Which is … you can never have too much pitching.

Not in April, not in the middle of summer, not in the postseason and not -- it turns out -- before the first full-squad workout.

Position players were still squeezing into their uniforms for the first time this spring, when they looked around their clubhouse and saw three relievers were already down.

Out were Vicente Padilla (elbow), Dana Eveland (hamstring) and Ronald Belisario (head).

Padilla was a lock to make the club, and Belisario was at least penciled in, so there are two openings in the bullpen that didn’t figure to be there when camp opened.

If the Dodgers open the season with seven relievers, locks are Jonathan Broxton, Hong-Chih Kuo, Matt Guerrier, and now, probably Blake Hawksworth.

Kenley Jansen, whom the Dodgers might have been tempted to start the season at triple-A to hone his still raw closing skills, now appears in a good position to make the season-opening 25-man roster.

Which at the very least still leaves two positions open. And there is always the possibility the Dodgers might temporarily elect to start the season with eight relievers.

That leaves an open field for the rest of the contenders -- Ramon Troncoso, Ron Mahay, Lance Cormier, Scott Elbert, Mike MacDougal, Jon Link, and later, Eveland. And if they wanted a long reliever, Carlos Monasterios or John Ely.

Now that three-year, $12-million deal for Guerrier is looking better, not to mention that constant late addition of veteran, if uncertain, arms.

If the first five are in, then there is still an obvious need for a second left-hander in the bullpen. That would give an edge to Mahay, Elbert and Eveland.

But newbie manager Don Mattingly has said he will take the best arms and not get locked into having to take a second lefty. That could bode well for Troncoso, who at least had a terrific 2009 and start to last season before quickly going downhill.

None of the leading right-handers, however, has a particularly impressive history against left-handed hitters -- MacDougal (.274 batting, .421 slugging), Cormier (.271, .428) or Troncoso (.268, .425) -- so one left-handed reliever figures to emerge.

So as camp opens, competition is on in at least one area. The guys who have the best springs figure to earn opening-day roster spots. Retreads and the unproven, you're all up.

Of course, with almost six weeks to go, more injuries and sore arms remain to be discovered.

-- Steve Dilbeck

Photo: Matt Guerrier. Credit: Hannah Foslien / Getty Images

This could have been worse. General Manager Ned Colletti said he “absolutely” expected Vicente Padilla to pitch again this season. In fact, he expressed confidence that Padilla would return from his surgery before the All-Star break.

Padilla is scheduled to undergo surgery Thursday to release a nerve that is entrapped by one of the deep muscles in his forearm.

Because problems with the nerve forced Padilla to be sidelined for almost two months last season, Colletti said the Dodgers were well aware that he was a health risk. When Padilla underwent a physical after re-signing this off-season, the nerve had “calmed down,” according to Colletti.

“This came back when he started to increase his velocity the other day,” Colletti said. “So rather than go through this all season long and wander back and forth, back and forth, this was the best course of action.”

With Padilla slated to be a reliever, his rehabilitation process presumably will not be as lengthy as it would be if he were a starter.

If not for Colletti, the situation likely would have been portrayed far differently in this space, as rookie manager Don Mattingly’s evasive responses earlier created confusion. In his morning briefing with reporters, Mattingly showed he had a long way to go before anyone started calling him Donnie Press Conference.

Sticking to the company line that a timetable for Padilla’s return would not be known until after the completion of the surgery, Mattingly made it seem as though Padilla might be lost for the season.

Asked if he had been told whether Padilla could possibly pitch this season, Mattingly said, “The timetable thing has not really come up. You know, I don’t really want to talk about timetables because I don’t really want to put up an artificial date or something in there. We talked about generalities that. ... Again, timetable. I just don’t want to put ... "

Told that based on what he said, reporters didn’t know if Padilla would ever pitch again, Mattingly replied, “I’ll tell you what. Vicente is scheduled for the surgery Thursday. In listening to" trainer Stan Conte, the Dodgers will have Padilla "here on Friday. So this isn’t a continued thing. We’re going to know more quickly. Sooner rather than later, we’re going to be able to talk about these things. I just don’t want to talk about it until I get medical information from Dr. [Neal] ElAttrache. I don’t really want to do his job or make a guess.”

The most Mattingly would say is that he was “hoping he’s going to return.”

-- Dylan Hernandez in Phoenix

Photo: Vicente Padilla. Credit: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times

And then there were five.

Vicente Padilla will undergo surgery on his pitching arm on Thursday to release a nerve that is entrapped by one of the deep muscles in his forearm.

The Dodgers have not set a timetable for his return.

The opening-day starter last season, Padilla was re-signed to add depth to the pitching staff. He was expected to begin the season as a long reliever and viewed as a potential starter or closer.

Padilla gave the Dodgers six established starters, compared with the four they had when they started last season. Barring another injury, the club will head into the season with a rotation consisting of Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley, Ted Lilly, Hiroki Kuroda and Jon Garland.

The Dodgers were aware that Padilla was a serious medical risk, as he was limited to 16 starts last season because of arm and neck problems. His contract reflected that, as he will earn a base salary of $2 million. The deal is incentives-heavy, as he can earn an additional $8 million in bonuses as a starter or an extra $6.8 million as a reliever.

Padilla missed two months early last season because of related nerve problems in his arm.

-- Dylan Hernandez in Phoenix

Photo: Vicente Padilla. Credit: Morry Gash / Associated Press

It's spring, which means unfiltered optimism, troubles left to history, the future bright.

Even before the first full-squad workout Tuesday, positive thinking ruled Camelback Ranch for the Dodgers.

How they go this season figures to largely depend on how Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp step up and elevate their games. At least their 2010 games.

Ethier is now not only healthy but apparently willing to discard his nobody-really-loves-me routine to step forward as a team leader.

Ethier told The Times’ Dylan Hernandez that he recognizes the Dodgers need a boost in team leadership, and he is now willing to provide it.

"You overlook yourself as a presence on the team," Ethier said. "I have to come to grips with that and accept that."

Meanwhile, Kemp had his first interesting interview with The Times’ T.J. Simers, who is still waiting for the explosively talented outfielder to have the kind of impact on L.A. that Clippers rookie Blake Griffin has had.

Kemp told Simers he is better off now for his struggles from last season.

"I'm mentally stronger," Kemp said. "I just know you can't play this game frustrated or mad; you've got to be loose and have fun."

Also on the Web:

-- OK, it isn’t all positive energy from Camelback -- where’s a good Russian mystic when you need one?

Word came early Tuesday that Vicente Padilla was headed back to Los Angeles to have an MRI -- they don’t have those machines in Phoenix? -- on his elbow. It’s the same injury that bothered him last season. Going with an incentive-laden contract must look pretty good about now.

-- In other old/new injury news, the Toronto Star’s Mark Zwolinski says Scott Podsednik’s plantar fascitis has flared up again and so he won’t be able to open camp with the Blue Jays. The Dodgers picked up their half of a $2-million option on Podsednik this off-season but he turned down his half and ended up signing for $500,000 with Toronto; it jumps to $1 million if he makes the team.

-- True Blue LA’s Eric Stephen says the $4.2-million contract the Dodgers offered catcher Russell Martin this off-season was not guaranteed. He got a guaranteed base of $4 million with the Yankees.

-- CBS Sports’ Danny Knobler said it’s exam time for Don Mattingly as a manager.

-- Vin Scully Is My Homeboy’s Roberto Baly has an early word on a new Mattingly biography.

-- ESPN LA’s Jon Weisman thinks Clayton Kershaw is poised to explode as a superstar.

-- Opinion of Kingman’s Performance’s Evan Bladh is convinced he has come up with the greatest idea of his life for the Dodgers.

-- Yahoo.com’s David Brown gives his spring preview of the Dodgers.

-- Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness’ Mike Petriello looks at the Dodgers' potential batting order now that Mattingly has said Ethier will bat third and Kemp cleanup.

-- Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal said Manny Ramirez has lost 12 pounds from a year ago and seems determined to resurrect his career.

"I love the game. I like to compete," Ramirez said. "I just want to show that I still can play. That’s my mind-set."

-- Former Dodger Dusty Baker is entering his 18th season as a manager, and the Reds skipper told Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci he still believes he can win his first World Series.

"Hey, my time is coming," Baker said. "I always believe that -- and more than one."

Optimism is everywhere.

-- Steve Dilbeck

Uh-oh.

Only a week removed from the day their pitchers and catchers worked out for the first time, the Dodgers sent Vicente Padilla back to Los Angeles so he could undergo an MRI exam on his right elbow.

The Dodgers’ opening-day starter last season, Padilla was re-signed to add depth to the pitching staff. He was expected to start the season as a swingman and was thought of as someone who could step into the rotation or closer's role if needed.

The pain Padilla is experiencing is similar to the pain he felt when he missed nearly two months with nerve problems in his arm early last season, according to a club spokesman.

Padilla was examined by Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Monday. Results of the MRI exam are expected to be known by Wednesday.

-- Dylan Hernandez in Phoenix

The Dodgers’ first full-squad workout of the spring is scheduled Tuesday, the first time the new/old gang will get together and focus on turning around last year’s disappointing season.

Whatta ya think?

All new and improved? Ready for a real title run? Same ol’, same ol’? Mediocrity on display? A team ready to blossom?

Listen, if things fall right, they could win the division. Really. They could also easily come in third.

The thing about year’s Dodgers is that they have a question at every single position. Uncertainty at each one.

If you give them that their rotation is solid, after that it’s all questions, with a first-time manager, a revamped bullpen, a struggling closer.

Now, some are of more concern than others, but there is nothing with reasonable certainty you can write in and expect out of any spot on the field.

At catcher, gone is Russell Martin, now in is 35-year-old Rod Barajas, Dioner Navarro, fresh off his .l94 season, and A.J. Ellis.

New is second baseman Juan Uribe, having to prove his fairly modest career year in 2010 (.248, 24 homers, 85 RBI) wasn’t a one-season fluke.

There are several spots where players are coming off poor second halves: first baseman James Loney (.211, .285 on-base, .331 slugging); third baseman Casey Blake (.234, .298, .383); shortstop Rafael Furcal (.243, .338, .364).

In the outfield, Andre Ethier has to prove his injuries are behind him, Matt Kemp that last year’s disappointment was a one-year drop-off, and that the aged platoon of Jay Gibbons and Marcus Thames can be productive.

And then there is Furcal having to simply stay healthy, Blake proving the years haven’t caught up with him, Barajas that his brief offensive outburst when acquired last year can at least be approached.

"If you go by history, and not just last year’s history, there’s more out of Matt and Andre that we saw last year, because we saw it in ’09," said General Manager Ned Colletti. "I think you could say the same thing about James.

"Second base, we should have more productivity with Juan. Not a high on-base percentage, but more of a run-producing bat. Raffy’s health is always tied to his performance and confidence. The catching, defensively I assume should be a plus, and the offense anything you can get out of that position is a plus.

"Casey, if he plays a little bit less, which is against his nature, will probably be as productive production-wise. Left field we have questions, there’s no doubt. We have a platoon there that could work. But just because you start February with an idea doesn’t mean you’ll be there in March or April or July either."

A few questions might be answered over the next six weeks, but most take the start of the season.

If, by some chance, all are answered in the positive, then the Dodgers could be pretty good. That, of course, is up to question.

-- Steve Dilbeck

In the short time Don Mattingly has been the Dodgers’ manager, he’s learned something.

When you’re in charge, you talk a lot. And when you talk a lot, your mouth dries.

“That’s why I got these,” Mattingly said, leaning back and grabbing a bag of mint-flavored Life Savers.

The idea was one that Mattingly got from his old boss, former manager Joe Torre.

Mattingly said that his mouth frequently dried up during the development camp the Dodgers held in Los

Angeles last month for their top prospects. Mattingly called Torre soon after.

 “Now I know why you had a mint in your mouth,” Mattingly said he told him.

Vin Scully is known to suck on Jolly Ranchers to keep his mouth moist during broadcasts.

Mattingly joked that perhaps his newfound habit could lead to an extra paycheck.

“I’m trying to get a Life Savers deal going,” he said.

-- Dylan Hernandez in Phoenix

Does it have to be pure fantasy? Does the idea of baseball’s best player being signed by the Dodgers have to be automatically dismissed?

As the Los Angeles Times' Jerry Crowe correctly pointed out, if Frank McCourt’s main priority were to deliver a championship to Los Angeles, as he said last week, the Dodgers would be first up if baseball’s best player became a free agent next fall.

Particularly since the game’s biggest spenders -- Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies -- are already set at first base.

The Times’ Bill Shaikin examined the possibility and immediately rejected it, less because of McCourt’s financial woes and ongoing divorce than due to simple history. Even before McCourt’s finances were known, he had never spent $100 million on any player. And Pujols figures to want at least twice that.

Of course, if the McCourts hadn’t pulled more than $100 million out of the team for their grandiose personal use, they’d have a pretty nice start.

Somebody is going to sign the game’s best hitter. ESPN’s Michael Wilbon loves the idea of the Cubs signing Pujols, writing they "should move heaven and earth to sign Albert Pujols, precisely because this could be their best chance to transform not only the team, but the brand."

Wilbon makes his case for the Cubs signing Pujols in a lengthy column. Sons of Steve Garvey took the piece, substituted "Dodgers" for every time "Cubs" were mentioned and said every argument worked for Pujols signing in Los Angeles.

It does too. It’s the old story: If you’re in the second-biggest market in the country, you’re a player in this one. Particularly with your main competition out of the picture.

Alas, it’s the old/new story of lower expectations under McCourt.

Also on the Web:

-- The Times’ T.J. Simers makes his spring-training debut with the Dodgers and immediately wants into the head of Jonathan Broxton.

-- The Times’ Dylan Hernandez already tried the mental approach on right-hander Chad Billingsley.

-- In continuing The Times’ examination of Dodgers’ pitchers, Hernandez -- who really is back from the dead -- also has Hiroki Kuroda working on adding a curveball -- and Don Mattingly taking in his pitchers while standing in the batter’s box.

-- From the Associated Press: Look out world, Manny Ramirez has arrived at Tampa Bay’s training camp with a chip on his shoulder. Located just below the dreadlocks.

-- ESPN in New York has Sandy Koufax offering support to Mets owner Fred Wilpon, his former high school teammate, even though he recommended Koufax invest with Bernard Madoff.

-- Dodgers.com’s Ken Gurnick examines the Dodgers’ catching situation after Russell Martin.

-- Fox Sports West’s Steve Lyons, also a team broadcaster, asks five hard questions of the Dodgers as they open camp.

-- ESPN’s Jon Weisman examines the Dodgers' bullpen situation with the possible loss of Ronald Belisario and decides it may not necessarily make it easier for a second left-hander to make the team.

-- Steve Dilbeck

 

 

 

 

 

Silly is as silly does. Which when done properly is just plain funny.

You don’t have to be Forrest Gump to appreciate a new blue T-shirt offered by Nike that reads:

The Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles.

Tweaking everyone’s favorite Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Or is it the Anaheim Angels of Los Angeles? I get so confused.

The L.A. Angels of Disneyland even play at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Which used to be called Edison International Field of Anaheim, though before that just plain ol' Anaheim Stadium. Ah, those were the simple days.

The Angels originally played in Los Angeles' old Wrigley Field and then at Dodger Stadium, which kinda explains why they were named after the city they actually played in. Or used to play in. Sort of.

Some teams are challenged offensively, some geographically.

When the Orange County Register posted about the T-shirt, it received 193 comments. Mostly from those in Orange County who apparently don’t like the Angels being sullied with the additional Los Angeles handle any more than Frank McCourt.

And while on the subject of hilarious T-shirts, Nike is on something of a roll. Big League Stew noted its "Cooperstown Heritage" line has produced 13 T-shirts with a silhouette of a player’s face, cap, hair and mustache or beard.

There’s some pretty great stuff, including Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly, circa the Yankees in the late '80s, and Kirk Gibson -- alas, while he was with the Tigers.

The best one, though, may have been turned up by a reader at Sons of Steve Garvey. It's of Manny Ramirez as a Dodger, prolonged dreadlocks and all.

Final note: This post was brought to you by the Los Angeles Times Dodgers Blog of Los Angeles.

-- Steve Dilbeck

For six weeks, it looked like nothing could stop Andre Ethier. Not the knee he hyperextended in spring training. Not the ankle he sprained the first week of the season. And not a pitcher in the National League.

Ethier seemed an unstoppable force. He terrorized NL pitching. Through those first six weeks, he was the best hitter in baseball. He was leading the Triple Crown categories.

And then he was felled by a pinky.

Ethier fractured his right pinky in batting-practice swing. He went on the disabled list for two weeks, but when he returned, he was a different hitter.

In his first 33 games before injuring his pinky, Ethier was batting .392 with 11 home runs and 38 RBI. In the 106 games after he returned, he went .260-12-44.

He now admits he returned from the injury too quickly, the hand never fully regaining its strength.

"You play enough seasons, injuries are going to happen," Ethier said. "Unfortunately it was one where it affected my swing a little bit, affected the way I held the bat.

"And I probably rushed back a little too early without taking the proper steps. Anyone can play the what-ifs. What if didn't happen? But at the same time, you have to stomach that's what type of season it was."

His final numbers on the season: .292-23-82.

Decent numbers, just disappointing considering his blistering start. Disappointing, when he seemed on the verge on becoming one of baseball’s elite hitters.

This season, however, the Dodgers need for Ethier to at least find some middle ground between his first six weeks and his next four months. If the Dodgers once-young core of Matt Kemp, James Loney and Ethier don’t elevate their games, the offense figures to again be bogged down.

For Ethier, that will require reasonable health. He said the knee, ankle and pinky continued to bother him throughout 2010.

He said the knee would sometimes pinch when he swung: "Now it's at a point where I feel back to normal, back to feeling good."

He said the ankle remained stiff: "I didn’t really have time to rest it. It was a little locked up. I've got it back into position where I don’t have to be putting a taped cast on it every game to go out and play."

And, of course, there was the pinky: "It was just getting that stiffness out of the joint and making it to the point where I had full strength. I lost a little bit of strength with that bone being broken and not using my fingers and joints the same way I'm capable. Now I feel like where I'm back to the same strength and at least holding the bat the same way I"ve always done."

Ethier, who’ll turn 29 in April, rehabbed his injuries this winter in Arizona while working out with his former Arizona State teammate Dustin Pedroia, now a Boston Red Sox star.

"I've been working out since the first of the year, taking all my hacks and doing all that stuff, gearing up and getting excited again for the start of the season," he said.

No doubt, some new injury awaits. Ethier believes he's learned from last year's experience, when he might have mentally been using the injuries as an excuse.

"I maybe could have battled a little bit more," he said. "But you don’t learn that until you go through it and step back and realize sometimes you have a little more to give through the injuries and don't use it as much as an excuse. Just find a way to face adversity and find a way to come through it."

If the Dodgers are going to return as an offensive force, they'll need a productive Ethier. Healthy, or battling injuries.

-- Steve Dilbeck

Photo: Andre Ethier. Credit: Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times

Ronald Belisario told a Venezuelan newspaper that he lost his passport and that he should be able to report to camp soon after obtaining a new one.

But that's news to Belisario’s agent, Paul Kinzer, who said on Wednesday that his client will probably miss the entire season because of his inability to gain legal entry into the United States.

"That would be news to me," Kinzer said. "I hope that's true."

Kinzer said he has lost touch with the hard-throwing reliever, who hasn't reported to camp on time for the third consecutive spring.

"He's gone kind of quiet," Kinzer said. "I haven't heard from him in a few weeks."

Kinzer again declined to say why Belisario hasn't reported to spring training.

"I lost my passport, and I have an appointment set for Friday," Belisario told Lider en Deportes. "I passed the embassy's medical examinations, and all I have to do is get the passport."

Belisario said he would report to camp.

"Of course, I'll go to spring training," he said. "As soon as I get the passport, I'll go back to the embassy to get a visa. They already have my test results."

He said he hasn't called the Dodgers because he will resolve the situation on his own.

The newspaper reported that Belisario "tested positive" in his medical examinations with the U.S. Embassy last year.

Belisario missed more than a month of the regular season last year to receive treatment in a substance-abuse program.

-- Dylan Hernandez in Phoenix

Photo: Ronald Belisario. Credit: Bret Hartman/ For The Times

When the Dodgers acquired Scott Podsednik last July, they still had Manny Ramirez.

In August, the Dodgers waived goodbye to Ramirez. In November, they picked up their $2-million option on Podsednik, with the idea that he could be their left fielder this season.

But Podsednik exercised his right to decline the option and file for free agency. He never did find a better deal, and on Wednesday he signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Jays could use a leadoff man -- and a left-handed hitting outfielder -- so he appears to have a good chance to crack the Toronto lineup. However, in the event of an injury or a seriously poor spring, he might have cost himself $2 million.

The Dodgers never did find a full-time left fielder. As they report to spring training, their most likely option is a platoon of Jay Gibbons and Marcus Thames (total cost: $1.65 million), with Tony Gwynn Jr. and Xavier Paul also available.

So tell us: Would the Dodgers have been better off with Podsednik, or are they better off with Gibbons and Thames? Or what Plan C would you prefer? (Not Plan CC, as the Dodgers had no interest in Carl Crawford -- or, more accurately, had no interest in spending $142 million to sign him.)

-- Bill Shaikin