'Re-acquired' Furcal gives L.A. boost MLB: After up-and-down season, shortstop has turned it around in past two weeks.

Byline: Ramona Shelbune, Staff Writer

ST. LOUIS - You've heard about all the Dodgers in-season acquisitions and the impact they've made on their playoff run.

Utility infielder Ronnie Belliard has come up with clutch hits, Jon Garland has eaten up innings and won three games since coming over at the trading deadline, and Vicente Padilla pitched well down the stretch and even better in Saturday's decisive Game 3 of the National League Division Series.

And about two weeks ago the Dodgers seem to have "re-acquired" lead-off hitter Rafael Furcal.

"He's really been hitting," outfielder Matt Kemp said. "That's the old Raffy. He's was down for a while but he's a professional hitter and he's definitely been showing he's on his 'A' game."

After an up-and-down season, the speedy shortstop has gotten his groove back at exactly the right time.

Fucal hit .429 the final two weeks of the regular season, raising his average from .255 to .269, and reaching base in each of the final 24 games.

In the NLDS, Furcal got at least a hit in all three games, going 6 for 12 with two runs scored and two RBIs.

He was 2 for 5 with an RBI and a run scored in the Dodgers series-clinching 5-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday.

So what's gotten into him?

Furcal says that his turnaround has come late in the season because his surgically repaired back finally feels strong and healthy.

"I worked so hard in the offseason. I worked so hard all year doing my exercises," he said. "Now my back feels really good. It's not like last year where it was coming loose all the time.

"I had been struggling all year, for the last 51/2 months. I know it. Finally I said, I've been working so hard, I feel better, this is not going to happen any more."

In addition to hitting better, he's also began to steal bases again.

After stealing just six bases in the first five months of the year, Furcal - who once stole 46 bases with the Atlanta Braves - swiped six in September and the first week of October.

Furcal credited the strengthening and stretching exercises that Dodgers trainer Stan Conte has devised for him.

Whatever the case, he's been on fire - both in the field and at the plate.

"He's got so much more life in his body here over the last month or six weeks that has really made a difference in how we've played and how we've been able to score runs," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "He's sort of added another dimension to what we were doing earlier."

[e-mail]