Juan Pierre gets the start in center field

Two international music acts that performed at President Barack Obama’s inauguration events will take center stage at Dodger Stadium today. Vin Scully will throw out the first pitch.

But how special can opening day be when the season started more than a week ago?

“There’s always a different atmosphere on opening day,” pitcher Randy Wolf said.

Particularly because the Dodgers were gone from home for so long.

“Some for eight days,” Andre Ethier said of the group of players who traveled a day early to San Diego, the site of their season-opening series.

Manager Joe Torre said he doesn’t expect to be as nervous as he was a year ago when the Dodgers opened the schedule at home in his first season as the club’s manager. He said he thought the seven games in the books should enhance what takes place on the field.

“I still think you’re going to have butterflies because of the pomp and circumstance,” Torre said, “but the fact that we’ve gotten it under our belt helps the play of the game.”

Wolf impresses

Wolf held the Arizona Diamondbacks to one run and two hits over seven innings Sunday to pick up his first win in the Dodgers’ 3-1 victory. He said the way he pitched made up for his first start, a loss in San Diego five days earlier.

“I felt I kind of gave that game away last week,” said Wolf about the game in which he gave up four runs in 5 1/3 innings. “I kind of beat myself up about it.”

Wolf gave up a leadoff double to Felipe Lopez, who advanced home on a couple of sacrifices, but surrendered little else. Torre didn’t take him out until the eighth inning, which Wolf started by giving up a single to Chad Tracy.

“Wolf was great,” Torre said. “It’s not very often we’re going to send a pitcher out there in the eighth inning.”

Martin back on track?

Russell Martin said he thinks he might have found the reason why he struggled at the plate in the Dodgers’ season-opening series in San Diego: He was too relaxed.

“I got really relaxed, but at the plate, you have to be ready to pull the trigger,” said Martin, who was one for four Sunday and improved his average to .167. “I was trying to be too smooth up there.”

The Dodgers’ catcher had the opposite problem last year, as Torre and third base coach Larry Bowa often said he was squeezing the bat too tight.

“Power comes from speed,” Martin said. “You’ve got to be relaxed to generate speed. It’s a fine line between overdoing it and not doing it at all.”

Pierre back on field

Juan Pierre, who once owned baseball’s longest active consecutive games streak, began this season with another streak: six consecutive games without a start.

That streak ended Sunday when Pierre started in center field in place of Matt Kemp.

Pierre, who led the Cactus League in steals this spring, was one for three. He left in the seventh inning when Torre inserted Kemp as a defensive replacement.

“I felt decent, probably not as sharp as I’d like to be,” said Pierre, who has intensified his pregame workouts to make up for his lack of playing time. “But I have no doubts I can still play this game.”

Stults stays in rotation

Eric Stults will start against the San Francisco Giants on Thursday, Torre said. Stults, who was called up to replace sidelined opening-day starter Hiroki Kuroda, gave up only one run in 5 1/3 innings to earn a win Saturday.

James McDonald, who was roughed up in his first major league start two days ago, will pitch out of the bullpen in the coming days.

Torre said McDonald could get a start on April 19, the next time the Dodgers will need their fifth starter.

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dylan.hernandez@latimes.com