Dodgers close to bringing back Dioner Navarro

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The remote possibility that Russell Martin would return to the Dodgers became almost non-existent on Wednesday, as the team closed in on a deal with free-agent catcher Dioner Navarro.

Navarro, 26, was traded by the Dodgers to the Tampa Bay Rays in 2006, when Martin established himself as the team’s catcher. Like Martin, Navarro became a free agent last week when the Rays declined to tender him a contract. He left the Rays when he was excluded from their postseason roster.

A career .249 hitter, Navarro batted .194 in 48 games last season.

Martin’s agent has met with multiple clubs at the winter meetings and has received at least one offer from a team that isn’t the Dodgers.

-- Dylan Hernandez in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.