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Losing two out of three in Denver after winning four in a row has left the Los Angeles Dodgers in disbelief and dismay. Starting pitcher Ted Lilly appeared to have been shaken by recently being placed on waivers, and Sunday’s game may have been a clear foreshadowing for upcoming events.

Virtually all players on the Dodgers‘ roster set to be free agents next season have been placed on waivers. The benefit to the process for a team on the bubble is flexibility as it pertains to the remainder of this season and the upcoming offseason. 

Los Angeles can sit on the fence with their soon-to-be free agents, feeling out the rest of the league to discover interest in their players. The Dodgers will enter the offseason in uncertainty over a possible lack of funds. 

Had the current team been able to gain significant ground on Wild Card teams ahead of them, the Dodgers may have elected to hold onto their key players down the stretch. However, the Dodgers have fallen further down in the standings since losing back-to-back games against the team directly in front of them, the Colorado Rockies.

As of Sunday, the Dodgers are six and a half games behind the Wild Card leading Philadelphia Phillies. While L.A. continues to struggle, they have already begun to cut their losses. Manny Ramirez is officially on his way to the Chicago White Sox, and the Dodgers didn’t receive a player in return. Following the White Sox claiming him on Friday, the Dodgers shipped him to Chicago on Sunday. The White Sox will assume the remainder of Manny’s contract, something to the tune of $4.5 million.

With Ramirez officially off the roster, the remainder of Dodgers’ outfielders have become slightly more stable on the roster but could still be moved.

Scott Podsednik‘s future may also be determined in the next few days. His contract has an option for next season, valued a little over $1 million. His recent increase in quality of play may be attractive for playoff teams looking for base-runners at the top of the line-up.

In just about a month with the Dodgers, Ted Lilly has gone 5-1 with a stingy ERA, but he may be the next one out. Several teams have inquired about his services, and Los Angeles appears to be giving up on this season and looking forward to next year.

If a team claims Lilly, a deal may be in place, pending the results of the Dodgers’ upcoming series against the Phillies at Chavez Ravine.

By Wednesday or Thursday, fans should have a better look at the near future. Monday will mark the beginning of a very short trial period for the Dodgers, and the outcome will not only determine where the Dodgers finish the 2010 season but likely who the Dodgers will finish the 2010 season with. The “Boys in Blue” will have their hands full with the Phillies, as they will have to tango with Roy Halladay on Monday and Roy Oswalt on Wednesday.

The series begins Monday at 7 pm PST, with Hiroki Kuroda, also placed on waivers, squaring off against Roy Halladay.

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According to a source monitoring the waiver wire, the Chicago White Sox have been awarded the claim on Manny Ramirez today.

It was reported that no National League team put a claim on Ramirez, but two American League teams did outside of the White Sox. Since the White Sox won the claim, the other two teams must have had better records than the Sox, so one would imagine the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers were the other two teams to put in a claim.

Now the White Sox have until Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. ET to complete a trade. The Dodgers remain just five games out of the NL wild-card race, so they will most likely not have this as their first priority.

Ramirez’s no-trade clause is the other obstacle, as he has to approve any deal.

The Dodgers can either pull back Ramirez, keeping him and working out a trade with the White Sox, or simply let him go to Chicago via the waiver claim. If the Dodgers worked out a trade, they would most likely have to pay for some of Ramirez’s contract, but if they let Ramirez go via the waiver claim, the White Sox are responsible for the rest of Ramirez’s contract.

White Sox will have to pay $1.1 million to Ramirez this year and about $3.3 million at a later date.

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Manny Ramirez and his 20-year-old bat have been placed on waivers…now what?

According to sources close to the Dodgers, the veteran slugger has been placed on waivers for the Los Angeles Dodgers to work out a trade (if he is claimed, that is). 

If you are unfamiliar with waivers, let’s see how it works:

Any player can be put on waivers by his team, and the player does not need to be informed.

Other teams have the chance to make a claim on the player during a 47 hour window.

If the player is claimed, the team that placed him on waivers has the option of pulling him back.  If the team pulls him back they can’t trade him for 30 days.

If his team decides not to pull him back:

Option 1:  His team can work out a trade with the team that claimed him.  Any player involved in the trade who is on a 40 man roster must go through waivers first.

Option 2:  His team can just dump him and his salary on the team that claimed him, getting no player in return.

Option 3:  No one claims him, and his team is free to trade him to any team.

If more than one team places a claim on a player, the winning claim is awarded based on worst record or the league the claiming team is in.

Manny is available to all MLB teams and is to be claimed by Friday, and if the Dodgers do not want to send him away, they can pull him back. If and when Manny is claimed, the Dodgers have until Tuesday to work out a trade with the club that claimed him. If a club does claim Manny, they would have to pay a fourth of the $20 million he signed for, plus some $3 million deferred.

This means that the Pirates would get first grabs at Manny, and so on until you ended at the Padres, then the claim would be passed on to the American League where several teams like the White Sox and Rangers have expressed interest. It all comes down to Manny’s option to express his no-trade clause. He has the option to block out a claim and request to stay in Dodger blue.

Since Manny was suspended, his power numbers have been down, but his contact numbers including average have stayed normal. Manny is the kind of player you wold love to have, especially an AL contender looking for an addition to the DH spot. Manny does however become a free agent after this season, so he is trying to impress and breakout to get other teams knocking on his door and pick up his bat.

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As reported earlier, the Dodgers placed five players on waivers before finishing a sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday. However, the moves on the roster should not be taken as an act of desperation to possibly make the playoffs this season.

The Dodgers are most likely preparing for next season by placing Manny Ramirez, Casey Blake, Scott Podsednik, Hiroki Kuroda, and Jay Gibbons on waivers. Many analysts are speculating the Boys in Blue are preparing to have extra funds next season by cutting a little payroll with aging players. 

Manny Ramirez will clearly be in a Designated Hitter role by next season, if not sooner. There is a possibility that the Dodgers would allow another team to claim him and take over his salary straight across. The Chicago White Sox have been the clear front-runner for his services, and no other National League team has claimed him. 

If another team claims Ramirez, the Dodgers and the team taking him have the option of the new team completely taking over his contract. The differed money owed to the aging slugger would no longer need to be factored in next season.

Casey Blake has been a productive bat in L.A.’s line-up this season, but there is a strong free agent market approaching at third base following the conclusion of the 2010 season. With Rafael Furcal possibly returning to the Dodgers before the end of the season, and the rosters expanding September 1, there is a potential to trade Blake and find a cheaper “patch” solution to fill in until the offseason. Ronnie Belliard is also available to play third base, and he has shown some production in limited at-bats. 

Also, the Dodgers have too many outfielders with Manny still around. Podsednik was likely placed on waivers, ironically, due to his recent production. The Dodgers still have Reed Johnson as their fourth outfielder should Podsednik go and Manny stays. If both Podsednik and Ramirez found new teams before the end of the season, Xavier Paul could fill in starting in September.

Hiroki Kuroda is an attractive option for bubble teams needing to firm up their rotation down the home stretch. However, it would likely take a starter in return to get Kuroda. A theory might be the resurgence and call-up of John Ely to fill the rotation should Kuroda get dealt. Kuroda is the highest paid pitcher on the Dodgers’ roster, and clearing out his contract will provide flexibility for the Dodgers when attempting to acquire a front-of-the-rotation starter in the offseason.

Gibbons was placed on waivers for the same reason Podsednik hit the wires. If one outfielder is dealt, most likely the rest will be pulled back off waivers, regardless of which teams claim them and what they have to offer. Placing several outfielders on waivers provides flexibility and stability during negotiations.

With Manny no longer on the roster, and Kuroda possibly being moved, the Dodgers would have significant payroll for their primary targets in 2011: A power bat and a frontline starting pitcher. 

The waiver picture will become much clearer for the Dodgers and fans on Tuesday, when the waiver period ends for these players and negotiations with teams begin. 

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Folks across Dodgertown who don’t quite understand the waiver wire process were buzzing with concern on Wednesday after learning that the Dodgers were gearing up for a potential fire sale by placing a total of five players on waivers.

In addition to workhorse pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, outfielder Manny Ramirez finally hit waivers as expected, and veterans Scott Podsednik, Casey Blake, and Jay Gibbons were also waived later in the afternoon, according to Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times.

For non-playoff contending squads, many players are waived the week before rosters expand on September 1, as teams look to possibly cut salary, gain prospects, and prepare to build their rosters and budgets heading into next season.

However, at the beginning of the day on Thursday, the Dodgers find themselves trailing only 5.5 games in the National League Wild Card race, and with 35 games still remaining to be played, the front office in Los Angeles is left wondering whether a playoff shot is realistic.

Teams around the league have until the end of the week to make potential claims, after which deals would need to be agreed upon by Tuesday afternoon to complete any transaction.

If by some chance Los Angeles climbs even further into contention by the beginning of next week, the Dodgers have the right to rescind the waivers, and retain all the players mentioned above, even if they are already claimed by another team.

Los Angeles has been busy talking to the Chicago White Sox about possible trade scenarios, and according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Ramirez has already told friends that he would waive his no-trade clause and approve a deal sending him to Chicago.

Nevertheless, since Manny’s return from the disabled list last Saturday, the Dodgers have seen a spark in their offense, which has been almost dormant since the All-Star break.

In the three games that Ramirez has been in the lineup since being recalled, Los Angeles has scored 18 runs, including seven home runs—a resurgence of power that has been lacking since the first month of the season.

Kuroda is in the final season of a three-year deal worth over $35 million, while Blake still has one additional year remaining on his three-year, $17 million contract with a club option for 2012.

Podsednik’s contract is valued at $1.75 million this year with an option for 2011, while Gibbons’ contract is setup only for the remainder of this season after being bought from Triple-A Albuquerque.

After finishing a series with the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday afternoon, the Dodgers will travel to Coors Field for a three-game set with the Colorado Rockies beginning Friday, then return to Dodger Stadium for a series with the defending National League champion Philadelphia Phillies on Monday.

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During Wednesday night’s Texas Rangers-Minnesota Twins game, the ever woeful and insufferable ESPN announcer Rick Suttcliffe was posed a question by his partner in the booth Dave O’Brien regarding Manny Ramirez, who was placed on waivers by the Los Angeles Dodgers this week. He basically said he didn’t care for him. He thinks he would be a cancerous pick-up and also believes he has nothing left in the tank.

Sutcliffe, as usual, is full of baloney. Yes, Ramirez has his problems. He’s gained a pretty poor reputation, with antics that have sometimes been hilarious and sometimes very serious and detrimental to the team. His attitude on the field and through the media, which fueled his departure from the Boston Red Sox, was as bad as it gets.

Some believe that he has now worn out his welcome in Los Angeles, too. I just think the team, 12 games out in the National League West, has become a seller and wants to get value in return for Ramirez, whose contract runs out after the year.

With that said, he may have rubbed some of his teammates the wrong way in Los Angeles, as he did in Boston, but the guy is a future Hall of Famer. He is, in my opinion, one of the five purest hitters in baseball history. And he can still hit. Ramirez, 38, is batting .313 with eight homers and 40 RBI during a 2010 season that has been shortened by three disabled list stints.

The Chicago White Sox want his bat, and they may get the chance to bring him to the South side. They claimed him and are reportedly in the works of hammering out a deal with the Dodgers, according to the Chicago Sun Times. This is a very intelligent move by Chicago, a team that is currently 3 1/2 games behind the Twins.

Ramirez would have to approve a trade, considering he has a no-trade clause, but he reportedly told his friends he would be willing to go to Chicago. If all goes as planned, the White Sox would get a powerful hitter who could sway the division into their direction, and Ramirez would get out of Los Angeles and join in on the pennant race fun.

Ramirez is unpredictable, injury-prone, a nuisance, old, and doesn’t hustle all the time. Still, it’s Manny Ramirez, a 17-year veteran with 2,500-plus hits, 550-plus homers, and, among other otherworldly statistics, a .313 career average. I’m sure the White Sox would gladly take the baggage that may still be attached if Ramirez produces like he’s still capable of.

Carlos Quentin and Andruw Jones, a duo that has seen action both in the outfield and as the designated hitter, have 41 homers combined but are hitting just .222. The two deserve time down the stretch despite their dreadful average, but Ramirez would seemingly be an upgrade over both.

Alex Rios is their center fielder and Juan Pierre holds down right field. Chicago wouldn’t bring Ramirez over to platoon, nor would he agree to. Given his erratic outfield play throughout his career, the White Sox would ideally plug him in as their designated hitter and let Quentin and Jones rotate in and out in left.

This is the perfect kind of team for Ramirez, too. He was a lovable character in Boston until it turned ugly. He was just one of the Kevin Millar-proclaimed “Idiots” that always had an enthusiastic attitude, though he would get lackadaisical and more than occasionally drift in and out of his own little world.

The White Sox have some oddballs on their team already, none bigger than manager Ozzie Guillen. Oh what a pair Ramirez and Guillen would make! A match made in baseball heaven.

It looks like it might happen, too. Aside from the Padres, none of the National League contenders need a bat; and I don’t think San Diego would want to bring someone with Ramirez’s background in and have his aged legs play the outfield down the stretch.

The San Francisco Giants already have six quality outfielders and certainly don’t have room for another.

Boston won’t go down that road again, and even if they tried, Ramirez would probably pull a Johnny Damon and decide not to return.

New York’s General Manager Brian Cashman has said his team plans to stand pat.

The Rays could be interested, but they may have other plans.

And the Twins already have Jim Thome, who is still very serviceable despite being one a member of baseball’s version of AARP.

With that said, best of luck to the White Sox. If Ramirez is happy, hustles, and gets along with Guillen (which shouldn’t be too hard) and the rest of the team, this could be a steal for Chicago. And I believe it will. Ramirez may have more negatives than positives, but his positives outweigh them. He’s a risk worth taking, a risk that could propel the White Sox into the playoffs.

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So Manny Ramirez is now on the waiver wire and in all likelihood, he’s packing up shop and headed to Chicago to join the White Sox.

Chicago is trying to make a push for the playoffs and hope that Manny is the piece that puts them over the top. Of course, they are insane and misguided, but that’s what they believe.

This is going to end badly, and here’s the best 10 (because there are a million) reasons why Manny Ramirez will kill the White Sox slim playoff hopes.

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Will “MannyWood” be moving to a new address soon? Well, it seems so, and there’s a very good chance that new address will be 333 West 35th Street by next Tuesday, if all goes as planned.

That’s because the Dodgers officially placed Ramirez on waivers today, and assuming all 15 National League clubs pass on claiming Ramirez, the White Sox will have the first shot at him among American League teams, since they have the worst record of the contenders.

Odds are very favorable that will happen, since Ramirez is a liability defensively, and he would be much better suited as a DH in the AL.

Plus, why would a non-contending team claim him? They would not. So, the only reason another AL team besides the White Sox would claim Manny Ramirez would be as a favor to the Twins and that would be looked at very skeptically by MLB, I am certain.

Look, it’s certainly no secret that Sox GM Kenny Williams wants Manny. And, a claim by the Sox makes all the sense in the world for them.

From a financial standpoint, Manny is a relative bargain.

MLBTradeRumors.com, in their announcement of the Ramirez waiver, states that “As ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reported earlier in the week, about three quarters of Ramirez’s salary is deferred. That means he makes just $1.1MM between now and the end of the season despite his hefty $20MM salary. Ramirez earns the remaining $3.4MM in deferred payments, which would presumably make his salary easier to absorb.”

Meanwhile, the Pale Hose have no regular DH, and they could use a lefty slugger more than a right-handed one. They struck out on Adam Dunn, and Ramirez would be useful for his hitting prowess and playoff resume.

Plus, they would have no contractual obligations to Ramirez beyond this season, which makes this just the kind of bold and cost-effective move that Williams is known for.

If the Sox, or another team does decide to claim him, they must do so by Friday, and then they would have until Tuesday to work out a trade for the slugger.

Alternatively, LA could pull him off of waivers, which is unlikely, or they could even offer him to the claiming team for free, like the Jays did last year when the White Sox acquired Alex Rios.

What’s not to like about Manny? Well, his numbers this year are down slightly from his career averages, and there is always the specter of steroids and bizarre behavior surrounding him.

But his OBP is near .400 and he is hitting right-handers much better than lefties.

Claiming him would be a solid move for the Sox, and a trade that makes sense for the Dodgers, who are going nowhere this season.

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Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Manny Ramirez has been talked about being put on waivers that would probably send the veteran to a playoff contending team. He does have a full no trade clause that can prevent him from being on waivers and being traded.

The Dodgers are 8.0 games back of 1st place in the National League West, and the Wild Card is full of other tough teams to beat. The chance of reaching the postseason for the team seems unlikely. 

Ramirez, 38, was injured this year after playing 62 games, hitting .312 but with just 8 home runs. He has been activated from the Disabled List Sunday, allowing him to be traded now by the August 31st waiver deadline. 

He only has $1.1 million left on his contract.

Possible teams that could land Manny include the Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, and the Texas Rangers. 

The White Sox could use him as a Designated Hitter, and he could happen to be a bargain because Chicago plays at U.S. Cellular Field, where balls fly everywhere.

The Tampa Bay Rays could use him as an extra power hitter along with Carlos Pena to lead themselves over the already powerful New York Yankees. 

The Texas Rangers always look for another player no matter what. It looks like they are going all-in this season.

The only problem with either of these teams is that they are all American League teams, and all 15 other National League teams would have to let Ramirez slide for a deal to get done.

A player must be on the 25-man roster on August 31st to be eligible for the playoffs.

Therefore, if Manny’s going anywhere, it’s going to happen soon.

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Manny Ramirez‘s days with the Los Angeles Dodgers seem to be coming to an end, as the general consensus around baseball is that he will end up on waivers early this week. 

Monday was the first opportunity the Dodgers had to put Ramirez on waivers because it was the first business day after Ramirez came off the disabled list, but they are not expected to do so.

According to baseball sources, the only thing that will come in the way of Ramirez being on a different team before Aug. 31, the deadline for playoff roster eligibility, is his no-trade clause. 

Ramirez’s contract is not as bad as one would think for teams pondering the need for a DH. 

Any team that makes a move for Ramirez would owe a portion of his $20 million salary that is divided. What makes Ramirez’s contract affordable is the fact three-fourths of the salary is deferred.

Playoff contenders like the Chicago White Sox, who are getting no production at DH with Mark Kotsay or Andruw Jones, or a team like the Tampa Bay Rays, who don’t have a solid DH, would have to pay Ramirez $1.1 million for the rest of this season and around $3.3 million in deferred salary.

It all comes down to Ramirez waiving his no-trade clause. He can use his no-trade clause to reject any waiver move or trade to any team. He also could even ask for money just to waive his no-trade clause.

If Ramirez were claimed by another team via waivers and he proceeded to veto it, then the Dodgers would have to remove him from waivers. They would be unable to trade him for the remainder of the season as well.

Not a bad idea for a rival of a possible playoff team to do, solely to keep Ramirez away from another team. If you’re out of the race, why not claim Ramirez off waivers, knowing he’ll reject it, and keep him away from a contending rival?

Dirty, yes. Hilarious also.

No one knows what you’d get out of Ramirez, however. He has missed 59 games this season due to injury and just came off the disabled list for a calf strain.

On the other side of that, Ramirez does become a free agent after this season, and if he would like to get paid again, he may suddenly have a breakout last month of the season.

Ramirez is a huge risk, but he’s an improvement for a couple American League playoff contenders—when he decides to play.

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