The Dodgers have signed 37-year old lefty swinging outfielder Garret Anderson to a minor league deal. Anderson played in 135 games for the Braves last season and he was 133 of 496 (.268 avg, .705 OPS) with 52 runs scored, 13 homers and 61 RBIs. He has now played in 2,148 games in his major league career and he is 2,501 of 8,485 (.295 avg, .790 OPS) with 1,076 runs scored, 285 homers, 1,353 RBIs and 79 stolen bases. This was a excellent signing for the Dodgers as Anderson should give them a lethal bat off the bench for a nice price.

34-year old righty reliever Eric Gagne has signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers that will pay him $500,000 bucks if he makes the pitching staff plus he can earn potentially another $500,000 bucks in incentives. Gagne pitched in 17 games (all starts) in Independent Ball last season and he was 6-6 with a 4.65 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. He last pitched in the majors in 2008 with the Brewers. Gagne has now pitched in 402 games (48 starts) in his major league career and he is 33-26 with 187 saves, a 3.47 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. It never hurts to bring back players like Gagne on minor league deals.

The Dodgers have signed 33-year old righty starting pitcher Seth Etherton to a minor league deal. Etherton pitched in 28 games (26 starts) in AAA-ball last season and he was 11-8 with a 5.04 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. He last pitched in the majors in 2006 with the Royals. Etherton has now pitched in 23 games (all starts) in his major league career and he is 9-7 with a 6.30 ERA ad a 1.57 WHIP. He will likely start the season in AAA and get a call to the Dodgers if the need arises.

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.