LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers continued a flurry of late free-agent additions Friday night by agreeing to a one-year contract with veteran Chase Utley. Earlier in the day, they agreed to a deal with outfielder Franklin Gutierrez on the heels of an agreement for reliever Sergio Romo.The club has not confirmed any of the agreements, as corresponding 40-man roster moves will be needed. Utley's agreement was first reported by the Los Angeles Times.
The 38-year-old Utley, the Dodgers' starting second baseman in 2016, returns in a bench role after the club acquired Logan Forsythe from Tampa Bay in a trade for young pitcher Jose De Leon. Utley had a .252/.319/.396 slash line last year, but had a .768 OPS against right-handed pitching.Equally important, Utley provides experience and leadership. Last month, Rookie of the Year shortstop Corey Seager credited Utley with mentoring him and expressed hope that the Dodgers would find a way to bring Utley back, despite the acquisition of Forsythe.Los Angeles president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, who has been committed to adding right-handed hitters to make the Dodgers more effective against left-handed pitching, said last month that if Utley wasn't left-handed he would have already been signed.
Ken Gurnick/ MLB.com