Sandy Alomar Jr today signed a one year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers to backup their young catcher Dioner Navarro. I thought Sandy did a great job with us in the 2005 season. He hit well when called upon, and seemed to be great in the clubhouse. I was really hoping we’d resign him for another year. I’m not going to lose sleep that our 39 year old catching backup is gone, but I wasn’t scared when the backup catcher came in for us; some of the backups we’ve had have been less than awe-inspiring. He even got a $100k raise with the Dodgers over what the Rangers paid him, although that probably goes right back out the window with the California tax rates. :)
I hope he does well out there in LA – the Dodgers are due for a comeback, it’s been awhile since they’ve been really good. Here’s a story on mlb.com about his signing with LA.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Veteran catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday, where he is expected to serve as a backup to young Dioner Navarro next season.
The 39-year-old Alomar hit .273 for the Texas Rangers last season, getting 35 hits in 128 at-bats and driving in 14 runs.
Alomar began his big-league career with the San Diego Padres in 1988. He played briefly for the Padres in 1988-89 before joining Cleveland, where he spent 11 years with the Indians before going to the Chicago White Sox in 2001.
Alomar had his best season in 1977, achieving career bests with a .324 batting average, 21 homers and 83 RBIs before going 11-of-30 with two homers and 10 RBIs against the Florida Marlins in the World Series.
Alomar also played in the 1995 World Series against Atlanta, going 3-of-15 with no homers and one RBI.