Dodgers Won’t Lose Beltre, Fox Sports News Reports

The Dodgers will be fined for signing Adrian Beltre when he was 15, but will not lose him to free agency, according to a broadcast report Thursday night.

Fox Sports News said major league baseball will announce Monday that any possible violation involving the third baseman took place five years ago, beyond baseball’s statute of limitations. The amount of the fine was not disclosed.

The Dodgers have not been notified of any decisions by the commissioner’s office, said Shaun Rachau, a spokesman for the team late Thursday night.

If Beltre isn’t declared a free agent, the players’ association is expected to file a grievance, which would move the issue before an independent arbitrator.

The Dodgers lost two Cuban players this year because they signed before they were 16. Infielder Juan Diaz and outfielder Josue Perez were declared free agents by Commissioner Bud Selig, and the Dodgers were fined $200,000. Perez later signed with Philadelphia for $850,000.

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The Dodgers acquired minor league pitcher Brian Stephenson to complete the five-player deal in which the Chicago Cubs acquired Ismael Valdes and Eric Young.

The right-handed Stephenson, a second-round draft pick by the Cubs in 1994, split duty last season between their teams in Mesa, Ariz., and Eugene, Ore.

Also, the team hired longtime scout Don Welke as the club’s senior scouting advisor and named Dino Ebel to manage its class-A team in San Bernardino.