2005-2006 Offseason - C+
Signings: B+
Rafael Furcal - SS, 3 years, $39 Million
This was his best move of the offseason, and didn't look that way at first. Furcal turned out to not only be a solid ballplayer, but also have a bit of power potential. While error-prone, his range makes him a very good defensive shortstop.
Grady Little
Tough to hire a manager, Colletti did pretty well here, having chosen a guy who doesn't do stupid stuff like make his players bunt needlessly, etc. Was not harmful and was funny, all one can ask from a manager.
Bill Mueller - 2 yrs, $9 million
Mueller should have raised red flags regarding his health, but he wasn't too expensive. At least he was used to the defensive position, but still, he played 110 games in 2004 because of his knees, and he ended up playing his last game in May or something. But at least his age didn't clog up 3rd base in front of talent in the minors.
Kenny Lofton - 1 yr, $4 million
Not a bad move, really. A transition player, and he was still useful offensively. His defense, though, was attrocious.
Nomar Garciaparra - 1 yr, $6 million
Nomar was a pretty good signing. Low risk at the price, and he turned out being a useful 3-hitter. Transition to first base that year helped to preserve him well.
Sandy Alomar Jr - 1 yr, $600k (?)
Not a good signing, the guy was in no shape to be a catcher, but he was a useful pinch hitter. Should have DL-ed or released him when Martin came up, but didn't.
Trades: C-
Milton Bradley and Antonio Perez for Andre Ethier
Trading for a prospect from Oakland? Turned out it was one of Colletti's better trades. Ethier is a corner guy, and not a big power guy, but he put up a 113 OPS+ as a rookie. Not bad.
Duaner Sanchez and Steve Schmoll for Jae Seo and Tim Hamulack
This was not a good trade. Schmoll and Hamulack were both a wash, but while Sanchez was a useful reliever, Seo was a useless starter who had a career year the year before. I understand the gamble, but it did not work out. The Mets didn't benefit but so much, though, due to Sanchez's accident.
Chuck Tiffany and Edwin Jackson for Danys Baez and Lance Carter
BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD! Baez was overrated as a closer and collapsed, and Carter was already washed up. It's also not certain that these two pitchers are useless, either.
Non-Roster guys who made the team at some point: A
Takashi Saito - CL
Good signing. The Dodgers had tried getting him before, and he managed to bring the guy over. Not bad taking a chance on him, and he turned out saving the team's ass.
Joe Beimel - LHRP
Had a decent year despite his peripherals, thanks to a very high ground ball rate. Benefitted from being used well by Grady Little.
Ramon Martinez - UTIL
He could hit . . . for a little while.
Aaron Sele - RHP
Actually a decent starting pitcher. Unfortunately, he declined, particularly after going to the bullpen, but not bad for what he did as a starter.
Season Moves - C-
Navarro and Seo for Hendrickson and Hall
Seo is still a Devil Rays starter. Hall was released, got picked up by the White Sox, and his season is over due to surgery. Hendrickson is probably going to be a long reliever this year. Dioner Navarro, though, turned out to be useful, and he even threw out baserunners after LA traded him.
Odalis Perez, Blake Johnson, Julio Pimentel, and $10 million for Dessens
The real question: is Blake Johnson and Julio Pimentel worth Dessens and $3 million? The answer of course is no. Odalis should have just been released.
Sandy Alomar Jr for BJ Lamura
Not a bad trade, although it took to long to dump Alomar. Lamura looks like he might impress, even.
Cesar Izturis for Greg Maddux
Interesting trade. On the one hand, the Dodgers got a pitcher with a FIP under 4 and traded off a good glove/bad bat shortstop, swapping a gold glover for another gold glover. On the other hand, since they failed to offer Maddux arbitration, they got nothing. But still, they rid themselves of a player their offense could no longer afford and got Greg Maddux for him. Probably one of Colletti's best.
Joel Guzman for Julio Lugo
And then he ruined the Maddux trade with this one. Guzman had fallen out of favor with the LA brass, and Lugo was his chosen heir. Colletti got him just for the draft picks, again, indicating a low level of confidence in Guzman. Lugo played regularly for two weeks while Kent and Garciaparra were both injured, but afterwards was a bench player who was consistently useless. BOOOOO!
Jhonny Nunez for Marlon Anderson
Sometimes you get lucky, but the Dodgers got a friggin' leprechaun on this one. Seriously, Marlon Anderson was vital to the Dodgers September run, most notably as their 4th consecutive home run, with a shot to right field off Trevor Hoffman. Not bad, but this move may not look as good next year.
Overall, I give Colletti a C+ for his work. He had some nice work with the spring training invites, but more often than not he's a nightmare when trading. His best strategy is to offer a lot of money over a short period of time. Not bad with the non-roster guys either, I must say. He wasn't terrible, a little above average I guess, but I hold a higher standard, personally.
