The Dodgers have placed 3B Nomar Garciaparra on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left calf. This is starting to sound like a broken record for the Dodgers with Garciaparra. He has played in 9 games this season for the Dodgers and he is 7 for 31 (.226 avg, .637 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer, 5 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Dodgers have recalled rookie 3B Blake DeWitt to replace him on the roster and in the lineup. DeWitt has played in 20 games this season for the Dodgers and he is 15 for 59 (.254 avg, .709 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 7 RBIs and 1 stolen base.

With Nomar Garciaparra and Andy LaRoche both on the Disabled List to start the season, Blake DeWitt is the Dodgers’ starting 3B. The 22-year old lefty swinging DeWitt has never played above AA ball until he made the Dodgers out of spring training. He has played in 4 games for the Dodgers so far this season and he is 5 for 12 (.417 avg, 1.063 OPS) with 3 runs scored and 1 stolen base. DeWitt played in 128 games in A+AA ball last season and he was 151 for 517 (.292 avg) with 68 runs scored, 14 homers and 66 RBIs.

The bullpen looks to be one of the biggest team strengths of the Dodgers for the 2008 season. 38-year old righty Takashi Saito will be the stopper again for the Dodgers this season and he is one of the best around. He pitched in 63 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 2-1 with 39 saves, a 1.40 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP. Saito only allowed 33 hits and whiffed 78 batters in only 64.1 innings which shows how dominant he really is.

24-year old righty Jonathan Broxton is the closer of the future for the Dodgers. He pitched in 83 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 4-4 with 2 saves, a 2.85 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. He also whiffed an amazing 99 batters in only 82 innings last year.

31-year old lefty Joe Beimel will also pitch late in games for the Dodgers. He pitched in 83 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 4-2 with 1 save, a 3.88 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. Look for him to have another solid season for the Dodgers in 2008.

31-year old righty Scott Proctor will be a workhorse for the Dodgers. He pitched in 83 games for the Yankees & Dodgers last season and he was 5-5 with a 3.65 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Proctor is a Torre favorite so he will likely pitch in a ton of games this season for the Dodgers.

25-year old righty Ramon Troncoso won the final job in the Dodgers bullpen for this season. He pitched in 51 games (0 starts) in A+AA ball last season and he was 10-4 with 14 saves and a 2.42 ERA. Troncoso has now pitched in 173 games (20 starts) in his minor league career and he is 29-21 with 48 saves and a 3.54 ERA.

28-year old righty Yhency Brazoban will start the season in AAA ball but he will get called up if he is healthy. He pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 0-0 with a 16.20 ERA and a 3.60 WHIP. He also pitched in 14 games (0 starts) in A+AAA ball last season and he was 0-1 with 3 saves, a 2.00 ERA and a 0.83 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: A

The Dodgers elected to keep 25-year old righty reliever Ramon Troncoso over veteran Rudy Seanez for the last spot in the bullpen. This came as a little bit of a surprise as Seanez pitched pretty well for the Dodgers last season. He pitched in 73 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 6-3 with 1 save, a 3.79 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Seanez was quickly signed by the Phillies who desperately needed help out of the bullpen.

The Dodgers have a deep and talented starting rotation set up for the 2008 season. 30-year old Brad Penny will be the ace of the rotation in 2008. He started 33 games for the Dodgers last season and he was 16-4 with a 3.03 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. Penny has learned how to pitch instead of just being a thrower like he was earlier in his career.

35-year old righty Derek Lowe will be a solid #2 starter for the Dodgers this season. He pitched in 33 games (32 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 12-14 with a 3.88 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. He is a strike thrower that is very tough when he has his sinker working as not many batters can elevate it. Look for him to win at least 15 games for the Dodgers in 2008.

23-year old righty Chad Billingsley will be a full time starting pitcher this season and the Dodgers will be much better for it. He pitched in 43 games (20 starts) for the Dodgers last season and he was 12-5 with a 3.31 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. He also whiffed 141 batters in 147 innings pitched last season which shows what kind of stuff he has. The sky is the limit for Billingsley starting in 2008.

Hiroki Kuroda was brought over from Japan to be the #4 starter for the Dodgers this season. The 32-year old righty pitched 26 games in Japan last season and he was 12-8 with a 3.56 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. In his Japanese career, Kuroda has pitched in 271 games (74 complete games) and he is 103-89 with 1 save, a 3.69 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Most project Kuroda to be a back of the rotation starter in the majors as his stuff is not electric.

36-year old righty Esteban Loaiza won the #5 starting job in the spring. He started 7 games for the A’s & Dodgers last season and he was 2-4 with a 5.79 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He was injured most of last season so the Dodgers have their fingers crossed that he still has something left. After all, from 2003-2006 Loaiza compiled a 54-35 record.

35-year old righty Jason Schmidt will be back at some point this season but he is starting the year on the D.L. He started 6 games for the Dodgers last season and he was 1-4 with a 6.31 ERA and a 1.79 WHIP. The Dodgers hope that Schmidt can give them something in 2008. He has pitched in 319 games (310 starts) in his major league career and he is 128-94 with a 3.94 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP.

20-year old lefty Clayton Kershaw is one of the best pitching prospects in all of baseball but the Dodgers are a little bit leery of rushing him to the majors. He started 25 games in two levels of the minor leagues last season and he was 8-7 with a 2.95 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Kershaw only allowed 89 hits and whiffed 163 batters in only 122 innings last season.

35-year old righty Chan Ho Park will start the season in AAA and it’s up in the air as to whether or not he has anything left. He started 1 game for the Mets last season and he was 0-1 with a 15.75 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP. Park also started 24 games in AAA ball last season and he was 6-14 with a 5.97 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: B+