Lasorda Worried About Campanis

Tom Lasorda says it will be the thrill of a lifetime when he is inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame in August, but there will be a feeling of sadness if one of his good friends is not there.

Lasorda badly wants Al Campanis, his mentor and the man who promoted him to Dodger manager, to be with him in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Campanis, 80, however, is hospitalized at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton after falling Tuesday and breaking an arm. Lasorda can’t help but worry.

“He’s as much a reason I’m in the Hall of Fame as anyone,” Lasorda said.

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The Dodgers still believe that Brett Butler will be ready to start the season, especially after watching him go three for four Wednesday, with a triple, three runs scored and two driven in.

Yet the alternative isn’t looking so bad.

Billy Ashley has been also been impressive. He hit a three-run pinch-homer in the Dodgers’ 11-4 victory over the Montreal Expos, and is batting .385 with two homers and a team-high six RBIs.

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Pitcher Kirk Dressendorfer, who has had three shoulder operations since 1991, continues to impress. He has yielded only two hits in four innings and has struck out four.