The Los Angeles Dodgers have enjoyed a wildly successful offseason, having re-signed their top three free agents — Rich Hill, Kenley Jansen and Justin Turner — and by trading for Logan Forsythe to fill the need at second base.
Los Angeles at this stage is in position to round out their 25-man roster and continue adding depth to the organization. Such appears to be the case with the club said to be on the verge of signing former San Francisco Giants closer Sergio Romo.
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has regularly acknowledged he willingly considers all potential options to improve the team, no matter how complete the roster may appear.
That presumably played a role in the Dodgers contacting free agent Chris Carter, though the slugger is unlikely to wind up with Los Angeles, per Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports:
A deal appears unlikely; the Dodgers, who again project to be above the luxury-tax threshold, must pay a 50 percent tax on every dollar they spend above the limit, and might be subject to an additional surtax as well.
Carter, meanwhile, is looking for more at-bats than he probably would get from the Dodgers, who likely would play him at first base against left-handed pitching and give him an occasional start in left field.
Carter batted .222/.321/.499 in a career-high 160 games with the Milwaukee Brewers last season. He tied with Colorado Rockies All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado for the National League lead with 41 home runs.
Conversely, Carter led the NL with 206 strikeouts, finishing 13 shy of the Major-League lead. Dave Stewart, Carter’s agent, recently said his client may have to sign in Japan due to a slow-moving market. This winter marks a second straight year where Carter has seemingly failed to net a significant contract.
After he was non-tendered by the Houston Astros following the 2015 season, Carter signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal with the Brewers. He was then non-tendered by Milwaukee last November.
