Bench Candidates Make Choice Tough

KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Ron Coomer, Jolbert Cabrera, Calvin Murray and Terry Shumpert are still battling for the Dodgers’ final two opening-day spots.

The versatile right-handed-batting bench candidates played well again Saturday in a 6-4 victory against the Houston Astros at Osceola County Stadium.

Coomer, Cabrera, Murray and Shumpert are making things difficult for General Manager Dan Evans and Manager Jim Tracy as spring training winds down. And Evans and Tracy couldn’t be happier.

“We want to have to make tough decisions, because tough decisions mean you have a lot of talent,” Evans said. “The decisions were easy last year, but we were too one-dimensional off the bench. You can’t say that about us this year.”

Opening-day rosters must be set March 29, and reliever Guillermo Mota’s appeal of a five-game suspension will affect the club’s decisions.

Coomer, Cabrera, Murray and Shumpert are out of options, further complicating the situation.

Versatility is paramount to the Dodgers, so utilitymen Cabrera and Shumpert appear to fit their plan. They each play three infield positions as well as the outfield and have been among the club’s most productive batters.

Cabrera, who played left and right against Houston, had a run-scoring double in the Dodgers’ six-run eighth as they rallied from a 4-0 deficit. Shumpert, who played third base, has had many timely hits and delivered again in the eighth with a three-run home run.

In 18 Grapefruit League games, Cabrera is batting .349 with one homer and five runs batted in. Shumpert also has played in 18 games, hitting .344 with two homers and seven RBIs after a slow start.

“Those two guys were right in the middle of the entire situation when we scored six runs,” Tracy said.

A nine-year veteran, Shumpert, 36, was among the Colorado Rockies’ top reserves the last four seasons. He wants to perform the same role for the Dodgers but is not interested in going to the minor leagues.

“I hope they know I can still do it. That’s the reason they signed me,” said Shumpert, who will be paid $750,000 if he’s on the 25-man roster.

Evans acquired Cabrera, 30, from the Cleveland Indians last July when he was trying to provide more options for Tracy, and Cabrera hasn’t disappointed. Tracy is comfortable with Cabrera, who has a salary of $435,000 this season.

Murray, 31, appears to have revived his career, embracing Tracy’s request to adopt a leadoff batter’s approach.

Although Murray plays only the outfield, he’s easily the club’s best defensive outfielder, and Tracy said he plays each position well. He signed a split contract that pays him $420,000 in the majors and $90,000 in the minors.

And then there’s Coomer, 36. He’s most comfortable at third, and the Dodgers also are using him at first. He is batting .333 with four homers and seven RBIs.

“I have a lot to contribute to this club,” said Coomer, who has a $650,000 contract. “But no matter what happens, I want play [in the majors] this year, and I hope it’s here. At this stage of my career, I’m just not interested in that [the minors].”

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Mota won’t travel Tuesday to Port St. Lucie to face the New York Mets, club officials said.

The Dodgers removed the right-handed reliever from the traveling squad for their final game against the Mets because of his stormy history with All-Star catcher Mike Piazza, whom he hit with a pitch March 12, igniting a bench-clearing brawl at the Mets’ spring complex.