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So, I love Dodger Blogs. I’m biased because I’m writing one, but I really do like them. When you live far away from local Dodger news, anytime you can grab a morsel and feel close to the Mother Ship, you just feel home again.

This is especially true on a day like today. Why today, the eleventh of February, in the year of our Lord 2009? Well, according to three different blogs, the Dodgers are going to sign Manny Ramirez by tomorrow, as well as Orlando Hudson. Will it happen? Who knows, but the suspense is great.

Here was my route:

I started on Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness which let me back to MLBRumors.com.

This is on the Dodger News page, but they didn’t break the story, the East Valley Tribune did here.

I also saw it on Dodger Dugout.  Once you see it three times, it’s good enough for me.  I never would have seen this if I was just going to Foxsports, or the Dodgers website.

There’s a lot of weight on this rumor, but if he comes through, the guy will forever establish himself as legitimate. If he doesn’t, not a huge party foul, because the hope of it happening was great, and how can he really control the actions of the Dodgers and especially Manny?

Nice points to Scott Boras today. Abreu signs with the Angels and Dunn signs with the Nationals. This means the Dodgers have to go with Manny. Perhaps, the Dodgers had something working with Manny so they told Abreu and Dunn no.  Or maybe the Dodgers really are limited to Manny. Either way, it sure does look nice from the Boras point of view.

So – you heard it here fourth – check out the Dodgers website tomorrow – here’s hoping at least Manny is in Blue tomorrow.

Manny Ramirez from Dodgers.com

So I’m a fan of Manny.  I really am.  What he did for the Dodgers last year changed the whole season and gave hope to the fans.  He was the hero we’ve all wanted, and he was clutch in every way.  Having said that, I believe the fans were move motivated by the winning and his clutch-ness, than just Manny alone.  He was his own personality, which people liked, but the fans liked more that the Dodgers were winning.  If the Dodgers have Manny, and they take 3rd place, it’s a totally different discussion.

So now that Manny has rejected offer number 3, it’s time to move on.  At a certain point, it’s obvious if sides will come to meet in-between.  That doesn’t seem to be the case with Manny and the Dodgers.  I give the Dodgers credit for holding their stance to a short term contract and knowing the market.  Even more, they have come from different angles, but Manny hasn’t changed his stance.

I personally like the idea of signing Wolf, Sheets, Hudson and Dunn to 1 year deals worth 8 mil each.  Yes, the 32 mil is worth more than the 25 for Manny, but taking the budget from ~65 mil to ~97 isn’t that bad considering all the holes are met.  You get pitching – #1.  You get a bat – Dunn.  You get a solid second bat in Hudson.  Worst case, you have too much pitching, but I don’t know that this is a bad thing.  Since Sheets and Wolf and Schmidt are all wildcards, if you need to move them in and out of a bullpen role, there is always that flexibility.

Just for fun – I did a comparison from MLB.com.

Dunn:

Hudson:

Ramirez:

Interesting results.  Adding Dunn and Hudson does give most of what Ramirez could give, but without the Average.  Manny still rules on that count.  When it comes to clutch-factor…you can’t really measure that, and it’s hard to say either of those guys will match Manny.

Manny would be the first choice, especially at 1 yr and 25 mil; but for 3 or 4 years at 25 mil, it just isn’t going to happen.  Old baggage doesn’t leave quickly, and what Manny did is finally coming back to haunt him.

So what do you think Dodger Fans – take the poll below and tell me if you think the Dodgers should move on.