LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers signed 39-year-old outfielder Brian Giles to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Major League camp, the club confirmed.
Giles, an All-Star in 2000 and 2001 while with Pittsburgh, went on the disabled list for the Padres with an arthritic right knee in mid-June last year and never returned. Giles had microfracture surgery on the right knee in 2007.
Limited to 61 games in 2009, Giles hit .191 with two homers and 23 RBIs. From 1999 to 2003, he averaged 37 homers and 109 RBIs, but his power numbers declined after he joined the Padres in a 2003 trade for, among others, Jason Bay. He has a .400 lifetime on-base percentage and .502 slugging percentage.
Giles nearly was general manager Ned Colletti's first acquisition after he took over the Dodgers in the winter of 2005, but the San Diego native re-signed with the Padres and Colletti turned to shortstop Rafael Furcal.
With Reed Johnson signed on as fourth outfielder, Giles could compete with Jason Repko and Xavier Paul to be a fifth outfielder, should the Dodgers carry that many, or compete with Doug Mientkiewicz for the left-handed pinch-hitter role.
According to Sports Nippon, the Dodgers have offered a Minor League contract to Japanese left-hander Hisanori Takahashi, but do not have the Major League roster spot the 35-year-old is seeking.
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