On December 9th, the Dodgers signed 2B-R Jeff Kent to a two-year, $17M contract with his salary split evenly between the two seasons. Kent no longer fit on the Astros, so Houston wisely paid the $700,000 buyout on his $9M 2005 option. Nevertheless, he still warrants this kind of investment in the current market. While the 36-year-old no longer exercises the patience he displayed when hitting next to OF-L Barry Bonds, he maintains decent plate discipline and possesses substantial power as well as useful speed.

In the course of remodeling the Dodger Stadium dugouts and seats next to the field, L.A. will eliminate a substantial chunk of foul territory this off-season, which should make the park somewhat less pitcher-friendly as less hitters will be knocked out on foul pop-ups. However, those changes will not allow Dodger Stadium to come close to befriending right-handed power the way Minute Maid Park encourages it. Consequently, I expect Kent's power numbers to experience a minor drop-off, though his production should remain above average for second base.

The Dodgers may be more inclined to move Kent to third in the aftermath of Adrian Beltre signing with Seattle, but L.A. contends that they have not yet made a decision as to where Kent will play in 2005. While I believe the Dodgers made a mistake in failing to secure Beltre, I do not view the Kent signing as substantially impacting their Beltre strategy.

On December 7th, the Dodgers signed Elmer Dessens to a one-year, $1.55M contract with a $250,000 buyout on a $1.3M mutual option. In addition to a $1.3M base salary in 2005, the contract includes bonuses for reaching the benchmarks of 20, 25, and 30 starts, which could net him another $450,000. Once he makes 15 starts in 2005, his option year salary jumps from $1.3M to $1.4M, and Dessens receives the buyout if either he or the Dodgers vote to decline the option.