Report: Dodgers Awarded Waiver Claim On Adrian Gonzalez
BOSTON (CBS) -- On Wednesday, Adrian Gonzalez was placed on waivers by the Red Sox. That doesn't necessarily mean anything will happen to the All-Star first baseman, who's under contract with Boston through 2018, but it definitely raised some eyebrows around the league.
One team perhaps most intrigued by the news was the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Los Angeles Times reported that the Dodgers inquired about Gonzalez (and Josh Beckett) prior to the trade deadline on July 31, so they could very well make an attempt to acquire Gonzalez if the opportunity arises.
"We are trying to add players. That doesn't mean we will be able to," Dodgers chairman Mark Walter told the newspaper.
For the Dodgers to have a chance at acquiring Gonzalez, all American League teams and all National League teams with worse records than the Dodgers (22 teams in all) would have to pass on the opportunity to place a claim on Gonzalez. Of course, his seven-year, $154 million deal is likely enough to scare away most of them.
Gonzalez talked with Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes on Wednesday, and he said he doesn't concern himself with any rumors.
"In Boston, there is always a novel," Gonzalez said. "In here, they never talk about baseball. It's always the same. That's one of the reasons why I almost never talk to the press here. Very few times they ask me about baseball. But most of the time it's about gossip, rumors, plots, well ... a soap opera.
"I can't worry about things I can't control," Gonzalez added. "Nobody has told me that I'm on waivers and if that's true, does not mean they will trade me. I can't control any of that."
The Red Sox originally acquired Gonzalez in December 2010 by sending top prospects Anthony Rizzo, Reymond Fuentes and Casey Kelly to the Padres.
Update, 1:50 p.m.: Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times reports that the Dodgers have indeed been awarded a waiver claim on Adrian Gonzalez. The Red Sox can now either work out a trade with L.A., pull Gonzalez off waivers and retain him on the Boston roster, or allow the Dodgers to simply take Gonzalez and his current contract.
