DeWitt loses his job

I've had a really stressful week --- trying to buy a house --- which combined with a lack of real Dodger news meant no posts. But now the Dodgers have signed Orlando Hudson, the O-dog, apple of Vinny's eye, and that's news big enough to break through even when I can't think of a single damn thing to write.

Blake DeWitt is forced into competition with Casey Blake, which will be no competition at all. Then he would go be forced into a competition with Mark Loretta, which is just kind of sad. I think Loretta might win, too. Or maybe Casey Blake moves to right field if Manny isn't signed, which would send DeWitt to third with no competition, unless Loretta was again competition. So with the signing of Hudson it looks like we now have a choice between Manny and DeWitt in the lineup, which is also no competition at all. But then no one can compete with Manny. Not for stats and not for money demanded either.

Mind you I don't know if Casey Blake would be better than Blake DeWitt, but I'm sure Torre and the temper boys ( Bowa and Duncan ) probably think so. And they're probably right, even. DeWitt is no sure thing, and Casey makes more than him. That always counts for something, right up until the strikeouts pile up and we all realize the player we once thought we knew was eaten by a lazy, powerless, smiling alien, and then even Pierre looks like a better option. You know who I'm talking about. But Casey Blake probably won't get eaten by an alien, and he's probably good for at least an OPS of 0.750, and that seems like enough to hold off DeWitt. That's kind of depressing.

It seems like signing Hudson might cost the Dodgers two young players: DeWitt and whoever they would have drafted in the first round this year. Not starting will cost DeWitt valuable development time, and likely Colletti will trade him at midseason for a bag of bean-eating middle relievers. Bean-eating because they stink up the joint.

I guess now the Dodgers can go to Boras and say "Hey look, now we have a plan B that doesn't involve Juan Pierre!" I don't know if Boras buys that or not, but I do. This signing does seem to give the Dodgers an escape hatch from everyday-Pierre-land even if Manny isn't signed. That's something.