Roberts Doesn’t Want to Be Left Out Again

He is the tallest of orders, a 6-foot-10 mound menace whom most left-handed hitters would prefer to avoid, but pesky Dodger leadoff batter Dave Roberts relishes the thought of facing Arizona left-hander Randy Johnson on opening day.

“He’s the toughest left-hander in baseball, no doubt, but maybe I could disrupt his game, change his plan a little,” said Roberts, who had two hits in the Dodgers’ 9-6 exhibition loss to Montreal on Sunday. “Hopefully I could frustrate him. It’s [Manager Jim] Tracy’s decision, but I’ll be ready to play March 31 regardless.”

Roberts, 30, has never faced Johnson, and he hit against few left-handers in his center-field platoon with Marquis Grissom last season. But with Grissom gone, Roberts -- who hit .400 (10 for 25) against left-handers last year in his first full big league season -- probably will face more left-handers in 2003.

But Johnson?

“I’m still thinking about that one,” Tracy said. “Will he face more lefties than he did last year? Yes. But this is no ordinary Joe. [Johnson] has a bad habit of making a lot of left-handed hitters uncomfortable.... But right now, I’d say [Roberts] has a good shot of being our opening-day center fielder.”

Roberts earned that with a breakthrough season in 2002, when he hit .277 with 63 runs and 45 stolen bases, and some think an opening-day start against Johnson would provide Roberts with a boost of confidence.

What’s more, left-handers actually hit for a higher average (.221) than right-handers (.206) last season against Johnson, who went 24-5 with a 2.32 earned-run average and 334 strikeouts.

“But a message of confidence is one thing -- a message of devastation is another,” Tracy said. “I have to decide if that’s the right thing to do to give our club the best chance to win.”

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Roberts was a long shot to make the team last spring, but not only did he make it, he was one of the team’s most consistent hitters. With more job security this spring, Roberts has taken a different approach.

“It’s nice to be able to work on things this year,” Roberts said. “Once you have a job, you can become a better player. Last year, because I didn’t have a job, all I did was work on my strengths. I didn’t have the luxury of working on my weaknesses.”

Roberts, who is batting .471 with two bunt singles this spring, was successful on 45 of 55 stolen-base attempts last season, but he stole third only three times. He wants to focus on that this spring and has done it once so far.

“[Tracy] has given me the luxury of doing a couple things,” Roberts said. “I have a few tricks up my sleeve, and there’s no better time than spring to work on them.”

Security won’t breed complacency for Roberts.

“I have a different mind-set, but I’m still keeping my focus,” Roberts said. “As hard as I worked to get this job, people are working just as hard to take it from me, and I don’t plan on giving it up.”

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A Sunday briefing by Major League Baseball security official Marty Maguire helped ease some concerns the Dodgers had about this weekend’s trip to Mexico City, where they are scheduled to play the New York Mets on Saturday and Sunday.

“He told us to be careful if we go a few blocks away from the hotel and not to carry too much money, but he made it pretty clear that what’s going on [in the Persian Gulf] will not affect us going to Mexico City,” catcher Paul Lo Duca said.

“It’s going to be exciting. The people in Mexico are real excited to have us, and it’s going to be a big event. Most of the people there are Dodger fans, so it’s going to be good for us.”

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Closer Eric Gagne, sidelined since Tuesday because of lower-back stiffness, played catch for the second straight day and hopes to throw off a mound in the next couple of days.

“I felt a lot better [Sunday] morning,” Gagne said. “I feel great, actually. I can stand up straight and bend down. There’s a little stiffness, but not much.”

Though Gagne will go more than a week without pitching in a game, he doesn’t believe the layoff will affect his velocity and endurance or his ability to be ready for the season opener.

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Shortstop Cesar Izturis came out of the game in the third inning Sunday after getting hit by a pitch in his right rib cage, the same area where he tweaked a muscle earlier in the week. Izturis was scheduled to play today in one of the Dodgers’ split-squad games against the Mets but may be held out.... The Dodgers’ April 7 home opener against Arizona sold out Saturday, the first day individual game tickets went on sale.... First baseman James Loney, a first-round pick in last year’s draft, and catcher Michael Nixon were reassigned to minor league camp Sunday.