This offseason has far gone as planned for the Los Angeles Dodgers, who at one point were more recognized for their failed trades and signings than actual acquisitions.
After getting through the qualifying offer process with their three eligible players, the Dodgers were shocked by Zack Greinke making a late change to sign with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Los Angeles has since rounded out their starting rotation nicely with the additions of Scott Kazmir and Kenta Maeda.
As it currently stands, the core group from the 2015 club remains intact. Outside of Greinke, another notable exception is Howie Kendrick being unlikely to return.
A significant change will be at shortstop, where Corey Seager is expected to pick up where he left off after finishing the season as the starting shortstop. Joining Seager as a mainstay in the lineup will be Adrian Gonzalez.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts recently spoke highly of the young shortstop and veteran first baseman, via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
“What I did see of Corey, there’s a lot to like,” Roberts said. “Adrian is just the billboard for consistency. He’s at the park all the time; he looks great. What he brings to a club for a manager is just very low maintenance. He knows what to do at the plate. He just has to continue to be Adrian. As a first-time manager, it’s nice to have a guy you can pencil in every day and know what you’re going to get.”
Along with praising Gonzalez and Seager, Roberts went on to share his belief as to how Greinke’s presence will still be felt on the team:
“I really believe as a manager, your job is to manage the players that come to you,” he said. “Any team that had Zack Greinke is better for it. I do believe there’s a lot of carryover. Although he’s in Arizona, the impact he made on his former teammates — his work ethic, his competitiveness, his preparation — the 2016 Dodgers team will be better for it. But when I look around the league, I love our club and our rotation more than any.”
Seager hit .337/.425/.561 with four home runs, eight doubles and 17 RBIs over 27 games with the Dodgers. At times suffering from a pinched nerve in his back, Gonzalez hit .275/.350/.480 and was named to the All-Star Game for the first time since 2011.
While they will return with the club for the 2016 season, it will take a collective effort for Los Angeles to replace Greinke’s production as he went 19-3 with a 1.66 ERA, 225 ERA+ and 0.84 WHIP — leading the Majors in those categories.
