They Give Themselves a Pat on Back

The final stretch of a tight playoff race seemingly isn’t the best time for reflection, but the Dodgers feel entitled.

Being in postseason contention at this point of a season is an accomplishment, and the Dodgers’ surprising success is even sweeter for them because of what they’ve overcome. Few clubs have faced the front-office turmoil and off-field distractions this bunch has the last four seasons, and now the Dodgers are sprinting to the finish line with a sense of accomplishment.

The San Francisco Giants made things tougher for them on Tuesday night, taking a one-game lead in the National League wild-card race with a 5-2 victory at Pacific Bell Park. The Dodgers aren’t satisfied with what they’ve done; it’s just that they know how far they’ve already come.

“I was thinking about that the other day, that this year really has been a lot different than ... every year I’ve been here,” said third baseman Adrian Beltre, who made his major league debut in 1998. “From the first year I got here, there’s always been a lot of stuff going on off the field. There were always people coming and going all the time. You didn’t really know what was going on.

“This year, we’ve had pretty much the same team all year. We’ve been together and nothing crazy has happened. We’re getting the best out of the situation and it shows. You can see what’s happened by what we’ve been able to do. We know we have a chance to get into the playoffs now, and that would be special for all of us. You always want to go to the playoffs, but it would mean even more for us.”

Said catcher Paul Lo Duca: “This team is more like a family than it’s ever been the last few years.”

The Dodgers began the season determined to put distance between them and the recent tumultuous events at Chavez Ravine, hoping to reemerge as a postseason contender while cleaning up the mess others left behind. Mission accomplished.

The organization is unified behind General Manager Dan Evans and Manager Jim Tracy, proving people in those positions really can work together. Players said the positive working environment has made a difference.

“Nothing against the people that were here before, but Mr. Evans and Trace really deserve a lot of credit for where we’re at this late in the race,” infielder Alex Cora said. “With everything that was going on here ... we’re just in a better situation now.

“Instead of focusing on all that other stuff, we’re focusing on the Giants and the final month of a [playoff] race. The focus is finally on the field, and look at what we’ve been able to do. It’s probably gratifying for them, what we’re doing, but it’s also gratifying for us as players. Really.”

That was the plan.

“There’s obviously been some things that have surfaced over the course of the last few years,” Tracy said, “that became major distractions from what takes place on the field. What we’ve done is put the focus back where it belongs, and we’ve been very successful as a result of it.

“There’s an expectation level here now that was not here before. There’s an expectation level from the way we go about our business from day-to-day, to the type of caliber of players that we’re looking for. There is distance. Lots of it.”