Iwakuma Set To Fill Greinke Spot

Okay, that may be a bit much. But early reports have Hisashi Iwakuma headed to the Dodgers, right before the Nashville Winter Meetings:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Scrambling after losing Zack Greinke to the D-backs, the Dodgers on Sunday reportedly agreed to terms with free-agent pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma and free-agent infielder Chase Utley, and were trying to trade for Cincinnati closer Aroldis Chapman on the eve of the annual Winter Meetings.

The Dodgers did not confirm any of the reports, and the free-agent agreements would be pending physical exams.

Reports have Iwakuma agreeing to a three-year, $45 million deal, a response to the loss of Greinke, as it will mean forfeiture of the Dodgers' first-round Draft pick because Iwakuma rejected a qualifying offer from the Mariners. He was 9-5 with a career-high 3.54 ERA in 2015, and he will be 35 years old next season. The Dodgers did receive a compensatory pick after the first round for losing Greinke. [...]

Iwakuma would join Clayton Kershaw, Brett Anderson and Alex Wood in the rotation, with Hyun-Jin Ryu a question mark as he tries to return from shoulder surgery. The Dodgers are expected to continue shopping for starting pitching, most likely via trade, and have already been rumored to be interested in Miami's Jose Fernandez, among others.

Many of the better free-agent starting pitchers (David Price, Jordan Zimmermann, Jeff Samardzija, John Lackey) have already gone to other clubs.

[oooh, snap!]

Because the needs are now so great, management might have no choice but to fill holes through trades, perhaps involving outfielder Yasiel Puig or Jansen. Outfielders Carl Crawford and Andre Ethier, as well as infielder Alex Guerrero, could also be shopped.

The right-handed Iwakuma battled injuries the past two seasons -- a sprained finger in 2014 and a strained lat muscle in 2015 -- limiting him to 179 and 129 1/3 innings, respectively. But when healthy, he has pitched well, going 47-25 with a 3.17 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in four seasons with the Mariners after a 12-year career in Japan. He also tossed a no-hitter this past season.