Thurston Gets a Little Help From His Friends

Rookies usually have to earn their way into the high-rent district of a spring-training clubhouse, the rows of lockers reserved for starters and major league veterans.

But tucked into a corner of the Dodger clubhouse, with Brian Jordan to his right and Adrian Beltre and Fred McGriff to his left, is 23-year-old second baseman Joe Thurston, who has all of eight big league games under his belt but is expected to play a significant role this season.

“I requested Thurston be next to me just so I can see how he handles himself, how he handles the media,” said Jordan, 36. “So far, he’s been awesome.”

Jordan has taken Thurston under his wing, schooling him on team and clubhouse etiquette and the mental approach to the game, because when Jordan came up with the St. Louis Cardinals in the early 1990s, Ozzie Smith and Willie McGee did the same for him.

“They showed me how to play the game because I was just a raw talent, a football player playing baseball,” said Jordan, a former Atlanta Falcon defensive back. “I didn’t know anything. I didn’t even know who Harry Caray was, so I had a lot to learn.”

Thurston, who led the minor leagues with 196 hits for triple-A Las Vegas last season, appreciates the tutoring.

“He wants the best for me, just like all the other guys here,” Thurston said. “It’s a good feeling knowing that whatever I go through, I won’t go through it alone.”

But no matter how beneficial Jordan’s guidance is this spring, his real work with Thurston won’t begin until the regular season, when the pressure is far greater.

“I just want him to relax and let his talent work for him,” Jordan said. “Once the season starts, you’re under that microscope, and things get difficult. A lot of young guys, they want to go out and prove, prove, prove, and they wind up in triple A.”

Like Jordan. He opened 1992 in St. Louis, hit .281 in May, .107 in June, .188 in July and was demoted to triple-A Louisville in mid-July.

“I started out great, but instead of letting it happen, I tried to make it happen and didn’t perform to the best of my abilities,” Jordan said. “I came in with a bang, and the next thing I know the pitchers figured me out real quick. Joe is going to go through those ups and downs. It’s how quickly you get out of the slumps that’s important.”

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The Cleveland Indians ripped 22 hits, including five homers and six doubles, in a 16-6 exhibition victory over the Dodgers on Wednesday. But Manager Jim Tracy saw one bright spot.

“You look for positives, and obviously we got to work on our cut-off plays and relays,” Tracy said. “We aligned ourselves well and threw to the right spots.”

Another positive: McGriff’s first homer as a Dodger, a towering two-run shot off left-hander Brian Anderson. McGriff, who has 478 home runs, hit .213 with two homers off left-handers last season but has 121 career homers against left-handers.

“He can hit left-handers -- that’s why he’s 22 homers short of 500,” Tracy said. “I hope he gets that out of the way by mid- to late-April so he can get on to 600.”

Dodger left-handers had a rough day. Starter Wilson Alvarez gave up five runs and six hits, including three homers, and reliever Pedro Borbon gave up four runs and four hits in one inning. If no left-hander emerges as a bullpen candidate, the Dodgers probably will open the season with six right-handed relievers.

“I don’t believe in doing something just because cosmetically it looks correct,” Tracy said. “We won’t carry a left-hander just to have one, so someone has to really step forward and show me they want that job.”

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The Dodgers will put tickets for this season’s games on sale Saturday at 9 a.m. in Lot 10 at Dodger Stadium. Use Gate A, which will open at 7 a.m., to enter the Stadium parking lot. Wristbands will be handed out at 7:30.

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Shortstop Cesar Izturis tweaked a muscle on his right side during infield practice and came out of the game after throwing wildly to first on a ground ball in the second. The injury is not believed to be serious.... Closer Eric Gagne and catcher Todd Hundley were scratched because of lower-back stiffness. Tracy said there is no cause for concern with either player.... Kevin Brown and Kazuhisa Ishii are scheduled to pitch two innings today against Baltimore.