The Dodgers brought in a lot of players to compete for the 2B job in 2010. It appears that 34-year old righty swinging Ronnie Belliard will get the bulk of the P.T. at 2B in 2010. He played in 24 games last season for the Dodgers after coming over in a trade with the Nationals and he was 27 for 77 (.351 avg, 1.034 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 5 homers and 17 RBIs. He played in 110 games overall with the Nationals and Dodgers in which he was 73 for 264 (.277 avg, .776 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 10 homers, 39 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Belliard played in 60 games at 2B last season and he made 4 errors there while showing good range. He is the best hitter of the 2B the Dodgers have assembled this spring and that is why I think he will be the starter in 2010.

35-year old righty swinging Jamey Carroll will likely be the Dodgers’ top utility man this season. He played in 93 games for the Indians last season and he was 87 for 315 (.276 avg, .695 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 2 homers, 26 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. The Dodgers expect that Carroll will help them out a lot off the bench in 2010. He only made 1 error in 56 games at 2B last season for the Indians but he showed pretty poor range.

24-year old lefty swinging Blake DeWitt thought he was going to be the starting 2B for the Dodgers in 2010 but that was before they brought back Ronnie Belliard. He played in 31 games for the Dodgers last season and he was 10 for 49 (.204 avg, .633 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 2 homers and 4 RBIs. He didn’t make any errors at 2B last season while showing pretty outstanding range. Look for DeWitt to likely start the season in AAA and get a call from the Dodgers if either Belliard or starting 3B Casey Blake gets injured.

31-year old righty swinging Nick Green played a lot of shortstop for the Red Sox last season. He only played in 7 games at 2B for the Red Sox last season but he didn’t make any errors while showing poor range. Green’s best asset is his versatility in the field and that is what gives him his best chance to make the Dodgers’ Opening Day roster.

32-year old switch-hitting Alfredo Amezaga missed most of last season due to injury. He didn’t play 2B for the Marlins but he is a very capable defender there.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2B IN 2010: C-

The Dodgers have signed 39-year old lefty swinging outfielder Brian Giles to a minor league deal. Giles played in 61 games for the Padres last season and he was 43 for 225 (.191 avg, .548 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 2 homers and 23 RBIs. He had some knee problems last season and the Dodgers hope that is a thing of the past because he was solid in 2008 for the Padres hitting .306 with a .854 OPS in 147 games. Giles has now played in 1,847 games in his major league career and he is 1,897 for 6,527 (.291 avg, .902 OPS) with 1,121 runs scored, 287 homers, 1,078 RBIs and 109 stolen bases. I like this signing for the Dodgers because if Giles’ knees are o.k. the man can still play.

The Dodgers have signed 29-year old righty swinging catcher Justin Knoedler to a minor league deal. He played in 17 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 12 for 60 (.200 avg, .560 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 homers and 5 RBIs. Knoedler has played in 14 games in his major league career and he is 2 for 18 (.111 avg, .269 OPS). This was a organizational depth signing and little more.

The Los Dodgers have re-signed 33-year old righty starter/reliever Jeff Weaver to a minor league deal. He pitched in 28 games (7 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 6-4 with a 3.65 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. Weaver has now pitched in 312 games (274 starts) in his major league career and he is 99-118 with 2 saves, a 4.67 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. He did a good job for the Dodgers as the long man out of the pen also making some spot starts. That’s probably the same role he’ll have with the team in 2010.

The Dodgers have signed 32-year old switch-hitting IF/OF Alfredo Amezaga to a minor league deal. He will make $650,000 bucks if he makes the Marlins with a additional $800,000 bucks in incentives. Amezaga played in 27 games for the Marlins last season and he was 15 for 69 (.217 avg, .528 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 5 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 544 games in his major league career and he is 334 for 1,331 (.251 avg, .652 OPS) with 167 runs scored, 12 homers, 106 RBIs and 49 stolen bases. Amezaga can play anywhere in the outfield and everywhere in the infield except first base. If he is healthy he will be a asset for the Dodgers’ bench.