The Dream Situation
Now that the Dodgers will be taking October off, we now turn towards next season. Because of the promising youth, next season already has a good foundation. Ned Colletti, however, has not been putting good veteran talent around that youth that can help the Dodgers succeed. Last year's additions were all over-the-hill veterans who were either always hurt or unproductive (i.e. Jason Schmidt and Luis Gonzalez).

Wouldn't it be nice for once for the Dodgers to sign a player who didn't have more question marks than career homers? The Dodgers haven't landed a marquee free agent since Kevin Brown, and we all know how that turned out. To get to that next level we need to sign an A-Rod or trade for a Miguel Cabrera. Signing more aging veteran stop-gaps will only keep the team afloat until the stretch run, when they will inevitably fade just like this year.

So if I ever come across Shaq any time soon, I'll ask him to turn into Kazaam and give him these three wishes for the Dodgers' offseason:

1) Fire Grady Little - This whole Jeff Kent debacle has taught us all two things: a) Jeff Kent is really old. And b) Nobody on the team listens to Grady Little anymore. Whenever you have a team with as clear cut of an age divide as the Dodgers, you need to have a manager who can motivate the youngsters enough to perform for their older teammates. Grady Little is not the man to do that. His quiet drabble couldn't motivate Travis Henry to jump into a bed full of naked women. Of course, it helps to have veterans who aren't total assholes like Jeff Kent, but it's already too late for that seeing as how the Dodgers have picked up his $9 million option for next year.

2) Sign A-Rod or trade for Miguel Cabrera - Last offseason's biggest need was a power hitter that could strike fear into opposing pitchers. This offseason, that need still stands. I know getting A-Rod will cost the Dodgers a shitload of money ($30 mil a year?) but the Dodgers make plenty of it. They're going to again draw 4 million fans this season, so you know they could afford him. What remains to be seen is whether McCourt's cheap ass will pony up the dough and whether Ned Colletti will ever swallow his puke and work with Scott Boras again.

Cabrera would be just as great as A-Rod. He's got one year left on his contract with the Marlins, with who there is a -70% chance he will resign with. The fish will want to do what they always do: trade him and restock their farm system with blue chip talent. Enter the Dodgers. They can offer Cabrera the big money he wants, plus he's way younger than A-Rod. The way I see it, there are 4 Dodger kids who are untouchable: Russell Martin, James Loney, Matt Kemp, and Chad Billingsley. Everyone else can be used as trade bait. It'll be extremely difficult to nab Cabrera without giving up any of those guys, but some combination of Andre Ethier, Jonathan Broxton, and the pu-pu platter deluxe will have to do.

3) Pick up a decent middle-of-the-rotation starter who wont get hurt - Last year Jason Schmidt and Randy Wolf were signed to help bolster the rotation. Both were done by the All-Star Break. Three spots in next year's rotation seem to be in good shape with Brad Penny, Derek Lowe, and Chad Billingsley, but the last two spots are wide open. There's no way I feel safe trusting Esteban Loaiza anymore, and Schmidt can't be relied on to stay healthy. Neither can Wolf, with whom the team has an option that they are unlikely to pick up. Can't they nab Greg Maddux back from the Padres for another 1-year deal? But knowing Ned Colletti, he'll just end up resigning Brett Tomko.

Week 3 Picks
After a terrible showing last week, I must rebound or face digging a hole that could possibly cause me to lose money. That is, if I had bet on the games. Which I didn't, because gambling is illegal. So here ya go:

Baltimore (-4) over Cleveland
Tampa Bay (+3) over Carolina
Chicago (-3) over Detroit
Dallas (-13) over St. Louis
Green Bay (-1.5) over Minnesota
Houston (-3) over Atlanta
Indianapolis (-9.5) over Denver
Oakland (+4) over Miami
Buffalo (+3.5) over NY Jets
Philadelphia (-3) over NY Giants
Pittsburgh (-6) over Arizona
Kansas City (+11.5) over San Diego
Seattle (-2) over San Francisco
New England (-7) over Cincinnati