The Skinny:
The Dodgers come into 2010 more or less with the same core they had last year when they won the NL West.  With the owners of the team undergoing a messy and very public divorce money seemed tight in the offseason and the Dodgers made few moves of any consequence to add key players while dumping the salaries of Randy Wolf, Jason Schmidt and Juan Pierre - knocking $30 million dollars off last season's books.  Some of that was reinvested so that the team could keep key players.  Still the payroll looks to be down some $15 million as compared to last year.

Andre Ethier had six walk-off hits last season.

Photo by Insert Photographer, used under creative commons license.

Hopping off the Plane at LAX:
IF - Jamey Caroll (Free Agent from Indians)
IF - Nick Green* (Free Agent from Red Sox)
UT - Alfredo Amezaga* (Free Agent from Marlins)
OF - Brian Giles* (Free Agent from Padres)
OF - Reed Johnson (Free Agent from Cubs)
RHP - Justin Miller* (Free Agent from Giants)
RHP - Josh Towers* (Free agent from Yankees)
RHP - Eric Gagne* (Free agent, unsigned 2009)

Leaving LA:
1B - Jim Thome (Free Agent signed with Twins)
2B - Orlando Hudson (Free Agent signed with Twins)
IF - Juan Castro (Free Agent, signed with Phillies)
IF - Mark Loretta (retired)
OF - Juan Pierre (Traded to White Sox)
LHP - Randy Wolf (Free Agent signed with Brewers)
LHP - Eric Milton (Free Agent -unsigned)
RHP - Jon Garland (Free agent signed with Padres)
RHP - Jason Schmidt (Free Agent - unsigned)

* Signed minor league deal

In the wings are Cory Wade and John Link both of whom have upside and could take a step forward at any moment.   Barring injury this appears to be as close to an automatic bullpen as any in the game today.

The Dodgers attack while strong may not be as good as it was last year.  Last year the team was fourth overall in runs scored, but ranked 23rd in home runs which showed a distinct lack of power, but good plate discipline.   Without Juan Pierre to provide depth the Dodgers might find that scoring runs a lot harder.

Of course that could change if they get better production out of players like Rafael Furcal (who was disappointing in terms of average and steals), Manny Ramirez (who hit just .255 after returning from suspension for violating MLB's drug policy and .218 after Sept. 1 of last season) and Russell Martin who just totally collapsed (putting up seasonal numbers of .250-7-53 with just 11 steals) after an amazing 2008. Martin has since added 25 pounds of muscle this offseason.

Weaknesses:  Lack of depth, uncertainty in terms of starting pitching.
The Dodgers were able to keep the core of their team basically untouched this season but it cost Juan Pierre.  You could argue that the Dodger won the division because of Pierre, who stepped in and took over for Manny Ramirez after Manny was suspended 50 games for violating MLBs drug policy.  All Pierre did was hit .308, drive in 31, score 57 times and steal 30 bases while playing.  Oh and did I mention that he played in 145 of the Dodgers' games last season?

That kind of versatility is hard to come by and the Dodgers don't have anyone who can step in and do that in the outfield.  A bench of Jason Repko, Brian Giles and Reed Johnson looks a little uninspiring when compared to Pierre.  One major injury or another suspension for a key outfielder could leave the Dodgers hurting big time.  The infield isn't much stronger as the backups project to be Jamey Carroll and Doug Mienkiewicz, who based on impact, most of the baseball world thought had retired years ago.

The starting pitching isn't a slam dunk either.  Despite the fact that the Dodgers finished first overall in terms of ERA among major league teams, the starting pitching wasn't overwhelmingly successful.  Ace Clayton Kershaw posted a terrific 2.79 ERA and 1.23 WHIP last season but didn't last long enough to win more than eight of his games in over 30 starts.  Chad Billingsley managed a meager 12 wins to lead the team, and wasn't terribly impressive in terms of ERA 4.03.  Then there is Hiroki Kuroda, an individual who has struggled with durability - managing just 117 innings last year.  The fourth spot belongs to Vicente Padilla who hasn't managed a sub 4.50 ERA since 2003.  The fifth spot is up for grabs but has plenty of contenders including young Eric Stults, bullpen pitcher James McDonald and a horde of retreads including Josh Towers, Russ Ortiz, Charlie Haeger, Scott Elbert, Jeff Weaver and Ramon Ortiz.

Potential Lineup
SS Rafael Furcal
CF Matt Kemp
RF Andre Ethier
LF Manny Ramirez
1B James Loney
3B Casey Blake
C Russell Martin
2B Ronnie Belliard

Rotation:
Clayton Kershaw
Hiroki Kuroda
Chad Billingsley
Vicente Padilla
Up for Grabs

Closer:
Jonathan Broxton

One Question which Needs Answering:
Can the Dodgers starting pitching live up to its potential?  Both Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw have threatened to become elite pitchers, but neither has really taken that step forward.  For both, the time, and the chance to do so, is now.  The Dodgers will need one of them at the very least to step forward if they want to repeat as division champs.

Prediction:
The Dodgers held onto the Western division by their fingernails last year as both the Giants and Rockies made late-season runs at them.  Neither of those teams has gone away and both have the potential to be better this year.  Uncertainty in their pitching situation could cost them the division title or even a playoff spot.  Their lack of depth will almost certainly come back to halt them and the Dodgers will probably miss the playoffs unless Billingsley and Kershaw step up and are able to go deeper into games for the win.

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