#Dodgers have reassigned Tony Gwynn Jr. and Wilkin Castillo. Ramon Castro has been released.

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) March 18, 2013

One of those players was Tony Gwynn Jr. The son of legendary Padre Tony Gwynn, Sr. was acquired by the Dodgers in 2011 as a fourth outfielder. Gwynn is a 30 year old left handed hitting outfielder. He was originally drafted by the Brewers in the 2003 amateur draft.

I hope Gywnn makes it back soon.-Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

Gwynn  played in 136 games for the Dodgers in 2011, posting a triple slash line of .256/.308/.353 with two home runs, 22 RBI, and 22 stolen bases. Gwynn saw a lot of time that season because of all the injuries, and he was able to see almost as much time in 2012, thanks to the injuries to Matt Kemp among others. In 2012, Gwynn played in 103 games, posting a line of .232./.276/.293. Gwynn stole 13 bases last year, and received 277 plate appearances.

Manager Don Mattingly kind of hinted at Gwynn possibly being cut, by saying something about it being tough to get him at-bats or something like that. Gwynn is a .244 career hitter with 77 stolen bases in his seven major league seasons. It is a bit sad to see Gwynn get cut. I’ve always liked the guy. He is truly one of the nicest guys in the game today. I won’t forget the few games he won with his superior defense. That was Gwynn’s strength, his great outfield defense, and strong throwing arm. Gwynn has played in 11 games this spring, batting .211 (4 for 19) with two stolen bases. Unfortunately Gwynn could never hit well enough to stay on with a major league team.

Gwynn won’t be going back to minor league camp alone though, the Dodgers made sure he would have some company. The Dodgers cut three other players other than Gwynn. Two are joining Gwynn in minor league camp.

The Dodgers cut right handed pitcher Juan Abreu. Abreu is considered a top ranked prospect and has impressed somewhat this spring. Abreu was acquired this winter as a free agent. He has pitched seven innings this spring, allowing no runs, five hits, and whiffing seven. Abreu has looked strong this spring, not allowing a run. Abreu is 26 years old, and from the Dominican. Abreu has appeared in the majors once before. He pitched in seven games for the Astros back in 2011.

February 25, 2013; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Ramon Castro (33) throws to first base for the out against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the seventh inning during a spring training game at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

The Dodgers also cut Wilkin Castillo, and released catcher Ramon Castro. Castillo is the 26 year old infielder/outfielder who was signed by the Dbacks as an amateur free agent back in 2002. Castillo is from the Dominican, and played in a handful of games for the Reds from 2008-2009. While Castillo is 11 for 35 in his Major league career, he was somehow able to appear in 12 games for the Dodgers this spring, going 6 for 18 (.333) with two stolen bases.

The Dodgers released catcher Ramon Castro. Castro is the 37 year old major league veteran backstop with the mug like face only a mother could love. I have no idea why the Dodgers even invited him to spring training. He has been useless for years. Castro has 13 years of major league experience as a backup catcher, but has never been able to hit well. He has a career .237 batting average with 67 big league home runs. Castro has played for three teams, (Mets, Marlins, and White Sox), since his rookie season in 1999 with the Fish, keep in mind, Castro was drafted way back in 1994 by the Astros in the first round. Castro played in eight games for the Dodgers this spring. He batted .214  going 3 for 14 with one home run.

There will be more cuts to come soon. Let’s all light a candle for these guys, as the Dodger’s spring training at Camelback Ranch marches on.

Could Scott Hairston help the Dodgers in 2013?

Scott Hairston is still a free agent and our Los Angeles Dodgers should act quickly to pluck him from New York. Word is that Scott is looking to either re-sign with the Mets or change dugouts and join their cross town rivals, the vaunted Yankees. Why should the Dodgers sign Scott Hairston? To compliment Andre Ethier.We know that as a complete package, Andre Ethier is a good player. What you may or not be aware of is that versus right handed pitchers, Ethier is an excellent player. Against southpaws he is a very below average hitter. Luckily for the Dodgers and for Ethier, nearly three quarters of the starters in the national league are right handed, so nearly three quarters of the time Andre Ethier is very good. That doesn’t mean that the other 25% of the time can’t be improved.

Here are his splits by year:

2012 versus R: .325 AVG, 16 HR, .546 SLG, .398 OBP.  59% better than an average NL hitter.
2012 versus L: .222 AVG,  4 HR, .330 SLG, .276 OBP.  41% worse than average.

2011 versus R: .321 AVG, 10 HR, .468 SLG, .410 OBP.  47% better than average.
2011 versus L: .220 AVG, 1 HR, .305 SLG, .258 OBP.  43% worse than average.

2010 versus R: .318 AVG, .20 HR, 564 SLG, .396 OBP. 59% better than average.
2010 versus L: .233 AVG, 3 HR, .333 SLG, .292 OBP.  30% worse than average.

Andre Ethier is a beast versus right handed pitchers. Adversely, Andre Ethier is one of the very worst hitters in all of baseball when a lefty toes the rubber. To further exasperate the issue, the emergence of the left handed relief specialist has slowed his knack for late game heroics. Opposing managers just bring in a lefty when Ethier comes up with the game on the line – and why wouldn’t they?

Here is where Scott Hairston comes in.   Let’s take a look at his splits:

2012 versus L: .286, 11 HR, .550 SLG, .317 OBP.  35% better than average.

Career versus L: .276 AVG, 39 HR, .500 SLG, .325 OBP.  19% better than average.

I won’t include his statistics for all seasons nor his splits versus right handers since the point here is to bring him in as a platoon partner. And in fairness, as recently as 2010 Hairston showed a reverse split. Rumors have it that he’s looking for a two year deal, and if two-years and 6 million will do the trick the Dodgers should jump on it. Using their career numbers, if we use Andre 75% of the time and Hairston 25% of the time, the total stat line will look something like: .310, .525 SLG, .365 OBP.

This duo should combine for 25 – 30 HR and rank about 40% better than the average NL hitter. This makes for a top 10 outfielder in all of baseball. Certainly not on the level of a Braun or a Trout, but think Matt Holliday circa 2012 (unfortunately not the 2007 Holliday).  Matt Holliday was the fifth most valuable outfielder in all of baseball last year according to wRC+. Now this is just back-of-napkin math, but it’s significant. It also takes away the oppositions ability to use a lefty specialist as long as Hairston is on the bench.

So join the grass roots movement today. Sign Scott Hairston – the only viable lefty-masher left on the market.

In other news:

The Dodgers have signed Matt Palmer, Brian Barden and Ramon Castro to minor league deals, while the White Sox have signed former Dodger Ramon Troncoso.

Palmer is intriguing as he posted a respectable season with the Angels in 2009 which included 13 starts but he has gotten progressively worse since then. Castro is a career journeyman who didn’t play in the majors in 2012, struggled in 2011 but had one of his finest seasons in 2010 and has always been considered as passable behind the plate. Barden provides 3B depth in case of the dreaded injury bug.

Troncoso enjoyed a very successful campaign with the Dodgers in 2009 but slipped into mediocrity in 2010 before seeing his 2011 derailed by injuries. He didn’t pitch in the majors in 2012, spending the season in AAA, but he’s just 3 years removed from a strong showing and the Sox aren’t risking much by taking the gamble.