Colletti says Penny could return as reliever
Although Joe Torre probably was right in his assessment that there isn't enough time left in the season for Brad Penny to do what he would have to do to get himself ready to return to the Dodgers' starting rotation, general manager Ned Colletti said this morning that he hasn't given up on getting Penny back this season and that his return could come out of the bullpen, something that wouldn't require nearly as much rehab time.
``We could get him back in the bullpen, too,'' Colletti said. ``Who knows? Even if it does take that long to rehab, if we can get him healthy ... I don't know if we have enough (information) right now to be saying anything (definitive).''
Colletti declined to address the issue of whether Penny's health concerns will impact the club's decision to exercise or decline the $9.25 million option for 2009 on Penny's contract. The option carries a $2 million buyout. Penny has made just 17 starts this season, 15 of which came before he went on the DL the first time back in June.
Presumably, even if the Dodgers decline Penny's option, they still would be willing to re-sign him as a free agent.
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About Inside the Dodgers
Tony Jackson has covered the Dodgers for
the Daily News since 2004 and has covered Major League Baseball on a
regular basis since 1995. He previously covered the Colorado Rockies
and Cincinnati Reds. He is a native of Springdale, Ark., and a graduate
of the University of Arkansas.
Hopefully Ned gets fired before he can resign Penny. Why is resigning him even being discussed. Drop his option and let some other poor team deal with his weight, lack of condition which leads to injuries and of course his usual second half implosion.
Are the dodgers are really that down on Penny? It just seems that $9.25 million isn't that much for a pitcher, even if there are real health concerns.
If he almost definitely needs surgery which would put him out for a year, then I can see declining the option.
So based on the MRI and your reporting I have to conclude that it is more than likely he's going to have to have major surgery to clean out the scar tissue from his shoulder. In my uninformed opinion I think Brad should try to get his shoulder cleaned up a.s.a.p. because the dodgers have enough pitching to get by without him pushing back his surgery date to try to help the club as a reliever.
Best of luck to Brad, his shoulder, arm, and his next contract.
If McDonald pitches well today for Vegas, he'll probably debut next Saturday. Just a hunch.