Millar Shows Dodgers One That Got Away

The Dodgers could use a player like Florida first baseman Kevin Millar.

Millar, who grew up in Encino and attended Los Angeles University High, is one of the many young players putting up eye-opening numbers for the rebuilding Marlins.

Millar singled, knocked in a run and scored once as the Marlins rode a first inning two-run homer by Bruce Aven to a 6-1 victory Tuesday over the Dodgers before 30,354 at Dodger Stadium.

Rookie Mike Judd (1-1) started for the Dodgers and pitched well in his second career start. Judd, however, did not make enough good pitches to gain a win as he gave up four runs and eight hits in six-plus innings.

“I thought he threw the ball all right,” Dodger Manager Davey Johnson said. “He hung a changeup [to Aven]. He has to learn how to hold runners a little better.”

Florida rookie A.J. Burnett recorded the victory in his major-league debut as he held the Dodgers to five hits and one run over 5 2/3 innings.

Catcher Mike Redmond had two runs batted in for the Marlins, who received strong efforts from relievers Armando Almanza and Dennis Springer.

Todd Hollandsworth hit his eighth home run in the sixth inning for the Dodgers, who dropped to 1-4 on the homestand. The Dodgers have lost three in a row after winning three of four.

For Millar, playing in Dodger Stadium is a dream come true, considering that his father was a die-hard Dodger fan who often took him to games.

“When you grow up in the Los Angeles area, you’re a kid and a Dodger blue fan,” said Millar, 27, who played at L.A. City College and Lamar University after high school. “I grew up listening to Vin Scully in my right ear, rooting for Pedro Guerrero, Mike Scioscia and all the guys I admired. This is a big thrill to be heading to the stadium to put my uniform on instead of going to pick up tickets.”

Millar, who had 150 family and friends attend Tuesday’s game, had to take a long scenic route to reach the major league level.

Like the rest of the teams in the league, the Dodgers had five chances to select Millar but didn’t. He went undrafted in high school, junior college and college and then had to play with St. Paul of the Independent Northern League before Florida signed him to a minor-league contract in 1993.

“I dreamed of playing for the Dodgers but once you get to an age where you just want to play in the major leagues, it doesn’t matter any more,” said Millar, who played five years in the minors before this season.

“It was a tough road for me. . . . Thank God for the Marlins because they gave me an opportunity.”

Millar made his major league debut last year but broke his left wrist in his second game. This season, Millar spent a short time in the minors before being called up and he’s been in the lineup ever since.

Going into Tuesday’s game, Millar’s .470 batting average with runners in scoring position was second in the National League and in his previous 41 games, he had a .340 average. He is batting .315 for the season.

With players like Millar and Preston Wilson, who leads all rookies with 20 home runs and a .540 slugging percentage, the Marlins have a bright future despite their 50-70 record.

“We have a young team that works hard,” Millar said. “We have a lot of good guys and fundamentally, we’re pretty tough. A lot of teams overlook the little things but we don’t. We’re just learning how to win. For a lot of us, we’re just getting our first 100 innings in the big leagues.”

Although the Dodgers (53-67) have a better record, Millar believes the Marlins may be in better position to turn things around.

For us, we are a young team that comes in here and no one knows us,” he said. “And that may work to our advantage in the long run.”

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