Thoughts from across the country on the big deal and others by the new Dodger management:
Bill Shaikin LA Times
Here's the scorecard on the Dodgers' new owners, all without benefit of an off-season: a contract extension for Andre Ethier, the signing of Cuban prospect Yasiel Puig, trades for Hanley Ramirez, Shane Victorino, Joe Blanton, Brandon League and Randy Choate, and the pending trade with the Boston Red Sox for Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto.
Total cost: $432 million. Sale price in 2004, when Frank McCourt bought the Dodgers: $421 million.
Dylan Hernandez LA Times
The agreed-upon trade, in which Gonzalez was viewed as the centerpiece, is revolutionary from a financial standpoint. The Dodgers are expected to be taking on more than $260 million in salary obligations, a staggering amount considering Crawford recently underwent elbow surgery and Beckett appears to be far removed from his best days.
Jay Jaffe Sports Illustrated CNNSI
All in all, it’s a dizzying deal that if it comes to fruition could affect not only the outcome of this year’s NL playoff races, but also could turn the Dodgers into the NL West’s powerhouse for years to come, with an enviable middle of the order starring Kemp, Gonzalez, Ramirez and Ethier. Or it could blow up in the team’s collective face, saddling the Dodgers with unproductive players signed to long-term deals, and hampering their roster flexibility much as it did these Red Sox.
The beer-and-chicken ringleader is gone. No more golf on precious off days following injuries. No more tone-deaf complaints suggesting we don’t understand the importance of family. No more swearing on NESN following lousy outings or conducting defiant interviews refusing to accept responsibility for any his actions.
Gordon Edes ESPN.COM
Sacrificing Gonzalez, whom they still regarded more as part of the solution than the problem, was the price they had to pay for getting out from under the $135 million or so still owed to Beckett and Crawford. It was almost inconceivable they would find a team willing to take on both salaries, especially given the injury history of both players and their subpar performances. The Dodgers were that team.
In one trade, the Red Sox eliminated nearly $60 million in guaranteed money from their 2013 payroll, a number that shrank from roughly $107 million to $47 million, according to numbers provided by Baseball Prospectus. What they do with that flexibility, of course, will ultimately determine how history will judge this deal. Rebuild? That word still does not exist in Lucchino's vocabulary. "Reset" is the operative principle here.