Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports has an article up looking at various happenings around baseball. Here's some of the Dodger-related notes:
* Team officials are growing tired of the young players not making smart decisions during close game situations. Most notably, Matt Kemp has been described as great one second, and clueless the next. Even Russell Martin has been accused of "flattening out." Blake DeWitt, on the other hand, has been praised for his smarts.
The question remains on how to handle such a large group of young players. Does management just let them play it out and learn? Does someone get sent down to the minors to send a message? Either way, the return of Rafael Furcal will help, and even Andruw Jones, who is another strong veteran presence.
* The team has 3 choices with Brad Penny: 1) Exercise his $8.75 million option for 2009. 2) Buy him out for $2 million at the end of the year. 3) Trade him before the July 31 deadline.
* Derek Lowe will be a free agent after this year, but a return to Boston does not appear imminent. He could play for either New York team, who will have plenty of openings in their rotations. His sinker could be a perfect fit for Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Or, being a native of Dearborn, Michigan, the Tigers are an option.
* Dodgers' bench coach Bob Schaefer is very happy to be coaching Angel Berroa again. Berroa was described as being totally devastated to get sent to Double-A a year after winning the AL Rookie of the Year. But, a scout describes his recent play as flat and uninspired. His best bet would be to stay on as a utility man once Furcal is back.
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