ situation, you are missing what I consider to be a team-changing moment for this franchise.

Or, at least, words from the clubhouse level to management level on how to reconstruct the club.

Weaver made it clear:

I think we changed our approach as far as how Angels baseball [was]. When I first got here, it was doing the little things—stealing bases, first-to-thirds—and we didn’t really sit back and wait for home runs and things like that. I think that now, we have some guys with some sock in the lineup and guys who hit home runs. The lineup is a little different from that regard.

And by different, he didn’t mean bad or good. Mediocre perhaps.

We have a lot of talent in this clubhouse, man; it’s just a matter of time before it starts clicking. I think that the way we used to go about things and the way we go about things now has taken a little bit to get used to. We’ve seen glimpses of us working together and playing well, and there’s obviously been times where it hasn’t worked out and we’ve been struggling. We have to find that happy medium where we’re playing good, consistent baseball.

Remember that goal: a happy medium.

When the seemingly right answer this offseason is to add pitching, then add some more pitching, getting rid of whoever is the man of the day. Remember what Jered Weaver has told us.

Basically, things are not all that bad; they just need a tweak here and there.

They don’t need to be flashy, highly paid or ready for ratings.

It can be as simple as relying on the learning curve of Cole Calhoun, Garrett Richards, J.B. Shuck and Grant Green, while Hamilton and Pujols, C.J. Wilson and Weaver do their thing.

Of course, Trout will do his part.

Will Dane De La Rosa, Ernesto Frieri and Michael Kohn do the same?

Will Sean Burnett?

If they do, then the predicting just got a whole lot easier.

Note: All stats provided were courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise noted.

For more thoughts and opinions from Rick Suter, follow him on Twitter@rick_suter.

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Don’t go reaching for the TV Guide or unloading your remaining Los Angeles Angels tickets to the closest person willing to take them just yet. The final month of the Angels’ season has plenty of opportunity to provide must-see TV, with interesting scenarios, mini drama and difficult decision-making.

You just have to know what is what. Think of it as the final act: the beginning of the end, the end of the end, and the beginning of the new beginning.

It’s all there, wrapped up in one, final month.

Sure, from now until the beginning of October, there will be mostly an abundance of second-guesses and couch coaching/managing towards the Angels; with the payroll, the top-tier talent and the heavily covered hype form the offseason, not making the playoffs—not making the World Series—will sometimes cause that to happen.

But all is not lost, unlike the Anaheim part of the Angels name, apparently. But I will leave that to owner Arte Moreno to decide. There are more important matters to dissect.

Because the team is so far out of the MLB playoff race, they are in a unique—and unwanted—position: They can begin the rebuild for 2014 while 2013 is still two months from completion.

Lucky them.

While most of the position battles will be left to the days of spring training to finalize, all of the current players are being looked at again and again, with the understanding that change is near. (Yep, even Mike Trout, though his scenario weighs more in 2015 and 2106.)

And if playing spoiler is not enough to sway watching your habits during this seemingly never-ending season, well, then here are six things to look for in September.

The final act…

Note: All stats and schedule info was provided courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise noted.

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