Interesting rumor caught my eye. Given the time of spring this is unfolding and the nature of the rumor I’d say there’s a decent chance it’s going to happen. The Dodgers are inquiring about the Tiger’s Brandon Inge.
I’ve always liked Inge a little. He’s one of the best fielding thirdbasemen in the AL, but doesn’t always get credit for it — maybe because he used to be a catcher.
But I’d go so far as to say Inge is a wreck at the plate. He strikes out a ton, has a little power, but his career .OBP is .304. That’s just not acceptable. Last year he slugged .376. He’s also vastly overpaid.
What really intrigues me about this possible deal is that the Dodgers have supposed all-world prospect Andy LaRoche waiting in the wings at third. If they deal for Inge I think we can officially say there’s something in LaRoche that’s sending up a red flag for the Dodgers.
I’m not going to sit here and pretend I see something in LaRoche that the Dodgers are missing. But anyone who watched him play in the IBAF World Cup last year would guess he’s major league ready. (Jackson scouted the tournament in person, so maybe he’ll check in here.) He’s got a great eye and is one of those rare threats to touch .400 in the OBP category. He’s just 25, but if he’s a potential all-star (as he’s universally thought to be) why wouldn’t the Dodgers give him a year of development in the starting lineup?
I was surprised when the Dodgers announced LaRoche would compete with Nomar Garciaparra at third. But I’d say even he’d be a better option at third than Inge. Nomar was pretty bad at the plate last year, but is just a year removed from a nice comeback-player-of-the-year season in 2006.
I like a lot of Dodger players and have some sentimental attachments to the team because a lot of my family is originally from the LA area. One of my Dad’s cousins was the mayor of Glendale. I have great memories of my Grandma’s sister, Aunt Rose, listening to Dodger games at age 85 on her little AstroTurf front porch.
But I get a very bad feeling from this team going into 2008. On paper, I think they ought to win the West. They have the deepest starting rotation in baseball and an underrated Top 5 closer in Saito. That said, I can easily see them finishing 4th.
3 responses so far ↓
1 jackson // Mar 3, 2008 at 1:35 am
Laroche looked OK during the last Olympic qualifier matches I saw him in, but he didn’t seem to be quite as MLB ready as Longoria or Colby Rasmus, both of whom should have productive rookie seasons. To be fair, I was watching him against the Cuban team and was so transfixed by seeing Pedro Lazo and Gourriel play that I didn’t truly enjoy all of the splendor of the junior LaRoche’s game.
2 Swi // Mar 3, 2008 at 3:55 pm
I actually saw LaRoche play a lot as a member of the Jacksonville Suns one summer when I was there on business for several months. I looked worth the hype to me. Great eye and bat control. No idea how that might translate into the pro games, but looked good in AA for sure.
3 John Brooks // Mar 4, 2008 at 3:25 am
I dont know about the Dodgers, they like the Giants never seem to amaze me.
Why, they think that Nomar should be handed the third base job is unbelieveable. I don’t know why they think after such a bad year and the fact that Nomar aint get any younger translate into a good season.
Moving onto LaRoche, I can’t see why it hurt to give him the job. He showed what I thought was decent production when he was called up. He got on base well and I don’t really see what is left for him to do in AAA.
Also, I get the feeling and hopefully I’m proven wrong, that the Dodgers will give Nomar the starting job since Torre likes his veteran players.
That said, I can easily see them finishing 4th.
Yeah, I could easily see them finishing 4th also. When you look at it, their lineup isnt really as good as it looks. I mean we already know the story about Juan Pierre, the Dodgers should move Nomar aside for LaRoche, Furcal hasnt impressed me since the Dodgers got him, and Andruw Jones is off of his worst year ever.
Next, Arizona’s pitching staff is loaded(Webb, Haren, Johnson, Davis, and Owings). If I had to predict now, I see Arizona finishing 1st, San Diego 2nd, Los Angeles 3rd, Colorado 4th, and of course the Giants last.
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