Dodgers field right attitude

THERE is plenty to like about the latest edition of the Dodgers. There is a lot of solid pitching, both in the rotation and in the bullpen, and there appears to be enough gap hitters and small-ball offense to offset the club’s lack of home run power.

But the most likable thing of all about these Dodgers might be, well, their likability.

This year, there is no Milton Bradley waiting to explode. There is no Kenny Lofton snarling at every reporter who walks within 10 feet of him. Brad Penny has said publicly that he is trying to curb his own legendary temper. And even Jeff Kent has been … oh, never mind.

The point is, the clubhouse has become a very pleasant, very professional and very cohesive place. To a man, the players added by general manager Ned Colletti this winter, through either trade or free agency, all came with well-deserved reputations for being the sort of guys who put the team ahead of themselves and put winning above all else.

They brought some jewelry with them as well. Luis Gonzalez has a World Series ring he got with a bloop single off Mariano Rivera to give Arizona a walk-off, Game 7 win in 2001. Juan Pierre, one of the game’s fastest leadoff men until his signing with the Dodgers pushed him into the two hole, got a ring of his own with Florida in 2003.

Then there is Jason Schmidt, the veteran right-hander who helped San Francisco not only get to the Series in 2002 but come tantalizingly close to winning it before falling short. Even Randy Wolf, who is still waiting for his first career postseason action, fits well into the new fabric of a team that only a Giants fan could hate.

“It’s a good group of guys,” said Gonzalez, the respected veteran left fielder who signed a one-year, $7.35 million contract after the Diamondbacks decided they didn’t want him anymore. “Everybody is pretty tight in here. I think we have come together in a lot of good ways during spring training, and I think we have all gotten to know each other pretty well. And I think that carries over onto the field.”

Gonzalez, who will turn 40 in September and is the Dodgers’ oldest player, is the de facto social chairman. A five-time All-Star who has hit as many as 57 homers in one season and batted as high as .336 in another, Gonzalez commands a certain respect whenever he enters a room. He is outgoing, engaging and seemingly always smiling, and provides an antithesis to the introverted Kent, who at 39 is only a few months shy of matching Gonzalez for elder statesman status.

But don’t misunderstand. This isn’t the kind of fraternity-house atmosphere that some teams have been known for in recent years. There isn’t a lot of “cowboying up,” and no one is referring to himself and others as “idiots.”

But there is a collective, discernible sense of purpose. And a bunch of guys who, fun-loving though they may be, are fiercely committed to it.

“I like the makeup of this team,” Dodgers manager Grady Little said. “I like the players we brought in this winter, and I like what they bring to the team. These guys aren’t just good players, they’re excellent people to have in the clubhouse.”

In tweaking what already was a good club this off-season, Colletti didn’t limit his player search to the nicest guys he could find. But he didn’t completely discount that as a factor.

“We won’t always be able to do that,” he said. “But we will always do what we can to do that. I think it’s a great complement to the makeup of our club, the approach these players have and their willingness to get along with each other. I think it does translate onto the field, especially if things are going poorly or somebody is slumping. Anybody can celebrate when things are going well. But how do you go about your business when you have lost 13 out of 14 or you’re 1 for 25 or you give up six runs in two innings?”

If you believe the various preseason prognostications - at least two national publications have the Dodgers in the World Series - these nice guys won’t finish anywhere close to last.

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