During the course of this week, I will be counting down the reasons to get excited about Spring Training 2009. Pitchers and catchers report on Saturday, so let's count 'em down.
Number 3: Jonathan Sanchez vs. Noah Lowry - Loser Gets Traded
Not many teams have a man fighting to be the fifth starter who is too talented to trade for a third baseman who nearly hit 30 home runs last season (Jorge Cantu) competing with a pitcher who led the team in wins a just two seasons ago. Chances are that whoever loses this battle will be traded for a bat, even if the loser is Sanchez despite what Sabean says. Sanchez has some gas in the 95mph territory and has been linked to the likes of Cantu and Edwin Encarnacion. Each of these players would drive in runs, but neither is a dependable third baseman. Lowry isn't likely to blow away batters like Sanchez can, but he keeps hitters off-ballance with his change-up. This will surely be a spirited battle that could last long into Spring Training despite Sabean's assertion that Sanchez has an early edge because Lowry missed all of last season.
Quick Manny Ramirez Update
I'm just as tired of the Ramirez rumors as most are, but there were some interesting developments today that indirectly affect Ramirez and his search for a new team. Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu signed with the Nationals and Angels respectively today. The Dodgers were hoping to land either of these two if they couldn't get Manny, so Ramirez and agent Scott Boras must be pretty happy to find out that the market for outfielders is drying up quickly with Spring Training starting next week. Will the Dodgers give in to Ramirez's demands now that they are quickly running out of options?
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