On Saturday at 9 p.m. PDT, the Major League Baseball free agency period began. For the Los Angeles Dodgers, this means a lot of paperwork, as they have 10 free agents. The Dodgers have more free agents than any other team in baseball. No other team has more than eight free agents. Adam Rubin of ESPN New York has the full list of MLB free agents.
Starting pitcher Hiroki Kuroda is the headliner among the 10 Dodgers to file for free agency. The Dodgers would love to have Kuroda back for another season, but the right-hander, who turns 37 in February, hasn't yet decided whether he wants to come back to Los Angeles or return to his native Japan. Kuroda signed a one-year, $12 million contract last winter, and was 13-16 with a career-best 3.07 ERA in a career-high 202 innings in 2011.
The other nine Dodger free agents are catcher Rod Barajas, pitchers Jonathan Broxton, Jon Garland, Mike MacDougal and Vicente Padilla; and infielders Casey Blake, Jamey Carroll, Aaron Miles, and Juan Rivera.
The Dodgers have 30 players on their 40-man roster, not including relief pitcher Ronald Belisario, who is on the restricted list.
Be sure to read True Blue LA for all the latest news on the Dodgers during the hot stove season.