Dodgers Rumors: Juan Uribe Reportedly Not Seeking Three-Year Deal

Los Angeles Dodgers GM Ned Colletti spoke yesterday at great length about where things stood with free agent third baseman Juan Uribe. The 34-year-old third baseman redeemed himself in 2013 after two terrible seasons with the Dodgers in 2011 and 2012.

Uribe hit .278 with 12 home runs and 50 RBI and became an older brother figure for outfielder Yasiel Puig. While he rebounded in 2013, the Dodgers aren’t prepared to give him a long-term deal that he reportedly isn’t seeking according to Mark Saxson of ESPNLA.com:

To reiterate, Juan Uribe is not seeking a 3-year deal, a source said. @dodgers either want 1 or $ is holdup

— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) December 8, 2013

Colletti said he and Uribe’s camp have traded offers already in the off-season and he’s waiting to hear back after their latest offer. With Corey Seager likely to make a position change to third base and also possibly be ready in the big leagues in the next year or two, making a long-term commitment to him doesn’t make sense.

If Uribe does move on, the Dodgers could move Hanley Ramirez over to third base or look to the thin third base market. Newly signed infielder Alexander Guerrero is learning second base in winter ball as his natural position is shortstop.

It sounds like a resolution should be reached in the next few days at the winter meetings as the Dodgers would likely like to leave Florida with their third base position settled. With so many holes to fill, Colletti and the Dodgers expect to be busy this week as they look to start building their team for 2014.

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