Source: Pitcher Kuroda, Dodgers agree to 3-year deal</p> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'></p> Free-agent pitcher Hiroki Kuroda has reached an agreement in principle on a three-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a baseball source told ESPN.com.</p> The Los Angeles Daily News reported the contract is worth $36 million-$40 million.</p> Kuroda chose the Dodgers over the Seattle Mariners, Arizona Diamondbacks and the Kansas City Royals. The deal is pending a physical, the source said.</p> Kuroda, 32, went 103-89 with a 3.69 ERA in 11 seasons while pitching in a hitter's park for the Hiroshima Carp. He throws a fastball at 92-94 mph and an above average slider and changeup, and some scouts have compared him favorably with Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka.</p> Kuroda will join Brad Penny, Derek Lowe and Chad Billingsley in the Los Angeles rotation.</p> The Dodgers are also hoping that Jason Schmidt can return from shoulder surgery and regain his old form. Esteban Loaiza, claimed off waivers from Oakland in August, is as an additional starting candidate.</p> Seattle made a major push for Kuroda, with general manager Bill Bavasi and manager John McLaren traveling to Japan recently to court the pitcher. The Mariners also have a lot of experience signing Japanese players, including outfielder Ichiro Suzuki and catcher Kenji Johjima.</p> But Kuroda, who flew to California from Japan late this week to go over offers from clubs with agent Steve Hilliard, ultimately decided to join another Japanese pitcher, Takashi Saito, in Los Angeles.</p> With Kuroda now off the board, clubs in search of starting pitching are expected to turn their attention toward Carlos Silva and Kyle Lohse, the two most prominent major leaguers still on the free-agent market.</p> </div></p>
Nice pick up this gives us a better Starting Rotation.And I'm glad we didn't trade some of our young guys like Kemp and Loney.We seem like a pretty good team we signed a good manager a CF and a starting Pitcher, hopefully we could make the playoffs and go really deep.
