As opening day nears, the Dodger roster is beginning to become more and more clear. Several non-roster invitees figure to make the club, and as a result some corresponding moves needed to be made to create space on the 40-man roster. First came news of Eric Stults being sold to Japan this morning. Tony Jackson of ESPN LA has the details:
Joe Bick, Stults' Cincinnati-based agent, confirmed that the deal was complete and that Stults had agreed to terms with his new team on a one-year contract with a club option for 2011.
Bick wouldn't disclose financial terms of the deal except to say that they far exceeded the $410,000 that the major league portion of Stults' current contract with the Dodgers would have paid him, which would have been prorated if he didn't spend the entire season in the majors. Bick also said the new deal contains several incentives and that if the Carp exercises Stults' option for next season and he maxes out those incentives, he stands to make ''four or five or six times'' as much over the next two years as he likely would have by remaining in the U.S.
Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times reported that the Dodgers received between $300,000 and $400,000 from the Hiroshima Carp for Stults.
Now, another spot on the 40-man roster will be cleared with the waiving of Jason Repko, per Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports. If Repko is released before opening day, he will not get his arbitration-fueled salary of $500,000, but rather 45 days termination pay, or $122,951.
With Stults and Repko gone, that means there are currently 36 on the Dodgers' 40-man roster, leaving four spots open for likely opening day roster members Garret Anderson, Jeff Weaver, Ramon Ortiz, and Nick Green. Of course, Belisario's absence from the 40-man is only temporary, as the decision day to reinstate him to the roster is April 25. However, Cory Wade is expected to miss up to three months after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder earlier this month, and he could be placed on the 60-day disabled list, retroactive to as far back as March 26, which would create another spot on the 40-man roster if needed.