Dodgers Trade Theriot To Cardinals For Hawksworth

On the same day the Dodgers made the Juan Uribe signing official, which meant Ryan Theriot's days with the club were numbered, the Dodgers traded the second baseman to the Cardinals for pitcher Blake Hawksworth. Theriot was a likely non-tender candidate by Thursday night's deadline, as he was set to make somewhere north of $3.5 million in 2011.

Hawksworth, who will be 28 on March 1, will likely be a candidate for the swingman role in the bullpen next year. In two seasons with the Cardinals, he has 67 relief appearances and eight starts, with a 4.07 ERA over 130 1/3 innings. He averages 5.6 strikeouts, 3.5 walks, and 1.2 home runs per nine innings in his brief career. Hawksworth was drafted by St. Louis in the 28th round in 2001, and won't be arbitration eligible until 2013. Hawksworth is out of options, as he used options in 2007, 2008, and 2009.

Here is the obligatory mad libs quote from Ned Colletti on Hawksworth: “Blake adds Major League experience to our staff and has the versatility to start or relieve. We will continue to try and add Major League caliber pitchers to our roster throughout the winter.”

And, more Ned on Uribe: "Juan provides us with a big bat in the middle of the infield and can change a game with one swing. His versatility is a huge asset, as he can play second base, third base and shortstop and he’s a two-time World Champion, so he knows what it takes to win.”

The Dodgers 40-man roster now stands at 39 players.

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Additional Note: Dylan Hernandez posted details on Jon Garland's contract on the Los Angeles Times Dodgers Blog.  TBLA's Eric Stephen dutifully tracks the Dodger payroll here and on the right sidebar.