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The Dodgers played a game of Chicken. When they were done playing, they found a new adjective for Scott Boras, whose moniker was officially changed from super agent to super chicken. Makes you wonder if he knew whether the job of negotiating a new contract for Manny Ramirez was dangerous when he took it.

Beware of the Super Chicken.

Actually, looks like Blue Crew General Manager Ned Colletti and team owner Frank McCourt got the memo warning them of Boras' negotiating tactics rather early. The other 29 teams should take note of how to deal with Mr. Super Agent -- er, I mean, Super Chicken.

Of course, it took several bad personnel moves by the Dodgers for them to actually get his memo, but better late than never. Reading that memo actually paid off for the Dodgers, as the team successfully negotiated a short-term deal with Ramirez without actually bidding against themselves!

To understand this, you really have to delve into a comedy of errors that is Dodger personnel moves since 1988. It was not too long after the Blue Crew won the World Series when move after move proved bad.

In the early 1990s, then-manager Tommy Lasorda did not think Pedro Martinez was of any value to the team, so he had him traded to Montreal for Delino DeShields.

The head scratching continued when free-agent signees Darryl Strawberry and Eric Davis failed to produce enough offense to carry the Dodgers onto a successful playoff run.

A few years later, in desperate need of a closer, Dodger management traded promising slugger Paul Konerko to Cincinnati for reliever Jeff Shaw.

Oh, let us not forget the Mike Piazza debacle of 1997, the Kevin Brown signing of 1998, the Paul LoDuca-Brad Penny trade of 2004 and the recent signings of Bill Mueller, Jason Schmidt and Andruw Jones.

For two decades, it appeared as if the Dodgers fumbled just about every major player personnel decision. Yet, this off-season, someone must have upgraded the water at Chavez Ravine and made sure Colletti and McCourt were the first people to drink it.

If things continue to go this well into the 2009 season, perhaps we should start sharing this water with our politicians in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.!

In one fell swoop, it was as if the Dodgers' first playoff series victory in 20 years exorcised the demons of the post-O'Malley era at Chavez Ravine. While the Dodgers were established itself as a team who served as a symbol of communal pride and challenging racial norms, recent times defined the Blue Crew as an organization of excess waste, short-term success instead of long-term growth and failed vision.

Even though the Philadelphia Phillies showed the Los Angeles the door in last season's NLCS, it was the Dodgers who began escorting players of failed past to the bottom of Chavez Ravine.

For once, the Dodgers let go of the right players. No one will lose sleep over the departures of Nomar Garciaparra, Penny or Jones. Jeff Kent no longer found the will to play and retired on his own terms. Derek Lowe realized he was not a good fit in Los Angeles, opting to return to the East Coast. Takashi Saito was an effective reliever, but everyone knew he was getting way too old to be a viable closer beyond this season.

More important than whom the let go, what speaks volumes of changed times is who the Dodgers decided to hold onto this season. During the winter meetings, infielders Casey Blake and Rafael Furcal re-signed with the club, preserving a solid core of positions two through six that includes Russell Martin and James Loney.

Second base remained in question until late last week, when second baseman Orlando Hudson signed a free-agent deal with the Dodgers, completing what may be one of the best infields in the majors. With outfielders Matt Kemp and Andre Either flourishing in front of our eyes, the last major piece to fill was in left field.

It was four months since left field became an open position for the Dodgers. In that time, it appeared as if the Dodgers ventured too deep into dark waters. Would Boras convince Colletti to overpay Ramirez like he made Kevin Malone overpay for Brown? Would Colletti take the bait in believing Boras had secret offers from other non-disclosed teams?

Well, we had out answers by Wednesday afternoon -- Ramirez ends up agreeing to a two-year, $45 million deal in principle. Just like that, everyone is happy. The Dodgers get the short-term contract they wanted, Boras and Ramirez were given the annual salary they requested and fans were given a reason to continue filling the seats at Chavez Ravine.

Sure, the Dodgers could use a little help on the mound. While Joe Wolf was a solid off-season acquisition to fill the fourth spot, the jury is still out whether a rotation of Chad Billingsley, Hiroki Kuroda, Clayton Kershaw, Wolf and possibly James McDonald will be solid enough to silence opposing batters and key the team on a World Series run.

Yet, Colletti and the Dodgers certainly made the right moves this off-season, including signing Ramirez to a deal that made sense to both sides. For once, Colletti   slightly deviated from his "throw anything against the wall and see how it works" plan and actually mapped out a blueprint for a successful 2009.

Now it is upon Joe Torre to manage this talented bunch of players all the way to October. If the Dodgers fall short of a solid playoff run this year, no one can blame management. No one can blame Boras.

 They knew the job was dangerous when they took it.