One of the various rumors out here is the chance meeting between Los Angeles Dodgers GM Ned Colletti had with free agent pitcher CC Sabathia in the hallways of the Bellagio, where Sabathia supposedly told Colletti “I want to be a Dodger.” Colletti, while acknowledging the meeting, later refuted the Sabathia statement. Sabathia and his family are worried about the intense scrutiny from the New York media, one reason why Reggie Jackson was included in the first meeting Sunday night. Jackson tried to alleviate any fears Sabathia might have about New York.

While the Dodgers do have a need for a veteran arm for their rotation, Sabathia is just too costly for the Dodgers, especially with all the other needs the Dodgers have. They need a shortstop, third baseman and probably a infield utility player. With all the positional needs many teams have, it appears that a versatile utility infielder is high on many teams lists. Is it possible that a free agent like Nick Punto, Mark Loretta or even Alex Cora could get as many years as the top available closer? I wrote here on how valuable Punto could be to a team, with my original landing spot being the Mets chief rival, the Philadelphia Phillies.

While Sabathia would prefer a National League team on the West Coast, so he can hit and stay near his home, the Yankees will likely win out as their deep pockets will severely outbid everyone else.

The Dodgers just don’t have that much money to spend on Sabathia. They are close to re-signing their third baseman Casey Blake to a 3 year deal worth $17 million. This high figure for the 35 year old Blake is mainly due to the lack of quality third baseman available via free agency of trade. Also, now that Rafael Furcal has declined the Oakland A’s offer of a 4 yr/$35-$40 million contract, his agent, Paul Kinzer, said talks with the Dodgers are on again, and Kinzer appears to be an agent that likes to get his players signed early (see K-Rod). Despite many teams needing shortstops, an available guy such as Furcal is likely not going to receive 4 year offer anywhere else, especially coming off back surgery during an injury plagued 2008 season. Furcal going back to the Dodgers is a good bet.

After spending money on Blake and Furcal, and probably getting a utility player for a multi-year deal, the Dodgers will than turn to starting pitching. There are still too many veteran starters available, and while Sabathia would be the perfect fit for the Dodgers, it would better serve the McCourt ownership group (notably very frugal) to go with a cheaper lefty veteran starter such as Andy Pettitte, Jamie Moyer or Randy Wolf. Pettitte has already talked with the Dodgers, Jamie Moyer and the Phillies are far apart in negotiations, while Wolf, who had his contract bought out by the Dodgers in 2008, is back healthy again, and still lives in the LA area. All three available pitchers would provide valuable mentorship to 20 year old left-hander Clayton Kershaw, likely to be in the 2009 Dodger rotation.

And then the name Manny Ramirez keeps popping up. After about 6 weeks of no communication between the Manny camp and the Dodgers, agent Scott Boras on Monday requested a meeting (and met) with Colletti. Although the Dodgers 2 year/$45 million original offer for Manny was not presented, Manny back to the Dodgers could happen.

JUST AN ASIDE: Boras might have requested the meeting with Colletti AFTER rumors surfaced about Sabathia telling Colletti he wanted to be a Dodger. Manny fired current Sabathia agent Greg Genske last year and signed on with Boras, who. after the deadline trade last year from Boston, then forced the Dodgers to eliminate the two $20 million options in the contract, removing Genske from future commissions. There is no love lost between Boras and Genske, and it appears that since both agents have the top guys on the market, they are playing games with each other.

So, despite Sabathia’s reluctance to take the current Yankee offer and not letting on to anyone whether he really wants to pitch in New York, the Yankees money will overcome any hesitations about the scrutiny of the New York media. A good sign was that Sabathia requested a second meeting with GM Brian Cashman here at the Bellagio Monday, with reports revealing the second meeting went very well.

The Yankees shouldn’t tell Sabathia to take a hike because if other pitchers such as AJ Burnett, Derek Lowe and Ben Sheets know Sabathia is not in the Yankee picture, they will raise their Yankee price knowing the Yankees will be desperate for another top starter. Even if Sabathia is playing the Yankees for a better deal elsewhere, the Yankees need to keep him in the picture to keep the price of other pitchers down. And who cares if you are being played, as long as you learn from your mistakes and play the game better next time. If Sabathia signs with another team, then Cashman should take a page from Omar Minaya’s book and be patient with other pitchers and let them come to the Yankees rather than Cashman chasing them.

Tags: Brian Cashman, CC Sabathia, Los Angeles Dodgers, Manny Ramirez, Ned Colletti, New York Yankees, Scott Boras