Unlike most kids when I was growing up that dreamed of playing for a baseball team I was the kid that dreamed of running a team. I've spent a lifetime playing the "what if" game, formulating trades in my mind, second guessing free agent signings, and wondering what was going on down on the farm. Given a chance to run the Dodgers there are a few things that seem easy to do right away to get better in one way or another and a few more moves that will help, but only in time. The phrase radical reconstruction comes to mind when I think of what I would do with the Dodgers.
With all due respect to Joe Torre, he is not going to make this current roster a winner by the sheer power of his aura. The Dodgers are currently in the thick of the race in the west even though they are under .500 which counts for something in the same way getting the second prize in a beauty contest card counts in Monopoly. It's nice, it just isn't a winner. I would honor the remainder of Joe's contract just to give the team some air of substance and then bid him farewell. My next step would be to move Don Mattingly to the bench coach slot and spend whatever money it takes to lure Rudy Jaramillo to Lala land as the new hitting instructor to help turn the offense around.
The second move is to cut the fat. Andruw Jones hasn't just lost a step, he's lost several. Were it not for the idea of getting nothing in return for the remainder of his contract he would be cut. While he carries some weight based on his reputation I would make a deal in which I'd be willing to absorb up to half his salary to move him for a package of young pitching prospects. Plenty of teams will still gamble on his rebound and the longer you wait on him the more the returns will diminish. This is someting to act fast on. At this point I would almost pull an even up swap for a cup of gatorade with the flavor to be named later.
Nomar Garciaparra and Jeff Kent are contributing, but at 35 and 40 years old respectively they have seen their best days and are earning too much to legitimize their "leadership" role on the team. Leadership is valuable, just not at their pricetag. Derek Lowe is generally stable in the least and eats innings but is also going to have to go as at age 35 he isn't part of the long term solution and hasn't shown any desire to help develop young pitchers making the jump to the big team, something that may have bought him extra time otherwise. Chan Ho Park can stay but only because he is at bargain basement prices in pitching terms.
To insure a stable transition and build for the next seven years, you first have to extend Russel Martin out long term, I would propose somewhere along the lines of an eight year deal with two mutual option years on the back end which kick in performance and appearance based incentives as well as a cost of living increase clause akin to what Dave Winfield received in his record breaking 1981 deeal. Is it a lot? Absolutely, but it is nearly impossinle to find a five tool catcher and he can always grab some innings at first or DH in interleague play to grab a break.
Then I would lock Andre Ethier up in a six year deal. He may never be a superstar but he has good tools and a great upside and moving now will provide long term stability at an affordable price. For veteran presence Juan Pierre can be had at a bargain price and still play regualarly at an above average level.
Kids like Clayton Kershaw, Jonathan Broxton, and Chad Billingsley, need to be locked up on long term deals as well. These are players with the potential to anchor the pitching staff and there is no need to wait for arbitration down the road to hammer out deals to lock them in. With some stability and knowledge they will get a real shot to succeed they should fall into place. This also serves to give kids on the farm a bit more time to develop.
Speaking of the farm it is time to dip in to that resource with some of the dead weight gone. This has two upsides. Since this is an announced rebuilding there is no reason to go crazy on the free agent market, and two there is a chance to see what the organizations prospects can do in the show and at the very least give them a taste of the future. Even at the risk of starting the arbitration clock early it is worth it.
At shortstop I would bring up Luis Maza who is hitting over .400 with no errors at AAA Las Vegas. Maza can swing to second and has just enough arm to play third if necessary as well. He doesn't have prototypical leadoff speed but is a patient disciplined hitter that may thrive in the two hole. Terry Tiffee has been a machine at third for Vegas as well hitting over .390 in nearly 360 at bats with a gaudy .983 OPS this year. Finally I would have to get OF John Ford Griffin in the lineup somehow. He has a .300 plus average, and better power than anyone in the Dodgers minor league system aside from first baseman Jon Lindsey who would be manning that slot for us on opening day in 2009 if I had my way.
To help the pitching staff I would promote Jason Johnson and Dwayne Pollok. At 35 and 27 respectively they aren't helping get the roster younger but they are in the system, affordable, and will buy time for other kids to build up their game in Vegas before being thrown to the wolves in the show. Given the price of starting pitching on the free agent market this is really only a stopgap measure.
While there are going to be some great free agents out there this year Like C.C. Sabbathia, Ben Sheets, Francisco Rodriguez, Bobby Abreu, Hank Blalock, and Mark Texiera, it would nearly take signing each one of them to actually get competitive beyond the western division. Given the price tag each will command on their own pursuing them all would be crazy and the Dodgers might as well re-name them self "Yankees west" to even think about it. The other options on the market are mostly thirty five plus years old and just not worth the money or the risk and would do little more than hold the line. I would hold off on trades this winter unless it was something I could unload some dead weight with or get beyond fair trade on. I'm rebuilding after all, I don't need to deal for the sake of dealing.
To get better I would go younger. Build from within and avoid tossing money at one or two token free agent signings that will make a splash at the expense of denting the checkbook and stunting player development. Chasing hired guns has failed and considering the current payroll not being able to pull ahead in the worst division in baseball is evidence enough something new needs to be tried.
If I were running the Dodgers I might fail, but I wouldn't be doing any worse than the current general manager. We almost certainly wouldn't be in the playoff mix in 2009, but in 2010 I think we would be able to take the division and make an actual showing in the Playoffs then and beyond. I'll trade one down year for a true shot at a four or five year playoff run anyday.