Roster Spots Are Dwindling

Manager Jim Tracy has raved about Calvin Murray’s outfield defense and offensive approach. He has been intrigued by Jason Romano’s speed and ability to play multiple positions. He has been impressed with the versatility of Jolbert Cabrera and Terry Shumpert, and the power of Ron Coomer and Larry Barnes.

But unless he can figure out a way to squeeze six players into one roster spot, most of the utility candidates won’t make the Dodgers’ 25-man roster.

Daryle Ward, who can play left field, right field and first base, and backup catcher Todd Hundley are locks for the six-man bench, and with a three-man middle-infield rotation of Alex Cora, Cesar Izturis and Joe Thurston, Tracy will have one middle infielder in reserve.

Mike Kinkade, who can play the corner outfield spots, first and third, and can catch in an emergency, is a virtual lock to make the team. If the Dodgers carry David Ross as a third catcher, a distinct possibility, that would leave only one more bench spot.

“I’m formulating some ideas,” Tracy said about his bench, “but I’m still evaluating.”

Murray is probably the best defensive outfielder of the bunch and a solid leadoff candidate when Dave Roberts doesn’t start, but he doesn’t play infield. Romano, Cabrera and Shumpert can play outfield and infield, with Romano and Cabrera having a slight edge defensively over Shumpert, and Romano gaining high marks for speed.

Coomer can play third and first and has power from the right side, and Barnes is a superb defensive first baseman who can play outfield. But Barnes bats left-handed, reducing his already slim chances, and Coomer is also a long-shot.

Still, no matter what the makeup of the bench, it should be vastly improved over last season’s reserve corps, which included Dave Hansen, Jeff Reboulet, Tyler Houston and Chad Kreuter, none of whom provided much offense.

There should be much more power from the left side with Ward and Hundley. Kinkade, who had three doubles and a single in the Dodgers’ 7-1 exhibition win over the New York Mets on Monday night to raise his spring average to .565 (13 for 23), can hit for power and average from the right side. And the sixth bench player will have emerged from a solid pool of candidates.

In the National League, where bench productivity and versatility can mean the difference between finishing first and third -- just look at how many times Arizona reserves such as David Dellucci and Quinton McCracken keyed victories over the Dodgers in 2002 -- the Dodgers’ bench could give them an edge this season.

“I feel pretty good about our bench,” Tracy said. “From what I saw last year, and what I’ve seen this spring, it will make for some difficult decision-making on the other side of the field.”

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Kevin Brown’s comeback from back and elbow surgery gained more momentum Monday night, when the right-hander gave up one run and four hits and struck out three in three innings of the Dodgers’ win over the Mets.

Brown looked comfortable, there was good velocity and life to his fastball, and he located his breaking pitches well. Of his 52 pitches, 37 were strikes.

Brown has felt so strong he has returned to his pre-injury routine of throwing from a bullpen mound almost every day between starts.

“Sometimes it’s just 10 to 12 pitches, just trying to get the feel,” Brown said. “I’ve always done that in the past when I’ve tried to iron things out, find something that will click. It’s nice that my body is allowing me to do that.”

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Roberts had bunt singles in his first two at-bats Monday night and Thurston keyed a four-run first inning with a three-run triple.... Left-hander Wilson Alvarez gave up one run and three hits in five solid innings, and right-hander Guillermo Mota struck out two in a scoreless ninth inning in a 2-1 split-squad loss to the Mets earlier Monday at Port St. Lucie, Fla.