Dodgers Strong up the Middle

The Dodgers are eager to turn a page under new Chairman Bob Daly, and winning is the only way to please the hands-on boss.

The longtime Hollywood deal-maker and Fox are financing the club’s $90-million production, so these guys better not flop again because Daly is watching closely and isn’t afraid to make changes.

They’re off to a good start.

The Dodgers put a smile on Daly’s face with a 10-4 opening-day victory Monday over the Montreal Expos before a sellout crowd of 51,249 at Olympic Stadium.

The Dodgers scored four unearned runs in the fifth, benefiting from two errors, to take charge against unlucky starter and loser Dustin Hermanson, and broke the game open with five in the seventh after chasing the right-hander.

Gary Sheffield delivered the key blow in the fifth--a two-out, two-run triple off the wall in center field--and Eric Karros punctuated the Dodgers’ successful opener with his second career grand slam. The homer also put Karros alone in second place on the all-time Los Angeles franchise list with 212.

Todd Hundley also homered, providing the Dodgers’ first run with a solo shot in the second inning. Montreal’s Jose Vidro stole two bases in two attempts against Hundley, who also committed a throwing error, so it appears he’s still experiencing problems in that area.

Shawn Green had a quiet regular-season debut, grounding out three times and walking twice with a RBI, but others filled the void. Starter Kevin Brown pitched six innings to earn the victory, and reliever Terry Adams pitched three innings to record his first save for his new team.

The Dodgers overcame a strong performance by Montreal franchise player Vladimir Guerrero, who accounted for the Expos’ runs with two homers--one against each Dodger pitcher--and a run-scoring single.

Daly often attended smash premieres while running Warner Bros. studios, and he said the Dodgers’ opener qualifies.

“It was great, it was terrific, it was everything you could want,” Daly said as he congratulated players in the clubhouse.

“We pitched great, we hit and we did what we needed to do to have a good start. Everything came together.”

The middle of the lineup certainly did.

Manager Davey Johnson shuffled the batting order on Green’s arrival to create better balance.

The left-handed slugger pushed longtime cleanup batter Karros to the fifth spot, in front of switch-hitter Hundley. Sheffield remained third in the order because Johnson figured he would benefit most batting in front of Green, and he might be right.

With Green on deck in the fifth and two on, Hermanson threw Sheffield a fastball that he turned into a momentum-changing triple. Sheffield had two hits, Hundley three and Karros cleared the bases with his grand slam, combining for six of the Dodgers’ nine hits.

Johnson acknowledges everything the Dodgers did well offensively can’t be attributed to Green’s presence--but he enjoys having him in the lineup.

“Well, I like it when a plan comes together,” Johnson said. “When we score runs like that, it makes us look like we know what we’re doing.”

Karros downplayed the production, noting that the Dodgers didn’t overwhelm the Expos from the outset. But he also believes the Dodgers will be more consistent offensively.

“We didn’t come out and roll them over, but we did capitalize on their mistakes,” said Karros, who needs 17 homers to overtake Ron Cey for first place. “We were given a lot of opportunities and we made the most of them.”

Karros homered on a 1-and-1 count against Scott Strickland in the seventh, driving the ball into the seats down the left-field line. He hit his first grand slam against the Expos last Aug. 11.

Brown gave up seven hits and three runs in a subpar performance for him. The right-hander struck out seven and walked one while throwing 87 pitches, including 58 for strikes.

Adams, acquired in the Ismael Valdes-Eric Young off-season deal with the Chicago Cubs, pitched three innings to nail down the victory for Brown and the save.

Brown did some of his best work Monday with his bat. His two-strike bunt was among the keys to the four-run fifth.

With one out, a 0-and-2 count against Hermanson and runners on first and second, Brown laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt along the third-base line. Second baseman Vidro, covering first, couldn’t handle catcher Chris Widger’s throw and Adrian Beltre scored from second. The Dodgers scored another run when third baseman Michael Barrett committed an error on a ball hit by Devon White, and Sheffield capped the inning with his triple.

Daly watched the game from the stands with his son, Bob Jr., and General Manager Kevin Malone. Johnson hopes to keep Daly in a good mood.

“I’ve got to keep him happy,” Johnson said. “This should help.”

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A RUN

ON BORDER

Carlos Perez finds it significant that Dodgers begin in Montreal, where he and team stumbled in ’99. D9