Abreu will have surgery, Furcal won't
Tony Abreu will undergo surgery tomorrow to repair a sports hernia. He is expected to be fully healed in six to eight weeks and then resume his normal offseason conditioning, which should leave him fully ready to go by the start of spring training. ... The MRI on Furcal's left ankle showed nothing serious, he won't need surgery, and he is expected to be at full strength by the start of spring training after resting and rehabbing during the winter. ... The day off was great, but the hot stove has now been lit
Tony Jackson is in his fourth season covering the Dodgers for the 
Comments
In the previous thread Marcel stated the following:
"If Andruw Jones signs here (big if), it will be to play CF. Guaranteed.
LF Pierre
CF Jones
RF Kemp
Ethier then becomes trade bait."
I agree that any such signing is a "big if". However, I personally would be opposed to such a signing if it became possible. In fact, I think the Dodgers should avoid trying to sign a high priced free agent outfielder, be it Jones or Torii Hunter.
Having seen him hit (admittedly only a small sample) I would be willing to roll the dice and play Delwyn Young everyday in left field. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if he outhit Jones next year. Defensively he would not be Jones, but I suspect he would be at least adequate. The rest of my outfield would consist of Kemp in center (which could be an adventure), and Ethier in right.
For me, the trade bait is Pierre. I think their might be some interest in a .290 to .300 hitter, who stole 60 bases. And as I've stated in the past, if another team was willing to pick up the lions share of the remaining four years on his contract, I would be willing to trade him for a bag of balls.
I would also be willing to give LaRoche a shot of taking over third base. It appears to me that he has a quick, short, compact stroke, and simply needs regular playing time to get comfortable. He's struggled at times in the minors, and always came out of it. No reason to think he won't at the big league level also. That said, there are still questions, and the protruding disk in his back is a concern.
Of course, if someone like Arod became available to the Dodgers, I would sign him in a flash, and wouldn't worry about the cost. A player like Arod would generate more than enough income via increased attendance, merchandising, etc., not to mention potential postseason revenue.
In general I would like to see the Dodgers truly commit to their young players. In the words of Ross Newhan, "...forget this semi-youth movement and officially make it full-fledged." It's worked for Colorado and Arizona, and I see no reason it can't for the Dodgers. Yes, it involves risks, but ones well worth taking.
Posted by: Brooklyn Dodger | October 2, 2007 4:25 PM
Juan Pierre is completely and utterly untradable
Posted by: The_Great_Arcade_Fire | October 3, 2007 1:31 PM