BIG JOB GOES TO LITTLE FORMER RED SOX MANAGER CHOSEN.

Byline: Tony Jackson  Staff Writer

DALLAS - Perhaps it was the words of two of Grady Little's former players, one of whom placed an unsolicited call to Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti on Little's behalf and the other of whom Colletti contacted and received all the answers he was looking for.

Perhaps it was the way Little reacted when Colletti brought up the managerial decision two Octobers ago that not only doomed New England to another winter of baseball gloom but cost Little his job in Boston.

Whatever it was, it was enough to convince Colletti - who had never met Little until interviewing him a week ago for the Dodgers' managerial vacancy - that Little was the right man for the job.

So Little, a former cotton farmer with a North Carolina drawl as thick as maple syrup, stood on a dais in a Texas-sized hotel ballroom here on Tuesday night and officially was introduced as the new manager of the Dodgers, signing a two-year contract with a club option for 2008. Standing behind him was Colletti, who had been so thorough and devoted so much energy to the search since being named GM on Nov. 16. Standing a few feet to Little's right was Tommy Lasorda, in whose Hall of Fame shadow Little will be forced to manage, just as Bill Russell, Glenn Hoffman, Davey Johnson and Jim Tracy were forced to do before him.

Not that Little, 55, seemed to mind. After surviving the wrath of Red Sox Nation, he isn't afraid of shadows.

``I am thankful for the challenge of managing the Los Angeles Dodgers,'' said Little, with no particular emphasis on the word challenge. ``I think it was Tommy who once said, 'I have been in the big leagues before, but now I am in the majors.' ... There is no way to put into words how happy I am to get this opportunity with this franchise.''

Little was hired over four other candidates, all of whom were notified by Colletti on Tuesday that they no longer were being considered. Only one of them, Atlanta special assistant Jim Fregosi, had a history with Colletti, having worked with him in the San Francisco Giants' front office in the late 1990s.

``(Colletti) called me (Tuesday) afternoon and said they were going in a different direction,'' said Fregosi, adding that Colletti didn't give him a reason. ``I knew when it extended for this period of time that they probably would go in a different direction. Right now, I'm just trying to help the Braves and (general manager) John Schuerholz put a club together. That's exactly what I have been trying to do since we got here.''

The other candidates - former Tampa Bay bench coach John McLaren, New York Mets third-base coach Manny Acta and Cleveland bench coach Joel Skinner - are not attending baseball's winter meetings.

Colletti declined to identify which of Little's former players he contacted for information about Little, and he also declined to identify the player who had called unsolicited to sing Little's praises. But that clearly made an impression, as did Little's comportment when Colletti asked him about that fateful night at Yankee Stadium in 2003.

That's when Little stuck with a visibly tiring Pedro Martinez with a three-run lead in the eighth inning of Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, only to see that lead disappear. The Red Sox's pennant hopes eventually vanished on Aaron Boone's walk-off homer in the 11th.

``We discussed that for 10 or 15 minutes,'' Colletti said. ``I think that actually gave me confidence in him, the way he handled the discussion and the way he answered things. It couldn't have been that easy for him.''

When asked for his strongest attribute, Little said it's an ability to keep such things in perspective.

``I'm comfortable with the job I did during my time in Boston,'' Little said. ``I know where we were when I got there, and I know where we were when I left.''

Little's tenure in Boston began in 2002, when he was hired immediately upon new owner John Henry taking control of the club barely two weeks before opening day. Little posted a 188-136 record in two seasons, finishing second both times and taking the AL wild card in 2003.

His greatest contribution might have been to change the culture in the Red Sox clubhouse, which was notoriously fractured when Little arrived. By the time Little was fired, the Red Sox had developed a cohesiveness that was the envy of baseball, one that would help carry them to their first World Series title in 86 years the following season under Terry Francona.

In Los Angeles, Little inherits a similarly divided clubhouse. Only time will tell if he can work the same magic.

Little spent the past two seasons with the Chicago Cubs, as a special assistant to general manager Jim Hendry in 2004 and a roving minor-league catching instructor in 2005. He also managed 16 seasons in the minors, mostly in the Atlanta organization, reaching the playoffs eight times.

``Grady is a players' manager, and everybody loves him,'' said Ellis Burks, a special assistant to Cleveland GM Mark Shapiro who played for the Indians while Little was manager Charlie Manuel's bench coach. ``He is one of those guys who does his best for his players, and that's the kind of manager you want. He was in a tough situation in Boston, but a lot of things happen in Boston, and he'll learn from that experience. He's a very knowledgeable guy.

``Ned Colletti made a great choice, because this guy is definitely a winner.''

Tony Jackson,[phone]

tony.jackson(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) New Dodgers manager Grady Little, right, is handed a jersey by general manager Ned Colletti. Little managed the Boston Red Sox to the 2003 ALCS.

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

(2) no caption (Grady Little)

Box:

GRADY LITTLE' BIO