After a thorough review of the offseason moves of the other four teams in the National League West, we turn our investigation inward, looking at our very own Los Angeles Dodgers.

In case you missed the rest of the NL West, here are offseason reviews of Arizona, San Francisco, Colorado, and San Diego.

Five Questions

1) Did the season-ending ACL injury to Victor Martinez of the Detroit Tigers cost the Dodgers Prince Fielder?

Yes.

2) If the Dodgers had all this money to sign Prince Fielder, shouldn't they have at least made a formal offer to Hiroki Kuroda, who signed for one year, $10 million with the New York Yankees?

Yes.

3) Will Clayton Kershaw in 2012 become the second Dodgers pitcher ever to win back-to-back Cy Young Awards, joining Sandy Koufax?

Yes.

4) Will Dee Gordon steal at least 60 bases for the Dodgers in 2012?

Yes.

5) Did you mail in this final question and answer session of the week?

Yes.

Eveland was arbitration eligible and not in the plans for the Dodgers' starting rotation in 2012, so he was shipped off to Baltimore for two players ranked by our own Brandon Lennox as the No. 59 and No. 77 prospects in the Dodgers' system.

Matt Kemp signed the largest contract in National League history. That feels good just saying that out loud.

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Just when you thought the moves for the offseason were complete, Ned Colletti threw us a curve ball on Friday. Or maybe it was a slider, the preferred offspeed pitch thrown by right-handed relief pitcher Todd Coffey, the newest addition to the Dodgers bullpen. The 31-year old has signed a one-year contract with the Dodgers worth a guranteed $1.3 million, pending a physical, plus a club option for 2013, as reported by both Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports and Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.

UPDATE (5:15 p.m.): The Coffey deal is now official. The reliever will be paid $1 million in 2012, with essentially a deferred payment disguised as a club option. Coffey's option for 2013 is worth $2.5 million, with a buyout of $300,000, per Hernandez.

Coffey was 5-1 with a 3.62 ERA in 60 innings last season for the Nationals, striking out 6.94 batters per nine innings, pretty much inline with his career rate of 6.67 strikeouts per nine. He has also pitched for the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds in his seven-year MLB career. Coffey is perhaps best known for his Leffertsian sprints from the bullpen to the mound, which should earn him at least an extra strike or some sort of tangible benefit.

The addition of Coffey to the staff gives the Dodgers six pitchers I would call locks for the bullpen: Javy Guerra, Kenley Jansen, Matt Guerrier, Mike MacDougal, Coffey, and Scott Elbert. This essentially means that Josh Lindblom and the out-of-options Blake Hawksworth will battle it out along with the various non-roster invitees for that seventh and final spot in the pen.

Ronald Belisario, now that we know he actually exists again, could be a factor, but he will have to serve a 25-game suspension to begin the year anyway so he is not a concern in shaping the opening day roster.

With the departures of Hong-Chih Kuo (the left-hander hasn't signed anywhere else yet, but as of now he is no longer a member of the Dodgers) and Jonathan Broxton, the Dodgers have lost the players who have been with the organization the longest and were with the team the longest, respectively.

Kuo signed with the Dodgers way back on June 19, 1999 as an amateur free agent out of Taiwan, while Broxton made his major league debut on July 29, 2005. The new dean of the Dodgers is James Loney, who was drafted in the first round in 2002, and signed on June 11, nine days before international signee Ramon Troncoso. Loney also has the earliest Dodgers debut among players currently on the 40-man roster, making his major league debut on April 4, 2006. Andre Ethier has been with the major league club the longest continuously, staying put since his major league debut on May 2, 2006.

Here is the list of longest-tenured Dodgers, sorted by the date each player signed with the organization:

Thanks to Baseball-Reference.com for a few of the dates in the table above.

Hiroki Kuroda is now a member of the New York Yankees, going to the Bronx for a reported $10 million for one year per ESPN. He will be missed.

On September 27, I wrote this about Kuroda heading into what was his final start as a Dodger:

Kuroda hasn't yet made his decision whether to come back to the Dodgers or return to Japan. He has been a very good pitcher in his four years in Los Angeles, and is a player who not only wants to win but wants to win as a Dodger. It would be great to have Kuroda back for another season, but if tonight is it, thanks for everything Hiroki.

Ned Colletti managed to turn a Kuroda decision of "Dodgers or Japan" which was heavily slanted toward returning to Los Angeles into "neither" through his flurry of two-year deals for mediocrities this offseason.

Who would you rather have?

• Kuroda for $10 million
• Juan Rivera, Jerry Hairston Jr., and one of Aaron Harang or Chris Capuano for $9.25 million in 2012 and between $10.25 million and $13.75 million in 2013.

The Dodgers made their choice. I think they chose poorly.

The Dodgers have signed Mike MacDougal to return to their bullpen for a one-year deal, worth a reported $1 million according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. Yeah, I was expecting a two-year deal, too. This deal could be two years though, as there is a club option for 2013.

MacDougal will get paid $650,000 in 2012, and the club option in 2013 is worth $2.35 million with a buyout of $350,000, per Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.

MacDougal had a weird season in 2011. It looked superficially good with a 2.05 ERA in 57 innings and a career-high 69 games, but the peripherals were not as strong. He walked 29 batters in 57 innings against just 41 strikeouts. MacDougal allowed opposing hitters to post a .352 on-base percentage, and his walk rate of 4.6 per nine innings was actually his best mark in five years.

While MacDougal didn't allow many runs against his own ledger, it seemed like MacDougal allowed all sorts of runners that counted against other pitchers. But MacDougal wasn't that bad at allowing inherited runners to score (33.3% versus a league average of 30.0%), he just happened to seemingly always enter games with runners on base. MacDougal inherited 51 runners in 2011, sixth most in the National League. He allowed two of his 13 inherited runners to score over the final two months.

The return of MacDougal means there are five locks for what will likely be a seven-man bullpen in 2012: Javy Guerra, Kenley Jansen, Matt Guerrier, MacDougal, and Scott Elbert. Gurnick mentions Josh Lindblom as a likely bullpen candidate, but there is also Blake Hawksworth, who is out of options. If the Dodgers want a second southpaw in the pen to go with Elbert, the other left-handers invited to spring training are Michael Antonini, Alberto Castillo, Matt Chico, John Grabow, Wil Ledezma, and Scott Rice.

In other words, spring training isn't expected to feature many battles for jobs, with either 22 or 23 of the 25 opening day roster spots already set.

Stop me if you have heard this one before: Ronald Belisario says he will join the Dodgers in spring training. "He should be ready to go," Belisario's agent Rick Oliver told Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. The important wrinkle here is that Belisario now has received his work visa, which he did not get last season.

But just because Belisario is expected to join the Dodgers on time doesn't mean he will, or that he will have a spot waiting for him in the bullpen when he gets there.

Belisario, who turns 29 on December 31, was the surprise of 2009 spring training, making the club and providing 71 innings of quality relief for a team that went to its second straight NLCS. Belisario did show up late that season to spring training, but in hindsight that was his most punctual spring training to date with the Dodgers.

In 2010 Belisario showed up late again, a whopping 35 days late, and began the season on the restricted list as he got in shape in Arizona. Later in the summer he was placed on the restricted list again and reportedly received treatment for substance abuse. Belisario had trouble getting a visa in 2011 thanks to a combination of his checkered past and his own laziness, and didn't report to spring training at all. He remains on the restricted list to this day.

He has been pitching in the Venezuelan Winter League, and has a 4.09 ERA with 15 walks and 21 strikeouts as the closer for los Bravos de Margarita. If Belisario comes back, that is great, as it gives the Dodgers another option for their bullpen. But Belisario no longer has the benefit of the doubt. Show up to camp first, and on time for once. Then we can talk about your role on the team.

*****

In other news, old friend Casey Blake signed a one-year, non-guaranteed deal worth $2 million with the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday, with up to $1 million in bonuses.

It has been a busy few days for the National League West, as the division has seen an infusion of offense with three recent transactions.

On Friday, the Colorado Rockies agreed to terms with outfielder Michael Cuddyer on a three-year deal believed to be worth $31.5 million. The folks at Purple Row have more details here and here. Cuddyer hit .284/.346/.459 with 20 home runs in 139 games for the Minnesota Twins, pretty similar to his production over the last five years.

This morning, the Arizona Diamondbacks have reportedly agreed to a two-year, $15 million deal with fellow former Twin Jason Kubel, per SB Nation Arizona. This move was a surprise, especially given the breakout year of defensive wizard Gerardo Parra last season. Unless Kubel plans to play a lot of first base, platooning with Paul Goldschmidt, Parra figures to lose a lot of playing time in 2012.

Like Parra, Seth Smith seems like the odd man out in Colorado with the Cuddyer signing. Those two could be dangled for pitching help.

But the big move of the weekend was the trade between the San Diego Padres and Cincinnati Reds. The Padres sent their ace Mat Latos, coming off back-to-back superb seasons, to Cincinnati for a loaded package featuring first baseman Yonder Alonso, catcher Yasmani Grandal, starting pitcher Edinson Volquez, and longtime character actor Bruce Boxleitner pitcher Brad Boxberger.

With the addition of offense into the division, the Dodgers went the other way on Monday, agreeing to terms on a minor league deal with left-handed relief pitcher John Grabow, per Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors. Grabow, 33, was 3-1 with a 4.76 ERA in 62 innings for the Chicago Cubs last season, and had a strikeout rate (5.49 per nine innings) below seven for the first time in his eight-year major league career. Left-handed batters have hit .262/.329/.385 off Grabow in his career.

This is a list of players signed to a minor league deal by the Dodgers for the 2012 season, including those who received a non-roster invitation to spring training. The Dodgers have had several players signed to minor league deals in the last two years eventually make the big league team, with varying degrees of success.

In 2010, the Dodgers had eight players signed to minor league deals play for the club, including four who made the team out of spring training: Garret Anderson, Ramon Ortiz, Russ Ortiz, and Jeff Weaver

In 2011, the Dodgers had eight players signed to minor league deals play for the club, including four who made the team out of spring training: Aaron Miles, Mike MacDougal, Hector Gimenez, and Lance Cormier.

A great source to check for minor league transactions is Baseball America's minor league free agent tracker.

This page will continually be updated throughout the offseason and through the end of spring training.

Pitchers

Jose Ascanio RHP
2012 age: 27
Ascanio has pitched 43 games in relief in parts of four big league seasons, including putting up a not-so-convenient 7.11 ERA in all of eight games with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2011. He spent most of his year in Triple A Indianapolis, where he put up a 4.91 ERA in 30 games, including five starts. He struck out 50 batters in 44 innings in Indy, and has struck out more than a batter per inning in the minors over the last five years. In 46 major league innings, Ascanio has 41 strikeouts and 21 walks.

Alberto Castillo LHP
2012 age: 36
Not to be confused with the long-time major league catcher of the same name, this Cuban southpaw was with the Arizona Diamondbacks last season after three years with the Baltimore Orioles. In 60 1/3 career major league innings, Castillo has a 4.33 ERA 27 walks and 48 strikeouts. However he is not a LOOGY, as left-handed batters have hit .296/.377/.519 off him in his career. He has spent most of the last four seasons in Triple A, putting up a 2.86 ERA in 160 innings while averaging a strikeout per inning and having a strikeout-to-walk ratio of better than 3-to-1.

Matt Chico LHP
2012 age: 29
The former USC Trojan spent the last five and a half years in the Washington Nationals organization after being part of the haul for Livan Hernandez way back in 2006. A starter for most of his career, Chico moved to the bullpen in 2011, pitching in relief in 25 of his 27 games across three levels with a cumulative 5.87 ERA. He has pitched five major league innings in the last three years.

John Grabow LHP
2012 age: 33
The left-hander signed with the Dodgers on December 19, 2011. He was 3-1 with a 4.76 ERA in 2011, with 28 walks and 38 strikeouts in 62 innings with the Chicago Cubs. It was the first time in his eight-year career that he had a strikeout rate below seven per nine innings.

Angel Guzman RHP
2012 age: 30
The right-hander had surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right shoulder and missed all of 2010. He came back in 2011 to post a 4.04 ERA in 35 innings in Class A with five walks and 28 strikeouts. He struck out 8.2 batters per nine innings in four major league seasons from 2006-2009, the same as his career rate in the minors.

Wilfredo Ledezma LHP
2012 age: 31
Signed by the Dodgers on December 2, 2011, Ledezma has pitched in the majors in each of the past nine seasons for a total of seven teams. In 2011 he was limited to just six innings with the Toronto Blue Jays, but did strikeout 64 in 48 innings while putting up a 4.50 ERA with Triple A Las Vegas in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

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