DODGERS NOTEBOOK: ROSS BENEFITING FROM CHANCES.Byline: Rich Hammond Rich Hammond Los Angeles Daily News sports writer. Instrumental in bringing the Los Angeles Kings hockey organization closer to the fans. He is the atypical "what a guy" to Kings fans everywhere. Rich Hammond on himself. Staff Writer SAN DIEGO San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. - Paul Lo Duca Paul Anthony Lo Duca (born April 12, 1972 in Brooklyn, New York) is a catcher in Major League Baseball who plays for the New York Mets. Previously, Lo Duca played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1998-2004) and Florida Marlins (2004-2005). is an All-Star catcher for the National League, but he's not even the Dodgers' catcher of choice these days. David Ross David Ross refers to:
For Ross, it's a chance to prove himself in his first full major-league season. It also gives the Dodgers a chance to see how their lineup looks with Lo Duca in left field or at first base, and Ross behind the plate. If the Dodgers don't acquire a corner outfielder before the trade deadline, that could happen more frequently. ``I feel more comfortable with every game I get to play, and that's really important,'' Ross said. ``To know that you belong, no matter what level you're playing at, that's the main thing. When I get in there, all I can do is try to help the team the best I can. I can't worry about who's on the (disabled list). ``It's funny, because Paul Lo Duca is an All-Star, but we're just in a situation where they need me to play.'' And Ross isn't disappointing. He took a four-game hitting streak In baseball, a hitting streak refers to the consecutive number of official games in which a player gets at least one base hit. Games in which a player does not have any official at bats due to walks, or sacrifice bunts, or being hit by a pitch, are ignored (neither break the streak into Monday's game and has earned rave reviews for his work with the Dodgers' pitchers. Nobody in the team's front office is suggesting a full-time move for Lo Duca, but Ross' success is giving the Dodgers some welcomed options. ``You have to give credit where credit is due,'' manager Jim Tracy
--Injury report: Jordan is able to come off the disabled list Thursday, but a team executive said Jordan plans to delay a decision on season-ending knee surgery, even though the knee is showing little-to-no improvement. Jordan's status is expected to impact how strongly the Dodgers pursue an outfielder before the July 31 trade deadline. Dave Roberts For other uses, see Dave Roberts (disambiguation). David Ray Roberts (born May 31, 1972 in Okinawa, Japan), is a Major League Baseball center fielder for the San Francisco Giants. , recovering from a small tear of his right hamstring, has not tested the leg in the past four days and said he will allow it to rest for a few more days. ``It can be tempting, because right now it feels pretty good and I feel like I might be able to try some things,'' Roberts said. ``But this is something I've been dealing with for a while now. There's still half of the season left, and I want to come back 100 percent and not have this be an issue anymore.'' Kevin Brown The name Kevin Brown can refer to several different people, including the following:
--A change: Tracy said the move of Wilkin Ruan from the leadoff spot to the No. 8 spot in the batting order should not be viewed as a failure on Ruan's part, even though Ruan hit just .118 (2 for 17) on the recent homestand in place of Roberts. Cesar Izturis moved to the leadoff spot, because Tracy felt Izturis would be a better matchup against San Diego's left-handed pitcher, Oliver Perez. ``Do you think hitting him eighth, in front of the pitcher, is harder than leadoff?'' Tracy said. ``It's as difficult or more difficult hitting eighth than at the top of the order.'' |
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