Dodgers Affected by Josh Donaldson Signing with Twins, Says MLB Writer
The Dodgers have officially struck out on all of the major free agents this winter. Serious question — is anyone surprised? The Dodgers have not signed anyone noteworthy that was not their own player under the regime of Andrew Friedman. It has become repetitive. The most recent star to not sign with the Dodgers is new Minnesota Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson.
I’m glad Donaldson did not go to the Braves or Nationals.
— Tim Rogers 2080 ??subscriber: (@TimRogers2080) January 15, 2020
Donaldson is now 34 years old and while it is a fairly smart move to be against signing him to a four-year deal, he is still at the top of his game. He is one of the best defensive third basemen in the game and certainly held his own on the other side of the ball in 2019 with the Atlanta Braves.
In a recent column for MLB.com, Will Leitch identified the Dodgers as one of the teams most impacted by the Dodgers’ non-signing of Josh Donaldson.
Here is the specific excerpt regarding the situation, courtesy of Will Leitch:
So for those of you keeping score at home, the Dodgers — one of baseball’s signature franchises, one with massive financial advantages, a storied history and a fanbase desperate for a World Series title — have now missed out on Gerrit Cole, Anthony Rendon and Donaldson this off-season. And they obviously had some interest in Rendon and Donaldson; they did talk to Justin Turner about moving to first base, after all. The Dodgers’ inability (or lack of desire, take your pick) to bring in a big, outside free agent is becoming one of the more intriguing subplots in the sport, and one that’s going to continue to fester until they nail one down or, you know, win the World Series. Does this make them more likely to push for a Mookie Betts trade? Or a Bryant one? Or do they let ride for another season? That’s not the worst idea, of course: They’re still heavy favorites to win the NL West. But Dodgers fans are losing patience. It’s difficult to blame them.
The Dodgers could be in the business to look into deals with Kris Bryant and the Chicago Cubs or could even place a call or two on Nolan Arenado with the Colorado Rockies, although the latter seems unlikely at this point in time.
The Dodgers could use some right-handed power bat in their lineup and they might not want to wait until the 2020 trade deadline for it.
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No, no one who understands the Dodgers financial strategy is surprised. Signing Donaldson or any of the other super-premium players was never really considered.
But it was good for social media platforms and mainstream sources to fill content!
It was good for giving me and others a platform to take a big dump on Guggenheim. Good times. Next up, the actual game outcomes!
Another nothing burger. Don’t you have some homework to do? We could have used Rendon and can use Bryant or Arebaldo but Donaldson was not worth the price. We already have an older 3rdbaseman. He was like a 1, maybe 2-year addition then what? We need to sign someone that will be worth it for the lomg run.
How patronizing. I think maybe you should do some homework, who’s Arebaldo?
LOL. We do know Nolan Arenado can veto any trade and perhaps only wave his no trade clause to be dealt to Dodgers.
Come on Cato you god dam know who he was talking about don’t put somebody down just because he misspelled a name.
lol as he put someone down. I’m just providing balance, Heiser
Nice to see the Dodgers are doing so much to strengthen their roster after the weakening of the Astros and the Red Sox. It’s great that they have replaced the mature leadership of their best hitter David Freese and their best reliever Russell Martin, not to mention their most consistent starter Hyun Jin Ryu. Nevertheless, it’s hard to understand how they missed signing Jedd Gyorko again when he saved their season last year. Maybe a re-signing of the heroic savior Tyler White is imminent although it’s no doubt after a fierce bidding war.
We would’ve just run into a new AL problem, the Yankees. The timing is never right. Take the year off, avoid embarrassment and come back in 2021
I am not too disappointed because of his age (Donaldson) but it means that Turner has to stay at 3rd, even though Dodgers expressed concern over his declining defensive skills. So the end result is Dodgers will be too LH heavy again with anoticeable weakness from the RH hitter’s box but IIWII. I cannot say Dodgers at this point are any better because of the main topic this page talks about in regards to them striking out on all the FA’s available. As for Arenado, MLBN keeps liking him to going to Cardinals or braves. But doe anyone in the game realize Nolan has A FULL NO TRADE CLAUSE and he does NOT have to agree to a deal to any team. He would most likely wave his no trade clause to be dealt to Dodgers and sooner or later Rockies will have to accept that if they attempt to deal him, he will only perhaps accept a deal to Dodgers. My guess is he would want some additional compensation to consider not opting out after 2121. But if Rockies have so so years in these next 2, he will opt out anyway and can sign with whoever he chooses. .
I was amused that anyone thought the Dodgers were seriously “in on” Donaldson. It would appear that the only player the Dodgers were seriously “in on” was Cole and when that failed, Friedman went on holiday for the rest of the winter. They will make a big push to pry Betts free at the trade deadline and hope that Boston takes a whole bunch of lower prospects in a fire sale. That’s what they did with Machado and Darvish. That’s what they always do. Because the only thing that worries them more than money is “years.” They clearly have “commitment issues.” Of course, Betts could be the spark that leads them to the title. Or he could just be another late season rental (he could him .600 in the playoffs and the Dodgers still won’t resign him because, well, “years.”)
Well, guys, we all know the Dodgers won’t do anything that means Lux and all those prized young players going to the Rockies so let’s resigned ourselves to the fact that 2020 will be another BORING year with another division title and nothing else. Stop going to Dodger games and show management that us the fans are sick of their CHEAP decisions.
If the Dodgers are boring why do you watch or follow them. Makes no sense. Find something else to do.
As you complain on Dodgers Digest just as much as all of us
Winning the division title is certainly no guarantee either. But similar issues Dodgers had the last couple of years remain. Rockies if at all possible will avoid letting Arenado go to Dodgers. But if he opts out after 2021 then it’s fair game. I read where he may approve a trade to Cardinals but WSS. Dodgers will open ST with this current roster as is and they will again be void of any real RH impact bat.
No surprise. The name of the game for owners is young, controllable talent—and the Dodgers have it.
Someone who understands.
Everyone understands that ducky, understanding isn’t the problem people have with it.
Our first pick is a third baseman, and we have a Cuban kid who is supposed to be the next Beltre! Let’s see them in Spring Training soon!
Hopefully he isn’t a criminal like most of the international players the Dodgers get
The cheating will now go away(lets hope) and the Dodger win back to back championships. We will have kris bryant by the trade deadline and advantage dodgers when team play fair. We are coming for you Yankees!!!!
That’s a fantasy if ever I’ve seen one. Manfred showed teams that it’s well worth it to cheat. The Cubs will want several top prospects like teams are asking for right now. It won’t magically change because it’s July. If we played the Yankees we’d lose not just because they’re better but because they are likely cheaters in their own right
What the organization should do is tell the truth; “We are going to continue our unstated policy of not signing big free agents to large contracts. Instead we are going to build from within, using our farm system to fill holes at the major league level. We will also look for rehab projects that we can get cheap and hope they can have a great year. By doing this, we feel we will continue to win the weak western division and stay competitive in the playoffs. If we feel we need an impact player, we will continue to focus on players in their walk years that become available at the trade deadline in July. As we stated before, this approach will keep us competitive while staying below the luxury tax and making millions of dollars for the ownership team.”
At least it would be honest.
Hey Vic. How’s winning the division title 7 straight seasons boring?? The Dodger’s have been “in it” the last 7 years. How many other teams can say that? How many other teams consistently miss the playoffs year after year, let alone get a taste of winning a division, league title or going to the WS. Sure, the Dodgers fell short in ’17, ’18 and I’m guessing if the CHEATING wasn’t going on they would of won at least one of those! But that’s all hearsay, 2020 is upon us and I guarantee they’ll be in the race playoff race again.
Boring. Been there done that it’s not exciting and it means nothing to people in baseball including our players. You can only make it so many times and come up short before you’re a joke in sports. No excuse to not have won in 31 years
Really? You didn’t post my last comment? Why? I didn’t curse, I didn’t call anyone names or say anything offensive. I’ve read posts on this site that have done all of that. I wish I had saved it because I would post it again. Very disappointing.
By design, Stan Kasten has created the Tampa Bay Rays of the west under Andrew Friedman’s direction. After this season, the Dodgers will have only one player (AJ Pollock) with more than one year under contract. Kershaw, Jansen, and Kelly will have one year remaining, and Pollock will have two. There should be no surprise from what happened (or better said, did not happen) this offseason. Friedman is just not signing long term deals. Their bid for Cole was only made for the purpose of escalating the final price paid by the Yankees. That is how Friedman has handled all elite free agent pursuits, where the only objective is to raise the final price another team ultimately pays. There will be no World Series championships in Dodgerland; only division wins and Guggenheim raking in the dough from a lucrative TV contract and the best attendance in baseball.
You guys should spend your money on the Lakers, you won’t feel cheated because they play for Championships!
they better beat the clippers in the playoffs
Thank you.
Let me ask you all this…the very least the Commissioner, who is gutless should do is award those forfeited draft picks from the Astros to the Dodgers for both 2020 and 2021. What do ya think about this here?