Daily Clips April 13, 2016

Transcription

1 Daily Clips April 13, 2016

2 LOS ANGELES DODGERS CLIPS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2016 OC REGISTER: Miller: It's not too early to be concerned about the Dodgers-Jeff Miller Dodgers' bullpen done in by Diamondbacks, Paul Goldschmidt-Bill Plunkett Yasiel Puig makes an impact on the bases, in the field for Dodgers-Joey Kaufman Zack Greinke doesn't fault Dodgers for not paying to keep him-bill Plunkett On deck: Diamondbacks at Dodgers, Wednesday, 7 p.m. -Bill Plunkett Dodgers lineups: Howie Kendrick returns from disabled list for home opener-joey Kaufman DODGERS.COM: Scully the star of Dodgers' home opener-jack Baer LA can't preserve lead after Maeda's 6 scoreless-ken Gurnick and Steve Gilbert Goldschmidt, 'pen continue to plague Dodgers-Ken Gurnick LA activates Kendrick, Grandal; Van Slyke to DL-Austin Laymance Back in LA, Greinke reflects fondly on Dodgers tenure-steve Gilbert Lasorda 4-part series to premiere Saturday-Jack Baer LA TIMES: The skinny on pitcher Kenta Maeda: The Dodgers just might have made a good call in signing him-dylan Hernandez Yasiel Puig is nifty on the bases and in the field-mike DiGiovanna Chris Hatcher and the bullpen let down the Dodgers again during 4-2 loss to Arizona in home opener-andy McCullough Dodgers' tribute to Vin Scully is in essence a celebration of baseball history-bill Shaikin Ceremony honoring Vin Scully a big part of the festivities for Dodgers home opener-mike DiGiovanna Scott Van Slyke is put on the disabled list by the Dodgers-Andy McCullough Zack Greinke not booed -- or introduced -- at Dodgers opener-bill Shaikin DODGER INSIDER: Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Terry Crews on the Dodgers, sports, acting and life-jon Weisman Dodgers can t save Maeda s strong start-jon Weisman The mouse named Maury gives thanks to Vin-Cary Osborne Emotional first-pitch salute to Vin Scully opens 2016 season at Dodger Stadium-Jon Weisman No hits, 174 messages and the Opening Day moment for Ross Stripling-Cary Osborne Grandal and Kendrick activated, Van Slyke to DL-Jon Weisman What s new and nifty at Dodger Stadium?-Yvonne Carrasco TRUEBLUELA.COM: Zach Lee, Adam Liberatore continue strong starts-craig Minami No bullpen shake up just yet for Dodgers-Eric Stephen Dodgers can't finish what they started in home opener-eric Stephen Yasiel Puig somehow avoids tag on hustle double-eric Stephen Watch the Vin Scully pregame ceremony and first pitch from Dodgers home opener-eric Stephen ESPN LA: MLB Rumor Central: Dodgers preach patience with bullpen-doug Mittler Early reviews: Dodgers' bullpen a major work in progress-doug Padilla Kenta Maeda strong, but Los Angeles Dodgers' bullpen fades again-doug Padilla Goldschmidt homers to help D-backs beat Dodgers 4-2-AP Latest moves give Dodgers three active catchers-doug Padilla Uni Watch: L.A. Dodgers display new 3-D look on batting helmet-paul Lukas Dodgers add 3-D logo to helmets (Video)-ESPN Meet the Seagers, baseball s newest family (Video)-ESPN Dodgers honor legend Vin Scully (Video)-ESPN LA DAILY NEWS: Dodgers bullpen squanders another lead in loss to Diamondbacks-JP Hoornstra Dodgers honor married Air Force sergeants, first 40,000 get hooded sweatshirts-city News Service Bonsignore: Dodgers bullpen already causing panic-vincent Bonsignore FOX SPORTS: Listen to Vin Scully tell a classic story about a no-hitter in 1952-Brett Smiley YAHOO! SPORTS: Vin Scully has already left a legacy as he begins farewell season with Dodgers-Tim Brown NBC LA: Dodgers Bullpen Drops Home Opener to Dbacks, 4-2-Michael Duarte Dodgers Reinstate Howie Kendrick and Yasmani Grandal for Home Opener-Michael Duarte NEW YORK TIMES: A Few Words About Vin Scully, a Storyteller Who Has Seen It All-Tyler Kepner BLEACHER REPORT: Scott Miller's Starting 9: Set Up to Fail, Yasiel Puig Now Learning MLB Way-Scott Miller

3 LOS ANGELES DODGERS DAILY CLIPS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2016 OC REGISTER Miller: It's not too early to be concerned about the Dodgers By Jeff Miller LOS ANGELES Naturally, Vin Scully said it best Tuesday, the sheer brilliance of the man captured by the fact that, this time, he did it without uttering a word. Raising one hand to acknowledge the love raining down upon him on an afternoon of relentless Dodgers Stadium sunshine, Scully placed his other hand over his 88-year-old heart. That was the moment both endearing and enduring from one of the most significant on-field celebrations in the history of a franchise that has had so many of them, a ceremonial first pitch representing the official first goodbye. Marking the final home opener of Scully s 67-year career with the team, the Dodgers then followed with a performance that unfortunately has become as familiar in recent seasons as the voice describing those performances. Everyone loves to hear Scully announce, It s time for Dodger baseball, right? Well, the sentiment is a little different when the legendary broadcaster proclaims, It s time for Dodger bullpen. Six more scoreless innings of Kenta Maeda were wasted this time, as was a 1-0 lead entirely too lean for this particular group of relievers to protect at the moment. Once Maeda departed, Arizona hammered out a 4-2 victory that ended perfectly in an opener during which the Dodgers simply didn t do enough on a called third strike, Kiké Hernandez only watching as the other team s bullpen executed. And so turned sour what for so long appeared to be the sweetest of home starts, the Dodgers playing well for those first six innings in front of a hearty sellout crowd, part of the 3.1 million tickets this team s fans already have purchased in anticipation. It s a long season, said Dave Roberts, the Dodgers rookie manager who, after only eight games, might already be aging by the pitch. There are going to be ups and downs. Guys are going to struggle. These guys aren t throwing the ball as well as they d like to or as well as we d like them to, but they d be the first to say that. They d be the first, certainly, but hardly the only ones to say that.

4 The Dodgers have led in all eight of their games so far, yet they ve lost as many as they ve won, four apiece. Their relievers (16) have given up more runs than their starters (14) in significantly fewer innings, the respective ERAs at 6.65 and Against the Diamondbacks, it was, in order, Pedro Baez, Chris Hatcher and Louis Coleman who failed. But it has been a group effort to date, only closer Kenley Jansen remaining unscathed. Right now, you want to continue to give these guys confidence, continue to give them a lot of opportunities, Roberts said. We expect to be in a lot of close games late and we re going to need them. If we re going to have a great season, have a winning season, we re going to need those guys in the pen. If you re a Dodgers fan, you ve heard this before. But only because you ve seen this before and repeatedly, the bullpen an issue that goes back to previous relievers, managers and even general managers. It s clearly way too early to panic, the Dodgers just nine innings into an 81-game home schedule. History, however, says it s never too early to be concerned. Before things fell apart Tuesday, the Dodgers had made so many nice promises, too. Maeda worked through trouble in both the first and second innings, bouncing back from a two-on, no-out situation in the latter. They scored the game s first run in the second on an expertly handled suicide squeeze, A.J. Ellis bunting home Howie Kendrick. Four innings later, that 1-0 lead was preserved when Yasiel Puig threw to Justin Turner who threw to Ellis at the plate to nail Arizona s Welington Castillo trying to score from first on a double. The Dodgers even won an umpire review when replays showed that Puig had turned a single into a double with a slide that was equal parts great baseball and greater escape. But then it was Baez giving up the tying home run to Nick Ahmed in the seventh and Hatcher surrendering the tiebreaker to Paul Goldschmidt in the eighth, with a pitch that was such an obvious mistake the ball should have been painted optic orange and screaming. I m not challenging him right there, Hatcher said. I m trying to go up in the zone (with a fastball). I felt like that s my safe spot with him. I just left it belt high. Goldschmidt s shot hit the Dodgers in the equivalent of just below the belt, a perfectly legal connection that had the home team doubled over. So, at the end, this was an opener very lacking in ceremony, the image of Scully sharing the field with fellow icons such as Don Newcombe, Sandy Koufax and Maury Wills long since faded.

5 More than three hours later, all of that had been replaced by renewed Dodger concerns and the assurance this goodbye can only get better. Dodgers' bullpen done in by Diamondbacks, Paul Goldschmidt By Bill Plunkett LOS ANGELES The Dodgers last, best chance to prevent Paul Goldschmidt from tormenting them came and went in June That s when they made Goldschmidt their 49th-round pick in a 50-round draft. Goldschmidt did not sign with the Dodgers, instead heading to Texas State University, and he became an eighth-round selection by the Arizona Diamondbacks three years later. Ever since Goldschmidt made his major-league debut in August 2011, no hitter has done more damage against Dodgers pitching. He did it again Tuesday with an eighth-inning home run and two RBI as the Diamondbacks scored all their runs in the final three innings against the Dodgers bullpen, handing them a 4-2 loss in the home opener at Dodger Stadium. We ve got to pick it up as a collective group and myself, I know I have to tighten things up, said Dodgers setup man Chris Hatcher, who gave up the home run to Goldschmidt. The roller coaster has to stop. We have to start putting up outs. Roller coasters have been known to cause nausea, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was looking a little queasy after watching his team lose for the fourth time in five games. Dodgers relievers have taken three of those losses, and over the five-game stretch they have allowed 16 runs on 21 hits (including five home runs) and seven walks in 13 2/3 innings. I m definitely seeing things. But you definitely don t want to be reactionary, Roberts said, explaining that what he is seeing is certain pitches that aren t being executed. You want to continue to give these guys confidence, continue to give them a lot of opportunities. We expect to be in a lot of close games late and we re going to need them. If we re going to have a great season, have a winning season, we re going to need those guys in the pen. At some point, changes will have to be made in roles or personnel, Roberts acknowledged, if the failures continue. When does it get to that point? It s not right now, he said. Tuesday s loss came after a second start from Kenta Maeda that looked a lot like his first start without the home run. He went six scoreless innings again, scattering five hits again.

6 But the Dodgers went 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position and it was just a 1-0 lead handed to Pedro Baez in the seventh. If we had given him a couple-run lead that (Goldschmidt) home run wouldn t have meant anything, Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez said. We ve got to do a better job of having good at-bats. Goldschmidt s home run did matter because Baez served up a 1-and-2 changeup to No. 9 hitter Nick Ahmed that Ahmed sent into the seats down the left-field line to make it 1-1. An inning later, Hatcher fell behind Goldschmidt 3-and-0 and served up fastball that Roberts described as center-cut as if it came with a baked potato and some mixed vegetables on the side. Goldschmidt gave it a 425-foot ride over the wall in left-center field. It was the fifth time in his past six games at Dodger Stadium that Goldschmidt has homered. In 37 career games in Los Angeles, Goldschmidt has hit.358 (54 for 151) with 14 home runs and 33 RBI. Add in his Arizona damage and he is a.338 career hitter against the Dodgers with 22 home runs and 64 RBI in 77 games. It s a long season, Roberts said. There are going to be ups and downs and guys are going to struggle. Right now these guys (in the bullpen) aren t throwing the ball as well as they d like to or we d like them to. They d be the first to say that. For me, it s just a matter of continuing to run them out there. Yasiel Puig makes an impact on the bases, in the field for Dodgers By Joey Kaufman LOS ANGELES As the ball flew off his bat in the fifth inning and dropped into left field, Yasiel Puig sprinted out of the batter s box and took a wide turn, blowing past first base. With two outs in the fifth inning, he hoped to get on second base, to put himself into scoring position at a point in the Dodgers home opener when they led the Arizona Diamondbacks by just one run. I was thinking about going to second, Puig said through an interpreter. What do you think, that it was going to be a triple? He saw an opportunity. The left fielder, Yasmany Tomas, sat deep. The throw arrived inside the base, and Puig slid in at the same point that Jean Segura caught it. But he slid a tad past the bag, then circled back to tag it with his right hand. When he couldn't quite reach, he tried again with his left. If I wouldn't have gotten it with my left hand, I would have used my tongue, Puig said. Puig became one of eight runners stranded in a disappointing 4-2 loss for the Dodgers on Tuesday afternoon that ended with a smattering of boos. But the dazzling sequence at second base from Puig served as one of the handful of plays to ignite the sellout crowd at Dodger Stadium.

7 So far this season, the ball has jumped off his bat. In eight games, he has hit.379/.500/.655 with four extra-base hits, including a home run. The fifth-inning double was the first of the season. As far as whether it toed a line between being aggressive or reckless, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts leaned toward the former. If it s in the process of him playing the game the right way, I ll take it, Roberts said. And I think with two outs, he was thinking two out of the box. Tomas played it deep. Out or safe, I thought it was a good baseball play. Arizona challenged the play, a review that lasted almost four minutes before being upheld. Puig was not short on highlights. In the next inning, he was a part of a relay with third baseman Justin Turner and catcher A.J. Ellis to tag a runner out at the plate. The throw came in plenty of time to give Ellis an easy play. I threw to the cutoff man, Puig said in English. I never throw to the cutoff man in my life. KENDRICK, GRANDAL BACK FROM DL Howie Kendrick returned to the lineup after a stint on the disabled list. The second baseman, who had been recovering from a strained left calf, hit fifth in the order and went 1 for 4 at the plate. Kendrick looked healthy. The exit velocity, according to the stadium scoreboard, on a sixth-inning line out clocked 108 mph. He was joined by catcher Yasmani Grandal, who was also reinstated. Grandal had been experiencing forearm soreness. Grandal pinch-hit in the bottom of the ninth. He grounded out to first base, but Corey Seager scored. In their place, Scott Van Slyke was sent to the disabled list because of back irritation and Micah Johnson was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City. As the club remains lean on active outfielders, with Van Slyke joining Carl Crawford and Andre Ethier on the DL, Kendrick saw time in left field, moving there for the top of the ninth inning. With the Angels, Kendrick was in the lineup 27 times in left field and center field, but not since Zack Greinke doesn't fault Dodgers for not paying to keep him

8 By Bill Plunkett LOS ANGELES Everyone who has spent time around Zack Greinke has a Zack Greinke story. Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis likes to tell one from Greinke s first season in Los Angeles. The team got off to a slow start. Making conversation on the bench one day, Ellis asked Greinke who likes to play amateur GM in his spare time what he would do to turn things around if he were in charge of the Dodgers. Greinke said he had to think about it. When he came back to Ellis, he told him the first thing he would do is trade Ellis and get a catcher who could provide more offense. That brutal honesty apparently doesn t apply to his own situation. Greinke returned to Dodger Stadium with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday and was asked to put himself in the place of the Dodgers decision-makers this winter. How far would he have gone to re-sign himself? Well, there s a lot that goes into it. It s not like it s a small signing, Greinke said. Any time you re going to have to make as big of a move as it was, it can change the whole outcome of your organization. So you have to weigh a lot of things. So is that a No? I mean, maybe, he said with a smile. There s so much that goes into it. It s not just one person s decision too. If I was the GM of the Dodgers it s not just me making a move that big. It was not a small signing all right. The Diamondbacks swooped in late in the process, signing Greinke to a six-year, $206.5 million contract that blew away the competition the San Francisco Giants and, running third, the Dodgers. I guess I don t really know, Greinke said when asked if he was ever close to re-signing with the Dodgers. Greinke declined to say whether the Dodgers had made any attempt to negotiate a new contract with him before he exercised his opt-out clause overtures that Greinke had given every sign he would not have been open to anyway or whether that made him feel like his days in L.A. were numbered. It seems like a question I don t want to answer, said Greinke who acknowledged he wasn t as involved in negotiations this winter as he was in 2012 when he originally signed with the Dodgers because it just wasn t as interesting as the first time. The Dodgers have been faulted in some quarters for failing to make it more interesting for Greinke by using their deep financial resources to trump whatever another team might offer. Ultimately, they fell $50 million short of the Diamondbacks deal. You gotta make the decision that s best for the team. That s what their job is to do, he said. People say they have unlimited resources. If they were going to spend $2 billion a year then it d be unlimited resources. There s still a limit. The team has to do what s smart for the team.

9 The Dodgers did what was smart for Greinke on Tuesday. Greinke is not scheduled to pitch in this series so the only chance for Dodger fans to let him hear what they think of his decision to leave should have come during pregame introductions Tuesday. But the Dodgers eschewed the usual opening-day practice of introducing every player on both teams. They opted instead to have the Diamondbacks reserves line up on the baseline but only introduced the starting lineup individually. Some guys get booed when they ve done the most for a city. Then some guys get cheered when they haven t done much for a city, said Greinke, who went with a 2.30 ERA in three seasons as a Dodger. Adrian (Gonzalez) still gets booed in San Diego. I still don t understand that. Probably whatever they do it s probably deserved. They ll probably do whatever is called for.... They ll let me know if I did stuff wrong or if I should have done things differently. They ll be my judge. On deck: Diamondbacks at Dodgers, Wednesday, 7 p.m. By Bill Plunkett Where: Dodger Stadium TV: SNLA, 7 p.m. Did you know? The Dodgers have added Speed Off Bat also known as exit velocity to the statistics on the right-field scoreboard at Dodger Stadium. THE PITCHERS DODGERS LHP ALEX WOOD (0-1, 9.00) Vs. Diamondbacks: 1-3, 3.96 At Dodger Stadium: 4-2, 1.97 Hates to face: Paul Goldschmidt, 4 for 9 (.444), 2 HR Loves to face: Jean Segura, 0 for 4 DIAMONDBACKS RHP RUBBY DE LA ROSA (0-1, 16.20) Vs. Dodgers: 0-3, At Dodger Stadium: 2-6, 6.33 Hates to face: Corey Seager, 2 for 2 Loves to face: Adrian Gonzalez, 2 for 10 (.200), K

10 Dodgers lineups: Howie Kendrick returns from disabled list for home opener By Joey Kaufman LOS ANGELES -- Howie Kendrick is back in the lineup for the Dodgers after his stint on the disabled list, activated for the home opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday afternoon at Dodger Stadium. The second baseman, who had been recovering from a strained left calf, will hit fifth in the lineup. He was joined by catcher Yasmani Grandal, who was also reinstated. Grandal had been experiencing forearm soreness. The left-handed batter would be available Tuesday as a pinch-hitter, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. In their place, Scott Van Slyke was sent to the disabled list. Micah Johnson was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City. Van Slyke will be out for at least five-six days due to back irritation. As the club remains lean on active outfielders, with Van Slyke joining Carl Crawford and Andre Ethier on the DL, Kendrick might see time there this week, an option that was raised when he re-signed with the team in the offseason. "We might dip into that well," Roberts. Over nine seasons with the Angels from , Kendrick was in the lineup 28 times in left field and center field. Today's lineups: DODGERS (4-3) LF Kike' Hernandez RF Yasiel Puig 1B Adrian Gonzalez 3B Justin Turner 2B Howie Kendrick CF Trayce Thompson SS Corey Seager C A.J. Ellis

11 P Kenta Maeda DIAMONDBACKS (2-5) 2B Jean Segura CF Socrates Brito 1B Paul Goldschmidt RF David Peralta C Welington Castillo 3B Jake Lamb LF Yasmany Tomas P Patrick Corbin SS Nick Ahmed DODGERS.COM Scully the star of Dodgers' home opener By Jack Baer LOS ANGELES -- Like the last 65 years of Dodgers history, Tuesday's home opener ceremonies heavily featured the immortal voice of Vin Scully, who will retire after this season and had the street outside Dodger Stadium named for him on Monday. Narrated by Brooklyn native Al Michaels, a cavalcade of Dodgers greats were introduced with Scully's call of the team's greatest moments behind them, from Don Newcombe and his 1950 Opening Day start in Scully's first year announcing the team, to Clayton Kershaw and his 2014 no-hitter. Between them came World Series champions, Sandy Koufax's perfect game, Rick Monday's greatest catch of the American flag, and so many more. Kirk Gibson, seen in a Dodgers uniform again via videotape, described how lucky he was to have Scully call his famous home run in the 1988 World Series and the rest of his career with the team. Hank Aaron, whose 715th home run came against the Dodgers with Scully on the call, recorded a video message honoring and thanking the 88-year-old broadcaster.

12 Scully made his way to the field, escorted by former and current Dodgers owners Peter O'Malley and Magic Johnson. Standing at home plate, Scully was met with the crowd's loudest cheer, and a ball autographed by every man who was introduced was passed from Newcombe on the mound to Scully. Michaels threw out the ceremonial first pitch, and the game was underway minutes later. The ceremony came during the final home opener of the 2016 MLB season, as the Dodgers welcomed the D-backs following a seven-game road trip to open the season. All Dodgers starters were greeted with fireworks, as the entirety of both teams took their standard places along the foul lines. Sam Harris, the lead singer of the X Ambassadors, sang the national anthem, with a flag unfurled by members of the military covering nearly the entire outfield. Before the game, played at a sold-out Dodger Stadium, the club announced it had sold a record 3.1 million tickets for the season. LA can't preserve lead after Maeda's 6 scoreless By Ken Gurnick and Steve Gilbert LOS ANGELES -- Paul Goldschmidt's tiebreaking homer on a 3-0 fastball from Chris Hatcher with one out in the eighth inning helped the D-backs to a 4-2 win over the Dodgers on Tuesday and spoiled Vin Scully's final home opener in the Dodger Stadium broadcast booth. "It's a tie game, I'm just trying to find a way to get on base," Goldschmidt said of his homer. "Fortunately I was able to get it out of there. It was a good job for us to be able to tack on a few more, and the bullpen did a great job. So did [Patrick] Corbin. All and all, it was a good win, and we were fortunate to come from behind like that." Dodgers rookie Kenta Maeda, who also threw six scoreless innings in his Major League debut last week in San Diego, held Arizona scoreless over six innings on five hits while striking out four. "Maeda was great; he has so many weapons," said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. "After six innings and 95 pitches, I thought that was a good time to go to the 'pen and give Petey [Pedro Baez] a clean inning." Nick Ahmed tied the game with a two-out solo homer in the seventh inning off Baez. Corbin allowed one run in six innings for the D-backs, with Tyler Clippard getting the win in relief and Brad Ziegler the save. Howie Kendrick, activated off the disabled list for the game, led off the second inning for the Dodgers with a single, took second on Trayce Thompson's infield single, tagged to third on Corey Seager's flyout and scored on A.J. Ellis' perfect bunt. Goldschmidt drove in an insurance run with an RBI groundout in the ninth after Socrates Brito hit an RBI triple.

13 MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Gold standard vs. Dodgers: Something about facing the Dodgers seems to bring out the best in Goldschmidt. Including Tuesday's 1-for-5 effort, he has hit.338 against the Dodgers in his career, with 22 homers and 65 RBIs. Dodger Stadium has also been a friendly place for him, as he hit.450 with five home runs at Chavez Ravine in The home run was the first of Goldschmidt's career when the count was 3-0. "He has got comfortable doing it," D-backs manager Chip Hale said. "He got a pitch to handle and you trust him. When you trust a guy, that's when you give him a 3-0 hit sign." Great escapes: Arizona had runners on second and third with no outs in the second inning, but Maeda struck out Yasmany Tomas, then got Corbin and Ahmed on grounders. With two out in the sixth, Welington Castillo singled and was thrown out at home on Jake Lamb's double, Yasiel Puig's throw relayed by Justin Turner to Ellis. Slow going: Castillo is not known for his speed, and his lack of it cost Arizona on the basepaths a couple of times. After Castillo led off the second with a single to center, Lamb doubled to right-center, but third-base coach Matt Williams had to hold Castillo at third. Then in the sixth with two outs, Castillo was thrown out at the plate trying to score on Lamb's second double of the game. "That was a correct decision by him," Hale said of Williams. "He had to take a shot. They did a really nice job of the cutoff and relaying to throw him out at home." Streaking Seager: Seager led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a double and scored on a groundout. The double extended the rookie's hitting streak to 11 games dating back to last year. QUOTABLE "Compared to my last outing, I thought I had less command of my pitches and I threw more pitches in general. So as a result, I ended up throwing only six innings. Hopefully next time, I'll be able to stretch it out and throw a couple more innings with fewer pitches." -- Maeda SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Maeda joined Karl Spooner (1954) and Kaz Ishii (2002) as the only Dodgers to begin a career with two scoreless starts, according to Elias. UPON FURTHER REVIEW Puig singled to left in the fifth and stretched it into a hustle double. Tomas' throw to second was a little offline and pulled second baseman Jean Segura off the bag. Puig slid by the bag and reached back to tag second with his hand. Meanwhile Segura, also on his stomach, reached out to try to touch Puig's hand. Puig was ruled safe and the D-backs challenged the call. After a three-minute, 51-second review, the call stood. WHAT'S NEXT

14 D-backs: Rubby De La Rosa will get the start at 7:10 p.m. MST Wednesday night against the Dodgers. De La Rosa, who came up through the Dodgers' organization, struggled mightily against them in 2015, compiling an ERA in four starts. Dodgers: Alex Wood makes his second start in the 7:10 p.m. PT game on Wednesday. Against the Giants, he threw four scoreless innings, then allowed five of the next 10 batters he faced to score. He had a 7.13 spring ERA. Watch every out-of-market regular-season game live on MLB.TV. Goldschmidt, 'pen continue to plague Dodgers By Ken Gurnick LOS ANGELES -- The day after Paul Goldschmidt homered off the Dodgers this spring, a writer mentioned to new manager Dave Roberts that, no matter what the analytics say, don't pitch to the D-backs' slugger. Roberts learned the hard way on Tuesday, when the final home opener of Vin Scully's broadcasting career was ruined by yet another Goldschmidt home run in the eighth inning of a 4-2 loss to the D-backs at 1000 Vin Scully Avenue (also known as Dodger Stadium). Going back to last year, Goldschmidt has homered in four of his last five games against the Dodgers. In 19 games last year against them, he hit.397 with eight homers and 19 RBIs. In 10 games at Dodger Stadium, he hit.450 with five homers and eight RBIs. Of Goldschmidt's 101 career hits against Los Angeles, 22 are home runs. He also added an RBI grounder in the ninth inning as the Dodgers' bullpen wasted six scoreless innings from rookie Kenta Maeda. An inning before Goldschmidt's blast on a 3-0 Chris Hatcher fastball, No. 9 hitter Nick Ahmed tied the game with a home run into the first row of box seats in left off a Pedro Baez changeup. So, while Goldschmidt did his usual demolition job on the hosts, the real issue in the second week of the season is the Los Angeles bullpen, which has suffered three of the club's four losses. Every reliever not named Kenley Jansen has allowed a run. The combined bullpen ERA is The 'pen has allowed five home runs in 21 2/3 innings, two each by Hatcher and Baez. While his bullpen didn't provide enough defense on Tuesday, Roberts defended his relievers, saying it's too early to bump Hatcher out of his eighth-inning setup role. "Right now, I'm not thinking about that at all," said Roberts. "Right now you want to give these guys confidence. We're going to need them if we're going to have a great season. For me, it's way too early for me to be thinking about changing roles.

15 "Right now, they're not throwing the ball as well as they'd like to or we'd like them to. For me, it's a matter of continuing to run them out there. I'm seeing certain pitches not being executed, and over a certain time, if that continues, then you have to entertain [a change]." Roberts said Ahmed hit a changeup from Baez that he thought was so low that catcher A.J. Ellis would need to block it. The manager was less forgiving on the Goldschmidt homer. "With Hatch... he made a mistake, a fastball with Goldschmidt, 3-0, a hitter like that everyone in the ballpark knows he's swinging," Roberts said. "Definitely a pitch he'd like back." Hatcher, who allowed the home run to Trevor Brown in San Francisco after taking over Ross Stripling's no-hitter Friday night, was booed loudly by the sellout crowd. "I deserved it," the reliever said. "We've got to pick it up as a group, and I have to myself. The rollercoaster has to stop and we have to start putting up zeros." Hatcher said he wasn't challenging Goldschmidt, but trying to make him chase a pitch that was mislocated. "It missed, left it belt high," Hatcher said. "Our job is simple, put up zeros. I've got to tighten it up. Just got to make better pitches, and right now I'm not making very good pitches." LA activates Kendrick, Grandal; Van Slyke to DL By Austin Laymance LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers reinstated infielder Howie Kendrick and catcher Yasmani Grandal from the disabled list and placed outfielder Scott Van Slyke on the 15-day DL before Tuesday's 4-2 home-opening loss against the D-backs. Kendrick is coming off a left calf strain, while Grandal was dealing with a right forearm strain. Both completed Minor League rehab assignments. Kendrick was in Tuesday's starting lineup, batting fifth and playing second base. He went 1-for-4 and scored a run. Manager Dave Roberts said Grandal, who drove in a run as a pinch-hitter in the ninth Tuesday, is expected to start Wednesday. Van Slyke went for an MRI on Tuesday and was diagnosed with lower back irritation. He was removed from Saturday's win over the Giants with the injury. The Dodgers' outfield depth is being tested early with Van Slyke, Carl Crawford, Andre Ethier and Alexander Guerrero on the DL. "It's a big loss," Roberts said. The Dodgers are hopeful Van Slyke and Crawford (lower back pain) can return to action in two weeks. In the meantime, Roberts mentioned Kendrick as a possibility to see action in left field.

16 The Dodgers previously optioned infielder Micah Johnson to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday. Back in LA, Greinke reflects fondly on Dodgers tenure By Steve Gilbert LOS ANGELES -- Zack Greinke returned to Dodger Stadium on Tuesday for the first time since signing a six-year, $206.5 million contract with the D-backs during the offseason, and he had nothing but positive things to say about his former teammates and the city as a whole. "It feels nice," Greinke said of being back. "Very comfortable with this city. I have a house here. It seemed like normal. It feels like a good baseball place." The Dodgers attempted to re-sign Greinke during the winter, and it appeared to be a two-team race between them and the Giants. However, in the span of around five hours, the D-backs put together a package that gave Greinke the highest annual average salary in baseball history. Greinke was asked if he was surprised the Dodgers didn't pay whatever it would have taken to sign him. "You've got to make the decision that's best for the team," Greinke said. "That's what their job is to do. People say they have unlimited resources. If they're going to spend $2 billion a year, they'd have unlimited resources. There's still a limit, and a team has to do what's smart for the team." Greinke patiently answered questions for 11 minutes in the D-backs' dugout. Well, there was one he was not about to touch: Did the Dodgers attempt to sign him to an extension during the 2015 regular season? "Ask them," Greinke said of the Dodgers. "I don't know if that's a more detailed question than what you guys have been asking, but it seems like a question I don't want to answer." Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw did not try and lobby him to stay, Greinke said, and the righty's departure was not because of any concerns about the atmosphere in the Dodgers' clubhouse or outfielder Yasiel Puig in particular. "Honestly, that had zero to do with anything," Greinke said. "The clubhouse over there is fantastic. Especially last season, it was a really good place. There are a lot of great guys over there. I would say it would be much more of a positive -- the way the clubhouse is -- than a negative." Greinke's first two starts for the D-backs have not gone as either he or the team had hoped. Greinke allowed seven runs in just four innings on Opening Day, and then on Saturday against the Cubs, he gave up four runs in six innings, with three of the runs coming in the first inning. "He's not been the Zack Greinke that we saw the last couple of years, that I've seen," D-backs manager Chip Hale said. "I think that's just a matter of getting his feet on the ground. After the first inning against

17 the Cubs, he threw beautifully, and that's the guy we're used to seeing, and I think that's who we're going to see the rest of the season." Lasorda 4-part series to premiere Saturday By Jack Baer LOS ANGELES -- SportsNet LA announced Tuesday a four-part miniseries offering a comprehensive look at the life of former Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda. The series, entitled Dodgermentary: The Lasorda Chronicles, will look at the Hall of Famer's time both on and off the field and duties he took on that went beyond working as a manager. "Breaking Bad" star Bryan Cranston will narrate the show, which premieres Saturday at 10 p.m. PT. The first episode will center on Lasorda's life before getting called up to the Majors, detailing his life growing up in a small Pennsylvania town and his initially rocky Minor League career. The next three episodes, televised Sundays in the following weeks at 7 p.m. PT, will delve into Lasorda's life as the Hall of Fame manager that led the Dodgers to two World Series titles and all that came after it. That will include his time coming out of retirement to coach the USA baseball team to its only Olympic gold medal. Vin Scully will lead a group of Lasorda friends and Dodgers greats that were interviewed for the series. Among those fans can expect to hear from are Orel Hershiser, Dusty Baker, Mike Piazza, Peter O'Malley and Rick Monday. The series will also feature Lasorda's Hall of Fame induction, including footage of a phone call from Ted Williams to notify the manager of his induction. LA TIMES The skinny on pitcher Kenta Maeda: The Dodgers just might have made a good call in signing him By Dylan Hernandez As Kenta Maeda reflected on pitching Tuesday in the Dodgers' home-opener defeat to the Arizona Diamondbacks, he sounded as if he didn't know what to make of everything. He's still feeling out his catcher, as well as opposing hitters. The same with Los Angeles traffic. As for how his 6-foot, 150-pound frame will respond to a grueling 162-game schedule, the 28-year-old righthander from Japan can only guess. Maeda doesn't know how his first major league season will unfold. The Dodgers don't, either.

18 But there's a reason to think this $45-million gamble might work out for the Dodgers, and not only because he's pitched six scoreless innings in each of his two starts. He wants more. That was evident in his postgame news conference, as he spoke more about what he didn't do than what he did. "From here on, I'd like to manage my pitch count better and be able to stay in games longer," Maeda said in Japanese. He encountered some early trouble Tuesday, which is why his pitch count was at 95 by the end of the sixth inning. The Dodgers could use another inning or two from Maeda every time he takes the mound, if only to avoid placing the game in the hands of their combustible bullpen. Clayton Kershaw is expected to pitch 200 innings for the sixth time. Maeda's goal is to be there with him. His primary motivation is the pessimistic medical diagnosis he received when he underwent a physical examination as a free agent this winter. The uncertainty over his health resulted in his settling for a relatively modest contract, which is guaranteed for $25 million over eight years. That competitive streak was apparent against Arizona when Maeda served up a second-inning double to Jake Lamb that placed runners on second and third with no outs. Maeda struck out Yasmany Tomas, then got Patrick Corbin and Nick Ahmed to ground out. "He never loses his poise," pitching coach Rick Honeycutt said. "I think you almost see the best of him when he's in trouble. That shows how competitive he is and how he's able to execute when he has to." Maeda was also confident enough to shake off catcher A.J. Ellis on a couple of occasions. But he was also saved by his defense, particularly in the sixth inning, when Lamb doubled off the bullpen gate in right field with two outs. Yasiel Puig delivered a perfect throw to Justin Turner, who relayed the ball to the plate before Welington Castillo could score from first. "Today, I was helped by my defense a lot," Maeda said. "I don't think my pitches were that sharp.... "I think it will be a plus for me that I was able to hold the opponent scoreless on a bad day." Zack Greinke, who left the Dodgers for the Diamondbacks in the off-season, is known to play makebelieve general manager. So if Greinke were running the Dodgers, would he have re-signed himself? "I don't know," Greinke said. "There's a lot that goes into it. It's not like it's just some small sign. Any time you're going to have to make as big a move as it was, it can change the outcome of your whole organization. So you have to weigh a lot of different things." Is that a no? Greinke wouldn't say.

19 "Maybe," he said. "There's so much that goes into it that it's not just one person's decision, too. If I was the GM of the Dodgers, it's not just my decision, a move that's that big." Now that Greinke is with the Diamondbacks, he said he no longer spends his winters in Los Angeles. "The taxes are too high out here," he explained. Corey Seager is a quick study. Remember when Seager didn't cover third base after the Dodgers infield was shifted in the playoffs last year and it cost the team a critical run? Don't expect him to make the same mistake again. The Dodgers were in another shift Tuesday in the first inning with Maeda pitched to the left-handedhitting David Peralta. With third baseman Turner stationed in shallow right field, Maeda uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Jean Segura to advance from first base to second. Segura had no chance to take third, though, because Seager rushed over to cover the base. Yasiel Puig is nifty on the bases and in the field By Mike DiGiovanna The inside of Yasiel Puig's left wrist was swollen and sore, the result of a Daniel Hudson 96-mph fastball that hit the Dodgers right fielder in the eighth inning of Tuesday's home opener. Puig's spirits were a little low after a 4-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. I don't feel good, Puig said, because my team lost. But Puig's sense of humor escaped unscathed. Asked about his on-the-money relay throw from the wall that helped cut down the potential tying run at the plate in the sixth inning, Puig poked fun at his reputation as a player prone to defensive mistakes and occasional mental lapses, saying, I hit the cutoff man. I never throw to a cutoff man in my life. And what about his sleight-of-hand maneuver at second base on his hustle double in the fifth, when, from his stomach, Puig deked Arizona second baseman Jean Segura with his right hand before reaching for the bag with his left hand? I was trying to get on the base, Puig said through an interpreter. His throw was to his left hand, so I tried to attack with my right. I wasn't able to reach the bag, so I went again with my left. If I wouldn't have done it with my left hand, I would have used my tongue. Puig, when healthy and engaged, is a dynamic player with game-changing abilities on offense and defense, and he displayed both along with a pinch of smarts on two of the game's more interesting plays.

20 With two outs in the fifth, Puig laced a hit down the left-field line. Before his swing, he noticed Diamondbacks outfielder Yasmany Tomas playing deep. Puig didn't hesitate as he rounded first base. His aggressive head-first slide took him beyond second base, but Puig was able to scramble back to the bag, with umpire Mark Carlson's safe call upheld after a 3-minute, 51-second replay review. Puig was stranded when Adrian Gonzalez flied to left on the next pitch to end the inning. As I've said time and time again, if we play the game the right way, I'll take [the results], Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts said. With two outs, Tomas was playing deep. He was thinking two out of the box. Out or safe, I thought it was a great baseball play. So was Puig's barehand grab of Jake Lamb's double as it caromed off the base of the right-field wall in the sixth. Puig spun and fired a long strike to Justin Turner, the third baseman who was in shallow right field as part of a shift. Turner's one-hop throw to catcher A.J. Ellis nailed the slow-footed Welington Castillo, who was trying to score from first, preserving a 1-0 lead. He's just such a special player to unload the ball that fast and that accurate, outfield coach George Lombard said. You have to get to the ball in a hurry and get to it clean. He aimed to Turner's throwing side, J.T. executed a great throw to the plate, and A.J. held onto the ball. Lombard is in his first year with the Dodgers, so he couldn't speak to Puig's past transgressions, but he has been impressed with Puig's focus and execution so far. There's a lot to like, Lombard said. He says he wants to win a Gold Glove, and there's no reason he can't do that. Chris Hatcher and the bullpen let down the Dodgers again during 4-2 loss to Arizona in home opener By Andy McCullough First base was empty, extending an invitation to Dodgers reliever Chris Hatcher. He had thrown three consecutive balls to Arizona first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, one of the finest hitters on the planet. He could choose passivity and grant Goldschmidt a walk with the score tied in the eighth inning. Or he could attempt some version of gallantry. "You get behind a hitter like that, and everyone in the ballpark knows he's swinging the bat," Manager Dave Roberts said. Said first baseman Adrian Gonzalez: "Obviously, he's the one guy in the lineup..." Hatcher meant to throw a fastball out of the strike zone "I'm not challenging him right there," he said but his alignment misfired, a regrettable mistake in a 4-2 defeat. He fed Goldschmidt a 96-mph

21 fastball at the waist. Goldschmidt bashed a go-ahead home run about a dozen rows deep into the leftfield pavilion. In Tuesday's home opener, the pattern from the weekend in San Francisco held. Everything the relievers touched turned to ash. Pedro Baez spoiled six scoreless innings from Kenta Maeda by allowing a tying homer in the seventh. Louis Coleman gave up two more runs in the ninth, rendering meaningless a run generated by Corey Seager in the bottom of the inning. After a season-opening three-game sweep of San Diego, the Dodgers have lost four of five. The offense sputtered throughout Tuesday's game and failed to excite the sellout crowd of 53,279 at Dodger Stadium. Through eight games, the earned-run average of the bullpen is "We've got to pick it up as a collective group, myself included in that," Hatcher said. "The roller coaster's got to stop. We've got to start putting up some zeros." The front office of Andrew Friedman made only marginal changes to the bullpen during the winter, adding Coleman and Joe Blanton, but otherwise sticking with the core from Roberts suggested it was too early to consider shaking up the group's hierarchy. Manager Dave Roberts discusses the Dodgers' 4-2 loss to the Diamondbacks in their home opener on April 12. "Right now, I'm not thinking about that at all," Roberts said. "Right now, you want to continue to give these guys confidence and keep giving them opportunities." Perhaps it is too soon for Roberts to act. But it is also difficult to identify a reliever, save for closer Kenley Jansen, he can trust. Yimi Garcia has a 4.91 ERA; J.P. Howell has a ERA. Hatcher, whose ERA is 5.40, had already surrendered a tying two-run homer to San Francisco backup catcher Trevor Brown in the eighth inning Friday. Dodgers fans sounded exultant midway through the sixth inning, when Yasiel Puig and Justin Turner teamed on a relay to cut down catcher Welington Castillo at the plate and preserve a 1-0 Dodgers lead. The Dodgers manufactured a run off Diamondbacks starter Patrick Corbin in the second inning. In his first game back from the disabled list, Howie Kendrick led off with a single. Trayce Thompson legged out an infield hit. Kendrick took third on a line out by Seager. Up came A.J. Ellis. Corbin threw a changeup down the middle. Ellis dropped a squeeze bunt a few feet in front of the plate. The ball dribbled too far for Castillo to get back in time to tag Kendrick, so he threw out Ellis out at first as Kendrick scored the game's first run. After that, the lineup failed to advance a runner past second base against Corbin. So Baez inherited the slimmest of margins in the seventh. He retired the first two batters. With the count at 1-2 to shortstop Nick Ahmed, Baez threw a changeup at the shins. Amhed hooked a liner down the left-field line, just deep enough to clear the low fence. "It was exactly where I wanted it," Ellis said. "He hit a pitch that was borderline going to bounce."

22 Hatcher could not claim anything similar. His first fastball to Goldschmidt veered well outside. His next two splitters missed low. He failed to execute his plan on the 3-0 pitch. His club paid the price. Hatcher exited the game four batters later. He left the bases loaded. The crowd jeered his exit. "I deserved it," he said. The opposite sound greeted Roberts. The crowd applauded him for the maneuver, a reaction based more on relief than happiness. Satirical applause is not the sort of reception a manager desires. After one week, the chief flaw on the Dodgers roster appeared clear. Roberts continued to support the bullpen even if it has failed to support him. "I expect to be ahead in a lot of games late," Roberts said. "And we're going to need them. If we want to have a great season, have a winning season, we're going to need those guys in the 'pen." Dodgers' tribute to Vin Scully is in essence a celebration of baseball history By Bill Shaikin The game will go on without Vin Scully. In fact, it already did. The Dodgers produced a splendid tribute to Scully before Tuesday's home opener, but it ran so long that he could not get back from the field to the broadcast booth in time for the first pitch. There is a first time for everything, even in the 67th and final season of his career. Scully said he never had missed the start of a game, but he masked his disappointment with trademark grace and good humor. "I know they're going to play without me," he said. That was a first awkward note in a delicate farewell dance. Scully believes the spotlight should be reserved for the game, not for the guy calling it. Los Angeles wants to embrace Scully, to send him into retirement with a group hug and a million selfies. The Dodgers must walk a thin blue tightrope, trying to strike just the right balance. The fans lined up by the dozens on the club level Tuesday, waiting for a glimpse of the greatest broadcaster in baseball history. Scully emerged from the press box at 12:30 p.m., his hand on his wife's back, as security guards parted the blue sea and opened a path to an elevator. The fans cheered, shouted declarations of love, snapped pictures with their cell phones. One fan got a little too close to Scully; the guards intercepted him. The elevator took Scully down to the field, to a ceremony that traced the history of the broadcaster and the team, joyously intertwined for posterity. The first man out: Don Newcombe, 89, the starting pitcher in Scully's first Dodgers game, in 1950.