First of all, Mattingly will remain with the club as a special assignment
instructor, allowing him to be based out of his home in Evansville, Ind. He will
attend the earliest part of spring training, then join the team as a pregame
instructor when it plays in some Midwestern cities.
Moreover, there is no reason why Mattingly can't rejoin the club as a coach
-- possibly hitting coach, possibly bench coach, possibly something else -- next
year.
As for the Dodgers, they replaced Mattingly by promoting Mike Easler from his
role as hitting coach at Class AAA Las Vegas. A career .293 hitter in 14 major
league seasons, Easler also has spent six seasons as a major league hitting
coach, most recently with St. Louis from 1999-2001.
But the most appealing factor from the Dodgers' standpoint was the fact that
Easler spent 2006 as the hitting coach at their Class AA Jacksonville affiliate,
then moved up to Las Vegas last year. That means he has spent much of the past
two seasons -- and almost every day, in some cases -- with several of the
Dodgers' most promising prospects, many of whom will be in the majors this
season.
Among those who have benefited from Easler's tutelage are infielders Tony Abreu, Chin-lung Hu, Andy LaRoche and James Loney and outfielder Matt Kemp. At
least four of those five are expected to be on the Dodgers' Opening Day roster.
"These kids can play, and I know them inside and out," Easler said. "I love
these kids. They're like my sons, and I am happy that they're moving up. This is
just the continuation of something we started two years ago."
Notes and Quotes
--RHP Scott Proctor agreed to terms on a one-year, $1,115,000 contract,
avoiding arbitration in what would have been his first winter of eligibility. He
is expected to fill a sixth- and seventh-inning role similar to last year.
--LHP Scott Elbert, one of the Dodgers' top pitching prospects, is said to be
doing well on his rehabilitation from season-ending shoulder surgery last April
despite the fact he has had a handful of minor setbacks. Although he has an
outside chance of being ready by the start of spring training, club officials
won't panic even if he isn't ready by Opening Day.
--LHP Joe Beimel is the Dodgers' last pending arbitration case for the second
year in a row. Last winter, he took the club to a hearing and lost, leaving him
with a $912,500 salary for 2007 after he had asked for $1.25 million. This year,
Beimel is asking for $2.15 million, while the club filed at $1.7 million. Beimel
will be eligible for free agency next winter.
--RHP Bryan Morris, the second of the club's two first-round picks in 2006,
also is recovering well from Tommy John surgery in the fall of 2006 that caused
him to miss all of 2007. But Morris reportedly has been so gung-ho in his rehab
program that club officials have had to rein him in several times for fear of a
setback.
--Manager Dave Collins of the Dodgers' Class A Inland Empire affiliate
resigned due to a family issue. John Valentin, who had recently been hired as
the team's hitting coach, was promoted to replace Collins.
By The Numb3rs: 2.33 -- Difference between Brad Penny's first-half (2.64) and second-half (4.97) ERAs over the past two seasons combined. The veteran
right-hander was an All-Star in each of those seasons. While his second-half
decline wasn't nearly as dramatic in 2007 as it was in 2006, his ERA still rose
from 2.39 to 3.84.
Note to Quote: "I'm a professional, and I have been in this game for 38
years. I understand how this game works. It's just a matter of timing. I'm here
right now, and I'll just make the best out of it for this year." -- Dodgers
hitting coach Mike Easler, in response to a question of whether he expects his new assignment to last longer than one season given the possibility that Don
Mattingly might return to the role in 2009.
*MA*S*H* 4077 Report
INF Tony Abreu (sports hernia surgery in October 2007) will recover for six
to eight weeks before re-engaging in baseball activities.
SS Rafael Furcal (slightly bulging disk in back) missed the final two weeks
of the 2007 season but didn't need surgery for that or his sprained left ankle.
He will be ready for the start of spring training. Played well but briefly during the Dominican Winter League.
RHP Jason Schmidt (shoulder surgery in June 2007) remains on target for a
spring return.
OF Jason Repko (left hamstring surgery in March 2007) missed all of the 2007
season. He was sidelined for a week in October in the Arizona Fall League due to
a right ankle injury.
LHP Hong-Chih Kuo (left elbow surgery in July 2007) had begun a rehab program
before the end of the 2007 season.
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