The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Mark Ellis to a two-year contract. They signed Chris Capuano to a two-year contract. They're on the verge of signing Aaron Harang to a two-year contract. And now they've signed Jerry Hairston Jr. to a two-year contract. Don't believe me? I bet you believe Ken Rosenthal!
Jerry Hairston Jr., Dodgers Reach Two-Year Agreement
The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed veteran utilityman Jerry Hairston Jr. to a two-year contract worth $6 million, with incentives.
Sources: Hairston is done with #Dodgers. Passes physical. 2 yrs, 6M plus incentives.
Hairston confirmed the deal in a text message to Amy K. Nelson, saying he was “very happy” especially because he will be “close to home and with the second half the Dodgers had, and with our additions, we’ll be a very deep team.”
Hairston, who lives in Arizona, also told Nelson that “having spring training here and being in the NL West is big. I loved my time in Milwaukee, great guys, great organization and great fans.”
So, here's the thing. Hairston is a nice player. He's not a great one, but he's a nice one. Though he's getting up there in years, he can play all over the place, and he can contribute a little bit with the bat. With the Nationals and Brewers last season, he hit .270/.344/.383. Hairston has his uses.
But the Dodgers seem to have their entire infield locked in. They have their outfield locked in. And they just signed Adam Kennedy to a major league contract as a reserve. Hairston is a better reserve than Kennedy is, but now they have two reserves. Two old, limited reserves.
And they gave Hairston two guaranteed years. The Dodgers' offseason so far, Kemp aside, has not been an inspiring one. Maybe it isn't fair to say "Kemp aside" since signing Matt Kemp was by far the biggest move, but, man, these players. The Dodgers have signed some aging, mediocre players. Ned Colletti has never been more of a stereotype.
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