3. Dodgers
-Season story lines: The Dodgers think they have as good a shot as anyone to win the division after the club was sold to a group led by former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson and veteran baseball executive Stan Kasten. It’s too late to pick up premier free agents, but they no longer have to worry about resources at the trade deadline. They can beef up their farm system and retain their free agents. The Dodgers can return to being a ballclub again without seeing owner Frank Mccourt on TMZ and their club in bankruptcy.
-Season stat: 126. The Dodgers had 126 steals last year, and their 76% success rate was their best since 1962. They plan to run even more this year with shortstop Dee Gordon around the entire season, joining center fielder Matt Kemp as solid 40-stolen base candidates. Kemp stole a career-high 40 last year, and Gordon had 24 in 56 games.
-Sco-ts’ take: These guys are looking dangerous. Everyone talks about the Arizona Diamondbacks and the San Francisco Giants, but I could see the Dodgers winning the division. If Gordon gets on base, look out. He could steal 60 bases. He impacts that whole lineup. Andre Ethier looks a whole lot better than last year, too. . . . They’ve got some rotation question marks, but with Clayton Kershaw and Chad Billingsley, they can match up with anybody. . . . I wonder how long they’ll stick with their catching corps. To me, they don’t have a No. 1 catcher. A.J. Ellis and Matt Treanor are backups. The first chance I got, I’d bring up Tim Federowicz to be their full-time catcher.