Ivan DeJesus Jr-Last year at this time, DeJesus, would have been in the top three. But that’s because this year, he has a metal rod in his leg. DeJesus’s broken leg was a tough blow for a player who seemed destined to eventually take over second base for the Dodgers, but he’s back in 2010 and wants to prove to the team that he’s healthy and is the player he was in 2008, when he hit .324 for AA Jacksonville with a .842 OPS. He was clearly on the fast track to being the second baseman of the future, and the fact that he has AA experience and is only 22 will help, but at this point he’d have to really show something to be given a shot at the second base job in the near future. With Belliard and DeWitt probably having the job in 2010 and Dee Gordon’s steady rise, DeJesus may have fallen out of favor with the front office. He still has MLB upside, but he’d have to really show the Dodgers something this year to be given a shot at the job in 2011.

With the Dodgers 5th starter vacancy looking like it’s going to be filled from within, a lot of candidates are popping up for the job. Some top prospects like James McDonald, Scott Elbert and Josh Lindblom along with some journeymen veterans like Charlie Haeger and Russ Ortiz. Although it is more than likely that a few of these pitchers will be given a chance, only one of them will be the 5th starter when the Dodgers travel to Florida during the second series of the year. This is where things may get interesting for Eric Stults.

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Over the next few weeks, we at Lasorda’s Lair will be publishing a Top 10 Prospects Report, where we will be counting down from 10 to 1 along with giving detailed scouting reports on each prospect. We we publish two reports a week where we will detail the statistics, accomplishments and potential for each of the 10 players.  Today, we start at 10 with Kyle Russell.

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After the 2005 Dodgers went 71-91, it was evident something needed to change. Jason Philips wasn’t cutting it. Ricky Ledee wasn’t cutting it. So that off-season, the Dodgers finally did something that was long overdue, committed to a youth movement.  They traded the headache that was Milton Bradley for a young outfielder named Andre Ethier. After a combination of Sandy Alomar and Dioner Navarro struggled early, they gave the catching duties to a young backstop named Russell Martin. When Eric Gagne and Yhency Brazoban went down from injuries, they brought up young arms named Jonathan Broxton and Hong-Chih Kuo. And when Nomar got hurt towards the end of the season, they brought up James Loney. Continue Reading »

The Dodgers made a few moves yesterday, but nothing that will wow any of the fans, or make a world championship look more possible. Both Brad Ausmus and Ronnie Belliard re-signed with the club, and both will probably occupy backup roles with the team. Continue Reading »

If there was one guy that it seemed like you could count on in the stretch run last season, it was Vicente Padilla. So it’s good news that the Dodgers have officially signed Padilla to a 1-year deal, which should make him a nice addition to this rotation heading into next season. Continue Reading »

We discussed the new deals for James Loney, Hong-Chih Kuo, and George Sherrill yesterday, and today, there’s even more good news coming out of Los Angeles. The Dodgers have landed deals with the remaining players who were eligible for arbitration, and have a few of them locked up for the next few years. Continue Reading »

Here’s a nice little update from Dodger land this morning, as three of the top talents on the squad have signed new deals with the team. James Loney, Hong Chih-Kuo, and George Sherrill have all avoided arbitration, which is certainly good news for a team that can’t afford to lose any more top players. Continue Reading »

The main focus the last few days around Dodger-land has been arbitration, and seeing who would and wouldn’t file for arbitration. We got news on some big-time Dodger players yesterday, so let’s take a look at where the Dodgers stand right now in terms of player arbitration. Continue Reading »

So since there’s not a whole lot going on in Dodger land right now in terms of improving the roster, I figured we should take a look at where the Dodgers currently stand in the NL West race heading into next season. Continue Reading »