Jose

Valentin

He should be considered day-to-day.

A decent stopgap. Valentin figures to take over as the Dodgers’ third baseman against right-handers. That would leave Jeff Kent at second base and make Alex Cora trade bait. Antonio Perez can platoon with Valentin at third.

The Rangers might begin to look elsewhere for a DH. Jay Gibbons and Josh Phelps could soon become free agents.

There hasn’t been any confirmation of the report in a Puerto Rican newspaper that Valentin has already agreed to terms with Boston, but it wouldn’t be a complete surprise if a deal is already pretty much in place, with the Red Sox waiting until the arbitration deadline to announce it. Boston could possibly sign both Valentin and Placido Polanco. In that scenario, Valentin would get most of the starts at shortstop against righties and Polanco would play against lefties and back up Mark Bellhorn and Bill Mueller.

If the Dodgers have the high bid for Nakamura, they’re expected to offer him a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training. Maybe he will come cheap after all.

The White Sox made the right decision here, especially since they would have had to pay him $500,000 if they bought out the option. Thw White Sox and Valentin’s agrent also talked about adding a second year to the contract but couldn’t agree on a salary for 2005.

Valentin, a career .207 hitter from the right side of the plate, said he will continue to bat left-handed against left-handers who are not power pitchers or who throw sidearm. If his strategy works, he may not have to be platooned this year, increasing his fantasy value.

Valentin hit just .115 in 16 games in Puerto Rico, so it would seem to be a safe guess that the switch didn’t work very well. Valentin should be platooned again next season.

Don’t put too much stock into this report. Valentin will make $5 million this year, so if any team really wants him, he’s available. It is pretty likely that he’ll stay in Chicago, though. Because most teams consider him a poor defender, he has little trade value.

He is eligible to return today after recovering from a strained hamstring muscle, but with the Sox facing lefthander Eric Dubose and Juan Uribe hitting up a storm, there is no rush to restore Valentin to the active roster. When he does return to the Chicago lineup in the next day or so, look for either Kelly Dransfeldt (must clear waivers) or Jamie Burke to return to Triple-A Charlotte.