We know Manny is done here after this year. Him coming back at the end of this season isn't going to happen either. It's not because of Mannywood leaving. It's just because he won't have a motivation to get on the field for the Dodgers. Maybe the White Sox or the Rays but not the Dodgers.
We may have very well saw the last of Russell Martin. Bill Plaschke has a good angle on this Martin situation. It's just sad because Martin was quite a rock at catcher despite his hitting problems. He got criticism but little from me because you can do a lot worse at catcher. Considering the fact that Martin has already lost his speed, I chalk his decline to natural catcher attrition and the uncomfortable fact that Martin started 143 games in 2007, 138 in 2008 (and he played in 149) and 133 games last year. These amount of starts don't account for why he was injured but I believe it does account for his lost speed and, though he could handle it, it doesn't seem to be the best thing for the batting part of his game.
Martin's usage wouldn't be so striking if Carlos Santana were waiting in the wings. Torre managed and Ned compiled the team as if Martin were this anachronistic catching machine and now the Dodgers are left with Ausmus, Ellis and no healthy catching prospects. That is a whole other problem, though.
I would be really scared going forward with Russell Martin. This injury really throws a wrench in things. Before this injury, Russell Martin would have been worth giving $6 million to next year. Even with the lean years Martin has had last year and this year, he has been worth $9.9 and $8 million respectively. Because catchers hit like pitchers, I just don't want them to be an issue and Russell made the position a non-issue for nearly four years. Now, I don't think he will be the everyday catcher he was because I think he will have injury problems. Perhaps I can be convinced but unless the market is completely bare with veteran backstops, I don't know how wise it would be to go forward with him. I like Russell a lot but it's because the Dodgers have no real alternative if Martin is hobbled next season that the Dodgers would be better off going with a more reliable option.
This organization needs an enema and it should start with new ownership but Ned can be ousted whenever. This is just a disgraceful and unfortunate last third of the season and the further we go with this helter skelter management, the longer it will take this organization to get back to any semblance of winning.
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