Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Shootin' Down The Walls of Logic, Bang Bang: I Am The Guerrier

The Dodgers aren't copping to this yet, but Tony Jackson says the Dodgers are close to another bullpen arm in former Twin Matt Guerrier:

The Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed to terms with free-agent reliever Matt Guerrier on a three-year, $12 million contract, according to a source who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the deal is contingent on the pitcher passing a physical.

Guerrier, a right-hander whose entire seven-year career to this point has been spent with the Minnesota Twins, is a durable reliever who led the American League in appearances in both 2008 and 2009 and has topped 70 appearances each of the past four seasons.

The Rockies, Red Sox, Blue Jays and Orioles had reportedly also expressed interest in the reliever. The source said the Dodgers beat out the Rockies and Red Sox to land Guerrier.

Guerrier, 32, will round out the back end of the Dodgers bullpen, an area that is a bit shaky because closer Jonathan Broxton performed so poorly the second half of 2010 that he lost the job and primary set-up man Hong-Chih Kuo, who performed well enough to make the National League All-Star team and supplant Broxton as closer, still has to be used sparingly because of concerns about his physical well-being.

Jon Weisman calls this a dice roll. MSTI is even less kind, and I also agree with MSTI that it would make more sense for us to throw a couple of bones toward what looks to be an impotent offensive lineup in 2011. Another bullpen arm? For the long term? Really?

18 comments:

Jon Weisman said...

Patty Smyth reference - awesome!

Josh S. said...

I woonder if this is the ultimate signing of this offseason.

Josh S. said...

^Or, y'know, wonder. Feel free to add woonder to the typo lexicon.

Greg Hao said...

Ned Colletti needs to be dragged out back and beaten severely with a bag of oranges or garden hoses. This is bordering on imbecilic.

Eric Karros said...

He's a real tough cookie with a long history of getting one save per season (5 straight seasons).

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

He's not a closer, EK.

Eric Karros said...

@Greg - if those are the two apparati choices for use in the beating, I'll pick the bag of garden hoses.

That'd be more interesting to watch.

Eric Karros said...

@MLASF - Yeah I know, just trying to force another Patty Smyth reference.

But whatever his role, I guess we add him to the bullpen. The more the Guerrier!

dms@blogspot.com said...

I like that the Dodgers aren't squandering their prospects this season for a trade that will end up hurting them in the end. We need to look to the future of Zack Lee (I know he's seasons away), De Jesus Jr. and Gordon. In the meantime, keep the core young guys. The only trade I'd welcome (and only sort of due to the risks of rent-a-player and poor physical conditioning) would be Fielder. If we could send Loney and Broxton, I'd be okay with that. Unfortunately, I think it would take more and I don't want any of the three prospects I mentioned above shipped away. We have to be realistic and know that the McCourts can't spend like the owners of the Nationals, Yankees and Phillies. So, let's keep developing OUR players and keep our fingers crossed for better ownership in the not so distant future. In the meantime, Ned. . .keep doing what you can. It's not so bad considering the ownership.

Jon Weisman said...

Patty Smyth and Pat Benatar are being mixed into the same person, it appears - which would be one powerhouse rocker.

Steve Sax said...

@Jon W: You're right, I'm mixing up the rockers. Fire away, indeed.

Steve Sax said...

(post since edited to take off the last line, where I mixed up Patti Smyth with Pat Benatar)

Jon Weisman said...

I didn't mean for you to change it - I liked the combo.

Greg Hao said...

@ek - lol!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I thought EK's Pat Benatar reference was a bit confusing.

Eric Karros said...

Sax - great, now my comment makes no sense.

Which, of course, has never happened before.

Steve Sax said...

I took out the Peppermint Patty, Pat Tillman, and patty melt references as well.

Steve Sax said...

@EK, what can I say? SoSG is a battlefield.