Just say no to Cabrera

This blog won't only be about west coast sports, but I figured what better way to start things out than by slamming one of our own hometown Los Angeles idiots.

It's the MLB off-season, the only off-season of the three major American sports that may be more exciting than the current on-field product.

Of course, the off-season means that baseball's many brain dead general manager's will once again get to rear their ugly heads. Guys who used to fleece the computer in trades on the Madden NFL video game and think it's just that easy in real life.

So, speaking of Ned Colletti, his Los Angeles Dodgers are the center of discussion to bring in a power hitter. All you need to know about Ned Colletti is that he learned from San Francisco Giants GM Brian Sabean, the master of trading away talented young players for complete garbage. The Sabean-Colletti conglomerate's claim to fame was trading away Francisco Liriano, Joe Nathan and Boof Bonser for one glorious year of AJ PIERZYNSKI.

Now, I'm not trying to compare Miguel Cabrera to Pierzynski, they aren't even on the same planet talent-wise. Cabrera is 24 years old and already one of the best hitters in baseball. It's a pretty good bet that he's going to be Manny Ramirez for the next 10-15 years.

Yet, with all that, the Dodgers still shouldn't trade for him.

It's rumored that the Florida Marlins want at least three players from the Dodgers' core group of young players that includes: Matt Kemp, James Loney, Andy LaRoche, Chad Billingsly, Andre Ethier and Double A lefty pitcher Clayton Kershaw.

Trading any two of those players for Cabrera would be too much (OK, I'd do Ethier-LaRoche for Cabrera, but no more). For a variety of reasons, the first of which being MONEY. It's kind of funny that a Los Angeles team would need to be concerned about money, but they call owner Frank McCourt "McCheap" for a reason, he's a bit of a penny pincher. Cabrera is due for a monster contract in two years while all of the aforementioned Dodgers are locked into cheap minor league contracts for the next 4-5 years.

Yes, it would be nice to get a player like Cabrera, but if you have to trade Matt Kemp, Andy LaRoche and Chad Billingsly to get him, is it really worth it? You're getting a power hitter but in doing that, you're creating two more holes on the team in right field and starting pitcher.

Coletti seems to be the only GM in baseball that doesn't want Matt Kemp, a guy who could potentially turn into a Miguel Cabrera. Kemp was reportedly offered to Florida last year in a package for Cabrera that the Marlins turned down. He was also reportedly the center piece of trade talks when the Dodgers were attempting to acquire Mark Teixeira last year. A current ESPN Insider rumor has the Dodgers offering Kemp to the fucking SAN DIEGO PADRES. For what, I have no clue, but looking over their roster I can't imagine anyone (sans Jake Peavy) coming back in that deal that wouldn't make me want to shoot myself in the head.

Of course, knowing his history with the Sabean and the Giants, he's probably using Kemp as a bargaining chip to bring back Jose Cruz Jr.

What the Dodgers need is a center fielder. Torii Hunter plays the position and is available (Aaron Rowand is too, but he sucks). It's real simple, sign Hunter and then play the kids. Get rid of Luis Gonzalez, get rid of Nomar and get rid of Jeff Kent if he insists on being a pain in the ass. It may not show this year, but it's a move that will pay huge dividends in the future.

WHAT SHOULD BE THE DODGERS 2007 LINEUP BUT WON'T BE BECAUSE NED COLLETTI SUCKS BALLS

1. Rafael Furcal, SS
2. James Loney, 1B
3. Russell Martin, C
4. Matt Kemp, LF
5. Torii Hunter, CF
6. Jeff Kent, 2B
7. Andre Ethier, RF
8. Andy LaRoche, 3B
9. Pitcher
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Earlier today, I ran across THIS link. It's a couple of days old and the Mets have since agreed to a contract with Luis Castillo to play second base, but it was the photo caption that caught my eye.

David Eckstein is thought to be seeking a four-year contract worth about $36 million.

Seriously? You'd have to be a complete moron to give that much money to such a relatively useless player. I don't think $36 million is the going rate for "grit" and "moxie" these days, is it?