Dodgers re-sign Brandon League.

The Dodgers addressed their top in-house priority Tuesday, signing reliever Brandon League to a 3-year contract. According to the AP, the 29-year-old will earn $22.5 million over the life of the deal.

That’s closer-type money. League served as the Dodgers’ closer for the final month of the 2012 season and general manager Ned Colletti said that “we think, after what he did the last two or three weeks in the season, that closing is the role.”

The Dodgers obtained League on July 30 from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for prospects Leon Landry and Logan Bawcom. League, who made $5 million last season, was free to sign with any team in free agency beginning Friday, but wanted to remain close to his San Diego home.

In a nine-year career, League has saved 60 games — 37 for Seattle in 2011. He lost his closer’s job early in the 2012 season and never regained it with the Mariners. But Dodgers coaches Ken Howell and Rick Honeycutt helped correct a mechanical problem that led to instant results. From Sept. 1 on, League was 2-0 with a 0.55 earned-run average and six saves in six opportunities.

More to come.

Trout, Harper win postseason rookie awards.

Mike Trout and Bryce Harper are the American League and National League rookies of the year, respectively, in voting announced Tuesday by the IBWAA.

That stands for Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and, if you haven’t heard of it, you’re not alone. The results are relayed here because several voting members (yours truly included) are also voting members of the BBWAA, whose results are used to determine the “traditional” award winners at the end of each season. So think of this as a possible harbinger of awards to come — the Golden Globes to the BBWAA’s Oscars, if you will.

Trout won the AL award unanimously, followed by A’s outfielder Yoenis Céspedes and Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish. Harper was followed by Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Wade Miley and the Cincinnati Reds’ Todd Frazier.

Poll: Who’s the favorite?

Six days ago, Dodgers center fielder Matt Kemp was asked about his team entering the 2013 season as the favorites in the National League West. His response: “I don’t know if we’ll be named favorites. The Giants made it to the World Series.”

Who’s the favorite to win the National League West in 2013?

Less than a week later, the Giants are world champs after sweeping the Detroit Tigers in four games. San Francisco, like the Dodgers, also has few key free agents hitting the market. Aging second baseman Marco Scutaro is probably the biggest, followed by center fielder Angel Pagan and left-handed reliever Jeremy Affeldt.

So even though it’s early, it’s still worth asking … who is the favorite to win the National League West in 2013? I’ll even throw the Diamondbacks, Padres and Rockies into this poll for the sake of fairness.

There will be a new poll here every day for the next month, so keep coming back. No electoral college here – popular vote wins.


Ten Dodgers become free agents.

The Dodgers declined to exercise the 2013 club options on Todd Coffey, Juan Rivera and Matt Treanor.

They join another seven players who became free agents today: Brandon League, Shane Victorino, Randy Choate, Jamey Wright, Joe Blanton, Adam Kennedy and Bobby Abreu.

In other words, no big names or surprises for the Dodgers on the first day of free agency. Players can only sign with new teams beginning at 9 p.m. Friday. Between now and then, the Dodgers can re-sign any of their in-house free agents, and they’ve already opened discussions with League’s representatives.

General manager Ned Colletti said that he would like to bring back Choate and Wright, as well, to keep intact a bullpen that finished the 2012 season strong.

Coffey, Rivera and Treanor now fall into the category of Victorino, Kennedy and Abreu: highly unlikely to be on the roster next season.

Blanton is an interesting case. The Dodgers gave him what amounted to a 10-start audition in August and September. In five starts at home, the 31-year-old right-hander went 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA. Not bad. In five road starts he was 1-3, 6.51. Bad.

I guess that makes Blanton a “known quantity” for a team that is looking to add a starting pitcher. But looking at a free-agent market that now includes Zack Greinke, Anibal Sanchez, Ryan Dempster, Kyle Lohse  and Hiroki Kuroda (another “known quantity”), the Dodgers probably figure they can do better.

The hot stove is just warming up.

Andre Ethier, Clayton Kershaw, Adrian Gonzalez named Gold Glove Award finalists.

Dodgers right fielder Andre Ethier and pitcher Clayton Kershaw were named finalists for National League Gold Glove Awards at their respective positions Monday.

Ethier ranked second among National League right fielders with a .988 fielding percentage, committing just three errors in 146 games (142 starts) in right field this season. His streak of 282 games (276 starts) from July 10, 2010-July 25, 2012 without an error was the second-longest active run among non-pitchers in baseball behind only Franklin Gutierrez and the second-longest errorless run by a Dodger outfielder behind only Brett Butler’s 306-game run from 1992-94.

Clayton KershawKershaw completed his second consecutive errorless season and has not committed an error since Aug. 1, 2010 — a span of 76 games. At 24, he led the Majors with 11 pickoffs and has either led or tied for the National League lead in pickoffs in each of the last three seasons.

Both players won the award for the first time last season. So did Matt Kemp, who won’t get a chance to defend his award after a defensively stout but injury-riddled 2012 campaign.

Adrian Gonzalez will get a chance to defend his Gold Glove from last season — in the American League. He made just three errors at first base with Boston before being traded to Los Angeles, and is one of three finalists in the AL (along with Eric Hosmer and Mark Teixeira). Gonzalez also won a pair of Gold Gloves in the NL while playing for the Padres in 2008 and 2009.

Gold Glove winners will be unveiled Nov. 9. Here’s the complete list of nominees from both leagues:

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