The Trolley Dodger

Nothing like some extra drama in the form of undone deals and rumors to stoke the Hot Stove League during the cold winter months. Phil Rogers in the Chicago Tribune talks about a trippy one involving the Cubs and everybody’s favorite prodigal outfielder:

A rumor circulated before the Cubs announced their baseball-only deal with Jeff Samardzija on Friday. It had the Cubs spending heavily on a surprise center fielder—J.D. Drew.

It doesn’t seem there was anything to it, although you wonder how much longer it will be before some open contentiousness rears its head between Drew and the Boston Red Sox. Ditto Barry Bonds and the San Francisco Giants.

What’s interesting is Rogers’ main point, in the title: “Bonds’, Drew’s deals dangerous”, and it’s all to do with labor relations, which were seemingly on track with the new collective bargain agreement last year. If Bonds and Drew aren’t signed, and soon, there is potential for a big, ugly fight between the league and union.

Is it likely, though? Probably not. No one, except maybe the lawyers, want a big labor brouhaha on top of the drug situation.

Besides, it’ll all be moot when Barry gets indicted for perjury later this year, deal or no deal. ;)

Times reporter Steve Henson has an article up with the names of a few non-roster spring training invites for the Dodgers, including prospect Scott Elbert.

Elbert, a left-hander, was a first-round pick in 2004 who has climbed steadily through the farm system and could be ready for the major leagues by midseason. Elbert split last season between Class-A Vero Beach and double-A Jacksonville, striking out 173 and giving up 97 hits in 146 innings.

Also invited to spring training are reliever Jonathan Meloan, infielders Tony Abreu and Chin-Lung Hu, and catcher A.J. Ellis.

Mark Alexander was not, however, which is odd:

One surprise was that reliever Mark Alexander, who has 50 saves the last two seasons at Vero Beach, Jacksonville and triple-A Las Vegas, was not invited to camp.

He wasn’t mentioned in today’s winter league update on Dodgers.com, “Kemp cleans up late in Dominican” — an oddity more than made up for by the good news on one Dodger outfielder:

It’s been a long year for Matt Kemp, but he’s ending it on a high note.

The 22-year-old outfielder combined for 10 homers and 70 RBIs at the top two Minor League levels and added seven homers and 23 RBIs with the Los Angeles Dodgers. After a rough Dominican Winter League regular season, Kemp drove in nine runs in 17 playoff games for Tigres Del Licey.

I was beginning to worry a bit with the reports coming out of the Dominican.

Mark Alexander was playing in the Dominican league as well, but more recently with Aguilas del Zulia in Venezuela, where he went 0-1 in 5 games with a 4.76 ERA in 5.2 innings, giving up 6 hits, 6 runs (3 earned), and 7 walks, with 2 strikeouts.

Gotta love Russell Martin’s description of the four-homer game last year. It’s in a canoe.ca article of quotes from the recent Baseball Canada fund raiser and banquet.

Now granted, it starts out pretty pedestrian, but dig that last sentence.

We were down four runs in the bottom of the ninth. Jeff Kent led off with a home run. We were pretty excited in the dugout. Then, J.D. Drew homered and we’re thinking can we finally beat San Diego, they’d been tough on us all year. Then, they brought in Trevor Hoffman. I’m thinking if we can get one more we’re in business. I hit a first-pitch fastball — a fastball is not his best pitch. And then Marlon Anderson homered to tie it. Four in a row. Nomar Garciaparra stuck a dagger in their hearts with a homer in the 10th.

Just about literary. :)

Eric Gagne received a special achievement award at the event, which I will assume is for either charity work or making money, since he didn’t achieve much else than that the past year or two. ;) Here’s a quote from him:

After two frustrating years my back and my arm are back where I want them to be. I’m hoping Paul Quantrill will get back in uniform. I’d watch him when he was with us with the Dodgers and I had no idea how guys can’t hit him, I mean I know I can hit him, but when we were in L.A. had had a heck of a year.

And what has fellow former Dodger Quantrill been up to lately?

What am I doing now? I’m driving my son to hockey practice. Will I coach with the national team? Well I taught Gagne to pitch and drink, maybe I could help out.

Those wacky Canucks.

The Denver Post seems to think the Dodgers are working on signing former Rockies closer Chin-Hui Tsao, as they mention in this story, Holliday’s salary soars in 2007.

On a day when former closer Chin-Hui Tsao moved closer to signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Holliday became the Rockies’ second-highest-paid player after making the National League all-star team and winning the Silver Slugger award last season.[...]

Tsao, once the Rockies’ future ace, was taken off the 40-man roster this winter after struggling to recover from shoulder and biceps tendon surgery. Nine teams have pursued the right- hander, whose deal with the Dodgers could be official soon.

He’s 25 years old, made $332,000 in 2006, and seems like he would be one of those potential low-risk, high-reward type of players.

Update

Pending visa and physical, this signing is official.

Tony Jackson in the Daily News reports at the end of “Dodgers likely to stand pat” that the Dodgers and noted glass-juggler Joe Beimel have exchanged little pieces of paper with extraordinarily large and significantly different numbers on them.

Beimel, who damaged the Dodgers first-round playoff chances after cutting his hand in a New York bar, is seeking $1.25 million. The club is offering $912,500.

Most cases settle at the midpoint, but if this one goes to an arbitrator, it will be interesting to see how the Dodgers use that incident in their defense.

The midpoint would be $1,081,250. Perhaps that $250 could be used to train Joe to grab falling objects with his non-throwing hand. ;)

Arbitration hearings take place during the first two weeks of February.

We kid because we love — and we would love to see our primary lefty reliever available in the bullpen in the playoffs.

First up, Eric Justic at MLB.com has an article catching us up on how various folks are doing in their winter ball efforts, “Dodgers contributing in winter playoffs”:

Several Dodgers players have extended their winter-ball seasons with postseason play in the Venezuelan, Dominican and Mexican leagues. Matt Kemp is racking up RBIs, Oscar Robles is wielding a hot bat and Jonathan Figueroa is shutting down hitters.

Then you should head over to Sons of Steve Garvey and enter the Olmedo Saenz Pavilion Deadpool.

Following the tradition of the late Think Blue rewards program, how long will the latest creation of Drew McCourt, Director of Marketing for the Los Angeles Dodgers, last?

Enter your guess (month and day) in the comments section and we’ll keep a running tab. Winner is the closest to the date of officially announced death, regardless of over/under.

I voted for the end of the season.

Thanks go out to the Sons of Steve Garvey blog for clueing us in on the true upside to the Beckham signing.

Of course, with that picture news, no one’s going to notice their post from earlier today about the Sons and Trolley Dodger both getting quoted on ESPN.com.

And how funny: it’s a story about Barry Bonds. Of course, it wasn’t likely going to be the Damian Jackson bombshell, now was it? ;)

Bill Shaikin over at the Times has the word on six players being invited to spring training by the Dodgers.

Veteran utility player Damian Jackson is one of six non-roster invitees signed by the Dodgers, a number that could grow before pitchers and catchers report to Vero Beach, Fla., on Feb. 16.

Jackson, 33, a .243 hitter in 11 seasons, possesses the versatility General Manager Ned Colletti admires, playing second base, shortstop, third base and all three outfield positions last season for the Washington Nationals.

Pitchers Travis Smith, Dario Veras and Matt White, and catchers Sandy Martinez and Ken Huckaby also have been invited to spring training.

Hey, you know that argument that Barry Bonds apologists always bring up? The one about him never failing a drug test?

Yeah, that argument doesn’t work anymore:

Report: Bonds failed amphetamine test

NEW YORK — Barry Bonds failed a test for amphetamines last season and originally blamed it on a teammate, the Daily News reported Thursday.

When first informed of the positive test, Bonds attributed it to a substance he had taken from teammate Mark Sweeney’s locker, the New York City newspaper said, citing several unnamed sources.

“I have no comment on that,” Bonds’ agent Jeff Borris told the Daily News on Wednesday night.

“Mark was made aware of the fact that his name had been brought up,” Sweeney’s agent Barry Axelrod told the Daily News. “But he did not give Barry Bonds anything, and there was nothing he could have given Barry Bonds.”

Bonds, who has always maintained he never has tested positive for illegal drug use, is already under investigation for lying about steroid use.

The indictment clock is still ticking, and the ticking is getting louder.

Ostensibly, this link will allow you to download an MP3 of the Dodgers announcer Jaime Jarrin’s visit on the local Roggin & Simers² radio show, even if they did misspell his first name:

Roggin & Simers2 - Roggin & Simers2 talk to Dodger Spanish Announcer Jamie Jarrin about the Hall of Fame.

If it doesn’t work, try going to this page instead — it’s the first one listed at the moment.