Joe Torre and Ned Colletti talked to the media today
Free Agents - There's not a long list of guys where you would say, this guy would make a dramatic difference," Colletti said of the upcoming crop of free-agent starters. "It's a thin market. There are pitchers who would make us better. But tremendously better?
"Every club needs an ace and we're not unlike any club. We might have one or two in the making [referring to Clayton Kershaw and Chad Billingsley]. But the likelihood of an ace becoming available by trade is very slim. And this [free-agent] class doesn't have that type of allure to it."
Said Torre: "Clayton Kershaw has not been lobbying for it, but the way he pitched, he's not afraid of it. Billingsley, even with a rough second half, he has the personality and ability to be a No. 1. [Hiroki] Kuroda got beat up. We'll have to see what going outside means. In all likelihood, that guy is not available."
Colletti and Torre are in agreement on the key needs -- starting pitching depth and a starting second baseman.
Impact of Divorce on baseball operations:
"I don't anticipate that it will," Colletti said, when asked if their divorce would impact the baseball operations. "I don't know for sure, but I don't anticipate that there's been any change in how we do business in the last few weeks."
Torre was asked if he was "definitely" returning for the final season of his contract and he said, "Yes," adding that he already is "enjoying the thought of next spring." However, he did sidestep questions about the McCourt divorce.
"We're of a mind that we'll be able to address our needs," he said. "The question is legitimate. I'd like to believe, as unsettled as it seems right now, the Los Angeles Dodgers the last couple years have become a presence, and I'd like to believe that's not going to change."