Dodgers close to signing infielder Juan Uribe to three-year deal

The Dodgers are close to signing infielder Juan Uribe to a three-year deal. An announcement could come as soon as Tuesday. Multiple media outlets have reported the deal at $21 million.

Uribe’s signing also would likely mean the end to the brief, if unspectacular, run of Ryan Theriot at second base.

Uribe would certainly offer an upgrade at second for the Dodgers. He batted only .248 for the Giants last season but had a career-high 24 home runs and 85 RBI. That’s some pop the Dodgers could really use.

He falls short of that major bat the Dodgers need in the middle of the lineup, but on a power-challenged team, it’s a definite improvement over where the Dodgers were entering the offseason.

And then there’s the added bonus of taking those home runs and RBI away from the Giants.

Three years is a lot for the 31-year-old infielder, who can also play third and short, and longer than the Dodgers probably wanted to go.

At the end of next season, however, the contracts of third baseman Casey Blake and shortstop Rafael Furcal expire, so at least it gives the Dodgers some needed infield flexibility. And it’s a fairly weak winter for significant free agents.

Uribe has a career on-base percentage of only .300 -- that’s even worse than Theriot’s .348 -- so he’s far from the perfect addition.

But he is a run producer and a pretty clutch one. In the postseason, he had only six hits but drove in nine runs.

Uribe’s signing would continue an active offseason for the Dodgers, who previously signed starters Ted Lilly, Hiroki Kuroda and Jon Garland.

Adding Uribe would still leave the Dodgers needing to fill holes in left field and at catcher, plus shoring up the bullpen.

-- Steve Dilbeck

Photo: Juan Uribe. Chris Carlson / Associated Press

Comments

[skyharbor]

Anyone notice Juan Uribe's middle name is "schmidt"...this rush to mediocrity is fueled by a desperate attempt to retain season ticketholders who thus far can barely manage a yawn. Deja Vu all over again. I suppose if you show up in Las Vegas and put a buck down on the red 9 you do have a chance of winning.

[HI Dodger Fan]

Another Ned Free Agent debacle. He will surely be benched by mid-July as his average hovers around the Mendoza line, his power disappears and his OBP can't hit the .250 mark. Is there even a brain in that head of Ned's? With respect to Frank's money, evidently not. I just cannot believe how this guy still has a job.

[Chris]

what a waste of money.....how about crawford or beltre, better upside. Uribe is an average player at best. Spend the money on one big bat rather then three average bats.

[Jesse Zamarripa]

I have no idea what the mccourts are up to but with frank shelling out money he must be confident a settlement is in place and he will keep the team..... which is bad for all dodger fans

[waus]

Clueless....stupid is as stupid does.

Run Forrest run..........

[skyharbor]

Giants paid Uribe $3.25 million for 2010. Dodgers reportedly are paying him $21 million for 2011-13. And now you know why 'some' players show up proclaiming "the Dodgers are the team I have always dreamed of playing for!".......yeah....no kidding!!

[Jesse Zamarripa]

well at least its not tired old derek jeter for 15 mil a year

[N.P.Krohn]

Alot of mixed feelings here. Very familiar with Uribe having lived in Co. when he was coming up and have been in the bay area his entire time with the gynts. Cons: wildly free swinging extremely emotional constantly hurt and possibly juicing to stay in the lineup, might be older than officially listed, best pos. is at third(made a couple mind boggling gems at 2b last year but more mind boggling mistakes. also his deep family ties to gynts(his uncle was ill-fated slick fielding SS Jose) might mean less motivation in another uni. Pros: Fills are most glaring need of RHB with pop and .300 potential. Has ability to play multiple pos. when needed and it doesn't appear to affect his performance at the plate. Plays with passion(didn't see it so much with other teams but did with gynts).
In the end i feel it comes down to $. If he wants significantly more than 20 mil for those 3yrs it is a very bad signing. I think he is using us to fatten the pot for his return to gynts. It will take more money than is worth the risk to lure him away. Unless it perf. laden bonus', but would love to be proved wrong.

[OldBrooklynFan]

This is definitely good news and some sources have him already signed. He brings a very needed ability to hit home runs, a thing that is lacking with this team.

[sc]

why? I am a Dodger fan who lives in San Francisco where I am personally glad to see Uribe leave the Bay Area. All I can say is "oh boy, here we go again . . ."

[HI Dodger Fan]

one thing to note about uribe...he has played at Coors Field, US Bank (Commiskey) and AT&T. All better hitting parks that Dodger Stadium. He will hit 15 HRs at most in LA and he will hit .250 or less, with an OBP less than .300. Look at his past performance...Look where he has played... Look at how Dodger Stadium negatively affects all hitters. And Ned is going to pay this guy $21M and we have to keep him for three more years? It's ridiculous.

[Jorge]

This is what you get for $7 million per year?!
.240-.250 hitter
Free swinger low on Base percentage
14-18 hr's
60-70 Rbi

He is injury prone and played injured for the Giants!
I bet as most dodgers do claim injury time and not play through

Not quite Jason Schmidt debacle but a good sequel!

[Mike]

$7 million a year is ridiculous for Uribe.

The Dodgers desperately need a bat at 3B and in LF. Jay Gibbons is not an everyday player.

[Higgins]

Can't wait til this guy shows up to Spring Training "relaxed about his long-term contract" (aka: 30 pounds heavier). This is a disaster of Andruw-like proportions. Why are Ned and Frank pushing the panic button in November? This is a guy you sign to a one-year deal once all other avenues have been exhausted in, say, February. I'll be the one to say "I told you so" when he's hitting .180 in June. This is a bummer.

[Brian]

All of you people sound like non Dodger fans. If you are not a Dodger fan then don't leave your freakin comments on here. Juan Uribe signing with the Dodgers is a major plus. Except, don't non-tender Ryan Theriot and put Juan Uribe there, put Casey Blake in a bench role and have Juan Uribe start at third and Ryan Theriot at second. Everybody keeps saying what about Beltre! What about Beltre? He left Los Angeles cause he was not satisfied with the way things were going, he is not going to come back no matter how much you pay him dumb people! Juan Uribe is a great upgrade to Casey Blake not Ryan Theriot, Ryan Theriot's defense is way better than Uribe's. Now the Dodgers need to either trade Loney and some good prospects for Prince Fielder and sign him long term or sign Paul Konerko to a three-year deal plus incentives. And go after Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth in left field.

[Harold]

He was the best available 2B on the market, but it's an overpay. If the Dodgers have serious money to spend and do spend it in the OF and on a C or RP, then goodie for us. If this is the major signing for the position players, then yuck.

[Sangroazul]

Uh, I don't know if anyone is asking,"What about Beltre? What about beltre? First off, I like the optimism b/c God knows we need it. But do u seriously think this front office now has its sights set on Werth, Crawford, Beltre, Dunn, Cliff Lee, or any other "big name" acquisition?? In case u haven't been watching, this organization doesn't work like that. We will over pay for fat, has-been, mid-level talent all day long! And we will sit idly as other teams (presumably with more money) gobble up the quality players. Then once the dust settles, we will sift around thru the garbage bin again to see if there's another deal (on the cheap) to be made. Oh make no mistake, the Doyers may not be done dealin' yet, but don't expect a quality batter any time soon. (i hope i am wrong)... Btw, good luck once again to our rotation nursing those 2-1 and 1-0 leads... Jeeeez!!

[jq]

huh?!

At least we got Wallach and Lopes back. Too bad don't play anymore and it's not the 80's!

[Steve Wimer]

Bring back the O-Dog!

[Joe the Plumber]

Uribe is indeed an upgrade but from bad to medicore.

[bob cuomo]

Wow, I don't know about a three-year deal for $21 million for him. That's a bit much. I think a one-year deal for $4 or $5 million would've been better. Sure, he has a little pop, but I'm not sure about his defense, especially if he's at second.

[Higgins]

Brian, you're missing the entire point:

"Now the Dodgers need to either trade Loney and some good prospects for Prince Fielder and sign him long term or sign Paul Konerko to a three-year deal plus incentives. And go after Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth in left field."

Because they've just pissed away money and years on Uribe, they CAN'T sign any more big free agents. Konerko is out. Dunn is out. Crawford and Werth were out to begin with. The only thing left is a bunch of cheap short-term solutions and has-beens to fill in the gaps. Get ready for a lineup that looks like this come mid-June:

Carroll - ss
Kemp - cf
Ethier - rf
Gibbons - lf
Uribe - 2b
Loney - 1b
Blake - 3b
Barajas - c

UGH! See you in 2012. I guess...

[BlueOrf]

Uribe is hot off of being a World Series hero with our great rival. Hmm. This sounds a bit like asking Luis Gonzalez to do it for us now, too, except Uribe is no Luis Gonzalez. The fact is, we've never had much luck with shining Giants (cf. Marichal, Haller, Schmidt). We've never really had much luck with ANY big shots from other teams on the downhill of their careers (think Gary Sheffield, Dick Allen, Dick Stuart, not mention Androo and dear Garrett Anderson--the list is a long one). The only exceptions that come to mind are Jimmy Wynn, Reggie Smith and Tommy John (a miracle in every way). Again, Uribe's total career is not up to most of the aforementioned. Can Uribe retain the magic he gave the Giants in that brief moment last year? Maybe. But it ain't worth three years to find out. I'd make it two years at $12 million max. If the Giants outbid you, let em. What we really need is Jason Werth back. THAT would make sense. He was ours. We let him go too soon, just like Jon Garland. Now we have Garland back. If they are talking 3 years and $21 mill. for Uribe, hike it up to $30 mill and get Werth.

[Higgins]

Furthermore, Brian... how dare you imply that we are not Dodger fans, simply because we don't like the Uribe signing. Just because we don't blindly bow down and kiss Colletti's behind every time he makes a move doesn't make us any less of a fan.

Plus, last time I checked, just about everyone and their mother hates this contract. You are in the minority, dude. If your definition of a "real Dodger fan" is to support the Uribe signing, then opening day will have maybe 10,000 fans. MAYbe.

[jason]

3 years and 21 million for him? Wow. This jumps near the top of a list full of bad Ned moves that I thought would be impossible to get near . We just spend a bunch of money on avg guys instead of buying very good players and then building around them. If we are lucky 20 times outta 600 trys he will produce a HR .Every ten times this guy comes up he will make it on base only 3 times, and that's proven, by him.. and was just rewarded 21 million for that.

[McCourts Must Go]

We let Hudson walk but jump at signing Uribe for 3 years at 7mil per? What a waste. I admit, it's nice to see the Dodgers making an attempt and spending some dollars, but Uribe? Puhleeze.

Any chance Ned is still on the Giant's payroll?

- MMG

[alanw19]

Ex-Giant, giving him a raise from $3.25M to $7M a year?

Ned is clueless as ever. Indeed, how does he have this job? Anybody believing this is a good signing is welcome to their opinion, but I think it stinks. Its another fat boy (230 on a 6-foot frame), kind of like Belliard. Good riddance to him, too.

It takes money away from something - anything - else we could have done. He is not an upgrade on Theriot - its a lateral move at best. Remember, the 24 HR was a career high. In other words, unless he's juicing, its not likely to keep going up at age 31. All the outs he's going to make in return for 24 HR? Sorry, not buying it. Maybe if his glove was considered gold, but its not. He's a .250 hitter who draws a walk about once a week.

I hope the best for the Dodgers, and therefore hope I am wrong. But I think I'm more right than wrong on this one.

[Garrett]

I like the signing for team flexibility, adding a passionate and clutch player, adding some pop in the lineup. The risk is his being injury-prone from steroids abuse, but, in terms of what's out there, I think this is a decent move.

Werth and Beltre, much as I personally like them (and liked them when they were Dodgers), have already been here, been spurned, and their agent is Scott Boras! He wants them on the Yankees, Phils, or Red Sox. Big, big bucks from strong contenders.

Uribe can play 2b, backup Blake at 3b and Furcal at ss. Terrific! Plus, he makes up for pop we don't have from Loney. Let Loney hit for avg. and OBP--we've now got Uribe for the long ball and clutch hitting.

As for whom to sign next? Aside from a relief pitcher, I'd say a player like Adam Dunne, Bret Hawpe, or Lance Berkman, realistically. If they can't play lf, maybe Loney can!

I've liked Colletti's moves on the midlist players. His busts have been the big ticket ones. This one seems wise to me.

And Blueorf, you've forgotten about former Giant Tom Haller. He signed with us at the end, as did Met Jerry Grote and Oriole Rick Dempsey, and they all played very well, though didn't much hit, as their role was to catch and bring along a young staff. Stopped the gap between Roseboro and Ferguson/Yeager.

[Brian]

Guys!!! Just heard out of the mouth of Ken Rosenthal and Tom Verducci that Paul Konerko would be willing to take less money to move closer to his family in Arizona. SIGN HIM NOW DO NOT WAIT ON THIS!!!!!!!!!! Sign him to a three year deal with some incentives in each year. He can still hit 30 plus homers and can still play 1st base very well. Use Loney as trade bait for a good left fielder. Use Loney and maybe Xavier Paul and two more prospects in a trade with rival Arizona for Justin Upton. That outfield would look nice Upton, Kemp, Ethier. Damn that looks good! SIGN PAUL KONERKO NOW IF YOU WANT TO WIN A FANBASE AND TRADE LONEY FOR JUSTIN UPTON they need a first basemen. Please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also as far as the catching aspect goes sign Russell Martin to a one year deal with a club option for 2012. Also go and sign Jason Varitek to a one year deal with a club option for 2012. Varitek will stay healthy for you all year, if Martin is not healthy use a Varitek and Ellis duo. Great move if you ask me.

[Brian]

Higgins we can go toe to toe on this all you want. I am not calling everybody non Dodger fans because they disagree with the Uribe signing. I am calling everybody no Dodger fans because no matter what blog I read on this latimes website every single person except a couple are talking trash about their Dodgers. Now, make no mistake I hate the McCourts as much as anybody! I can't really get mad at Ned Colletti considering who and what he has to deal with above him. But, Ned Colletti is way better than Paul Depodesta. I love the Dodgers! Always have and always will! There are things they do that disappoint me but, I am not going to constantly complain about it. That is just crybaby too much time on my hands BS. Have a good night everybody. You too Higgins.

[Andrew Ablong]

After reading a few of the comments up above, I can definetely say that I am surprised at all of the hate and negativity on here. Now, I'm not saying that I support or don't support this signing, but come on people?! What happened to being optimistic about "next year"?

Assuming we don't trade any of our pitchers, we have arguably the best starting five in the National League. Add in what I expect to be rebound years by Ethier, Kemp, and Martin if we keep him, and the addition of Davey Lopes as our first-base coach (this move is gonna help our running game A LOT), and this signing of Uribe that will give us some much needed power (not saying I think Uribe was the way to go to get that power), and we have a team that is definetly a contender in 2011.

Finally, what is with all the hate for Colletti on here? Sure, he made a few bad signings (Jones, Schmidt, Pierre), but when you look at it, under his regime, this team has improved. So if you don't like one of Colletti's moves, OK, but insult the move, not the man who made it. After all, it is just a game.

[realistic_dodger_fan]

Haha lol I started laughing Loney Paul and two prospects for Upton hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha..They are going to want two plus prospects and two medium that are close to major league ready and ones that they can control for than just 2 years. Plus Paul is just a medium prospect.
Oh man come on. Look this signing is terrible. 3 years for 21 mill. Terrible avg, terrible obp. This is not the what the lineup needed it didnt need another extremely free swinger. The only pros are that he has pop and can play defensively.

[HI Dodger Fan]

I am so sick of Ned it hurts. He overpaid on the annual salary and gave him more years than he deserved. This is just a horrible signing. This is a middle of the order run producer we needed? Are you kidding? Never in my wildest dreams did I think that our big bopper acquisition would be ...... Juan Uribe. Just think about it.... It reeks!!

And why does this signing reek? Not only because Uribe is not a big bopper... but because it takes away $21M big ones from a good signing. Really, how much money does Frank think he has? He can't print money that's for sure. His team will reek and the fans won't come. When is it going to get into his thick head that Ned is just completely incompetent!!!!

How many ridiculous ex-Giant acquisitions are we going to have to endure with Ned in charge? Schmidt, Tomko, Sweeney, Russ Ortiz, Bill Mueller? Now Uribe? for $21M?

[These Dodgers Suck!!]

Mark my words, the Dodgers will regret this signing ...
but what else is new?

[neoncactus]

I agree, no way that Loney and Paul would get Upton from a team outside the division, much less from a division rival. Arizona would make it hurt a lot more for us, just like San Diego would do for Adrian Gonzalez.

I think the money for Uribe is too much, but that's usually the case with free agents, and I think Ned did a good job adding some power, defense and flexibility in the lineup. He did a good job shoring up the pitching rotation so that there should be no room for anyone named Ortiz next season. Going into the offseason, there was really no question that the Dodgers would be going after Crawford, Lee, or Beltre.

And you want Beltre? Really? Before last season, his last great season was his last with the Dodgers. Take him out of Fenway and back into Dodger Stadium and you probably aren't going to see a great offensive year. Solid, maybe, but not nearly worth what Boras is asking for. And Werth? If his asking price drops, but again, he is a solid defensive player with some power, but Dodger Stadium and Philly's stadium are far different parks, and he won't have Utley and Howard in that lineup to protect him. I'm not sold on him.