How the Dodgers roster looks

How the Dodgers look

BATTING ORDER

Player Name; Pos.; B/T; 2012 ave.; comment

1. Mark Ellis; 2B; R/R; .258; Absence of true leadoff hitter pushes him to the top of the order.

2. Carl Crawford; LF; L/R; .282; Recovering from elbow operation that limited him to 31 games.

3. Matt Kemp; CF; R/R; .303; Recovering from shoulder surgery; one of baseball’s best players when healthy.

4. Adrian Gonzalez; 1B; L/L; .299; Drove in 108 runs in what was considered a sub-par season.

5. Hanley Ramirez; SS; R/R; .257; Moving back to shortstop full-time.

6. Andre Ethier; RF; L/L; .284; Could be the league’s best No. 6 hitter.

7. Luis Cruz; 3B; R/R; .297; Played in 78 games last year; must produce over an entire season.

8. A.J. Ellis; C; R/R; .270; Showed surprising power by hitting 13 home runs.

9. Pitcher.

STARTING ROTATION

Player name; L/RH; 2012 stat; comment

1. Clayton Kershaw; LH; 2.53 ERA; The National League’s consensus No. 1 pitcher.

2. Josh Beckett; RH; 28 starts; Posted a 2.93 ERA in seven starts after August trade to Dodgers.

3. Chad Billingsley; RH; 3.55 ERA; Was 10-9 before he was shut down in late August with elbow problems.

4. Ted Lilly; LH; 3.14 ERA; Was 5-1 when sustained a season-ending shoulder injury in May.

5. Chris Capuano; LH; 3.72 ERA; Could be traded if the Dodgers sign Zack Greinke and/or Ryu Hyun-jin.

BULLPEN

Player Name; L/RH; 2012 stat; comment

Brandon League; RH; 3.13 ERA; Closer received a three-year, $22.5-million deal.

Kenley Jansen; RH; 13.7 strikeouts per nine innings; Recovering from heart operation.

Ronald Belisario; RH; 2.54 ERA; His career and life appear to be back on track.

Scott Elbert; LH; 2.20 ERA; Recovering from minor elbow operation.

Javy Guerra; RF; 2.60 ERA; Former closer recovering from shoulder operation.

Matt Guerrier; RH; 3.86 ERA; Elbow problems limited him to 16 appearances.

Aaron Harang; RH; 3.61 ERA; Made 31 starts last season. Like Capuano, could be traded.

BENCH

Player Name; Pos.; B/T; 2012 ave.; comment

Tim Federowicz; C; R/R; .333; Will be back in triple A if Dodgers sign a veteran backup catcher.

Jerry Hairston Jr.; 3B/LF; R/R; .273; Recovering from left hip surgery.

Nick Punto; 2B/3B; S/R; .219; The “other guy” in the blockbuster trade with the Red Sox.

Juan Uribe; 3B; R/R; .191; Could be released before the start of the season.

Tony Gwynn Jr.; OF; L/R; .232; Team’s best defensive player isn’t on the 40-man roster.