Dodgers Lose 2nd Potential Bullpen Starter

Dodger GM Ned Colletti “Absolutely” expects Padilla to return this year, most likely before the All-Star break, yeah like he knows. Why don’t we let Padilla get cut on, hear the Doctor’s report on how bad the damage is, and then go off of his report. Ned your job is to not make any more stupid trades which cost the team their most important up and coming prospects. Oh how Dodger fans wish they had a certian young switch-hitting catcher by the name of Carlos Santana  hitting in the #2 hole for them this year. No more of this allowed Ned, especially not on my watch.

With the absence of Ronald Belisario still looming and no date for his return expected, the Dodgers now have 2 holes in their bullpen to fill. We will not even begin to postulate on who will replace the 2 players until every pitcher in camp has thrown at least 1  meaningful pitch in a live game. But the list of potential replacements is literally a dozen players long.

The team will miss Padilla particularly, as he was expected to fill a tough role out of the bullpen as the team’s ‘flex’ pitcher, which I’m sure is not the correct baseball term. Padilla was to be the potential long relief man in the Dodgers pen and also the first candidate to get the ball in case one of the Dodgers 5 starters gets hit with the injury bug.

Dodger Management is no doubt feeling particularly good about themselves today as they still have the rotation depth to absorb a loss like Padilla’s. In order to address one of their key weaknesses throughout the 2010 season, the team signed 3 veteran pitchers early in the offseason, Hiroki Kuroda, Ted Lilly and Jon Garland.

All things considered the news out of Dodger camp early this morning could be worse, just ask the St. Louis Cardinals, where reports have 2010 Cy Young runner-up Adam Wainwright expecting to need Tommy John surgery and likely missing all of 2011, and not pitching again until after the 2012 All-Star break. The news is devestating for the Cardinals who not only lost one of the top pitchers in all of baseball, but will owe Wainwright approx $45 million dollars after contract clauses for 2012 and 2013 were automatically triggered by his Cy Young runner-up finish last season. All of this as St. Louis heads into the season trying to find an additional $30 million dollars a year to pay baseball’s best hitter, Albert Pujols.

All in all Dodger fans be glad you aren’t a Cardinal fan this morning, or ex-Utah Jazz point guard Deron Williams who is now on his way to New Jersey where he will likely take part in maybe 5 to 10 wins the rest of the year.  Fortunately New Jersey only has 25 more games left so the damage won’t be too bad. How you liking Coach Jerry Sloan right about now Deron? Enjoy the playoffs, sitting at home on the couch and watching them on TV.

So Dodger fans “it could be worse, it could be raining” (Free Lasorda’s Lair gear to the first poster to correctly name that movie quote, it’s a classic) Thankfully names like Charlie Haeger, Ramon Ortiz and Russ Ortiz will not be spoken at Dodger camp as potential replacements for Padilla, such was not the case last year and we all know how difficult it was to watch as the Dodgers sent scrub after scub to the mound to act as the teams 5th starter.

Also Dodger fans be sure to catch Sportscenter this morning/afternoon and Baseball Tonight at 3:30 pm EST as the BBTN Bus makes it’s annual visit to Dodger camp.

Take a moment and visit our FanSided network poll and vote on which NL Division has the best overall roster.

Check out this amazing photo of the new field going in at Dodger Stadium, thanks to Ross Yoshida, the LAD design guy. The end result as usual will be voted on by the players as the best field in all of MLB to play on. What a project!

More Dodger updates after the team finishes practice this afternoon.