Penny's option declined, Maddux wins 18th Gold Glove
And there is a good chance neither one of these guys will be with the Dodgers next season. The Penny news isn't much of a surprise given that he was injured most of the season and was due to receive $9.25 million next year (buyout is $2 million). Haven't spoken with Colletti yet, so not sure of the Dodgers' willingness to re-sign him as a free agent. But I know Brad didn't exactly endear himself to anyone by not sticking around for the playoffs. He was on the DL and had been granted permission to leave, but from what I understand, the fact he asked for such permission is what didn't sit well. ... And Greg Maddux, who is also a free agent and might retire, won his 18th Gold Glove today, the most all-time by any player at any position. He actually set that record by winning it LAST year with San Diego. Prior to that, he had been tied with 3B Brooks Robinson and pitcher Jim Kaat for the most with 16. No other Dodgers player was named to the N.L. Gold Glove team.
Granted, this gives them another $7 million to work with, but it seems like they're giving up on Penny after one bad season due to injury, and it's hard to get a veteran pitcher for that kind of money. Either there's something we don't know about his injury or else they're ready to come out throwing money at Sabathia. I can't see them spending too much on Sheets and his injury history after paying Schmidt for two seasons to sit on the DL.
So right now we're looking at a rotation of:
Billingsley
Kuroda
Kershaw
Schmidt(?)
McDonald/Elbert
Bills has the talent, but hasn't shown he has the mental toughness of an ace yet. Kershaw's not Koufax yet. This could work if they overspend to get Sabathia. Randy Johnson might be another possibility if Schmidt's injury reoccurs or McDonald shows he's not ready yet. I would have kept Penny personally, so I hope they know what they're doing.
If Kershaw's expected to be Koufax by age 21, or even ever, then I think perhaps some are setting hopes a bit higher than is humanly possible for him to reach. I'd be happy if he just improves a bit more next season. Again, he's only gonna be 21! Bills will be solid - just because he was bad in the LCS doesn't mean he's not an ace. By all statistical definitions and talent-wise, I think most clubs would consider him an ace. Kuroda was very solid. McDonald will be up and down as he officially starts his career but sure looked good in the playoffs. Schmidt, who knows, though at this point the prognosis for him is actually slightly better than it is for Penny, so why keep both of them around? Obviously we can't get our hopes up too high though, so one more solid starter would be good. If they can't afford Sabathia, then there are other options. Penny just burned his bridges between his attitude, his weight fluctuation and his health -- while I once thought picking up his option was a no brainer I now think not picking it up was a no-brainer, especially since they need whatever money they can get.