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| With Hanley Ramirez expected to return to shortstop, KevinYoukilis would be a strong fit for the Dodgers. (US Presswire) |
The Dodgers spent $147 million on Saturday and $36 million on Sunday.
There's more where that came from.
No one believes the Dodgers are done spending, and the only question is who the next beneficiary will be.
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Two possibilities who have been discussed, according to sources: Kevin Youkilis and Anibal Sanchez.
Youkilis seems to be a better fit than Sanchez, particularly since manager Don Mattingly told reporters last week that he plans to use Hanley Ramirez at shortstop rather than third base. That leaves Luis Cruz to play third, but also opens up the possibility that they could sign Youkilis to play there.
Youkilis already has a one-year $12 million offer from the Yankees on the table. The Dodgers also could be interested in him for one year, and could provide an alternative if he doesn't want to go to New York.
The Indians have also pursued Youkilis. They remain interested, sources say, but their need for him is less now that they've signed Mark Reynolds to play first base. With no full-time designated hitter, there could be enough playing time for both, but Youkilis now seems like a longshot for them.
Sanchez should be more of a longshot for the Dodgers, now that they've added Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu to a rotation picture that also includes Clayton Kershaw, Josh Beckett, Chad Billingsley, Ted Lilly, Chris Capuano and Aaron Harang.
But Billingsley and Lilly both have health questions, and the Dodgers let it be known at last week's winter meetings that both Capuano and Harang are very available in trades.
They're believed to be more interested in dealing Harang, but found more interest in Capuano. In any case, either or both could be dealt, and Sanchez would be an upgrade over either one.
The Dodgers have seemed to be the one team that could be willing to meet Sanchez's asking price (said to be as much as $90 million). The Red Sox and Royals were scared off by the high price, and the Rangers so far haven't shown interest (although they might).
The Tigers would still like to re-sign Sanchez, who pitched well for them after coming over in a July trade with the Marlins. But the Tigers have also made it clear that they don't plan to come anywhere close to Sanchez's asking price.
If no one else does, either, Sanchez would most likely return to the Tigers.
