Family man in the big leagues

You might suspect that the soft-spoken neighbor of average height with the kindly attitude but strong build was some kind of athlete.

You might be right.

Greg Dobbs, the third baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies, is a local resident. He and his wife, Heidi, moved to La Cañada three years ago, about a year before bringing their daughter into the world.

“It’s a really nice area,” Dobbs said. “We love the community and it’s a great place to live.”

Dobbs grew up in Riverside, far away from La Cañada, but his wife Heidi Dobbs, nee Reinhardt, is from the area, a graduate of Crescenta Valley High and granddaughter of Bill Reinhardt, former coach at Glendale College.

As of right now, the new family spends most of their time during the season in Philadelphia and the off-season in La Cañada.

“We live [in Philadelphia] during the season,” Dobbs said, “and we enjoy the city; the people; the atmosphere.

“We get to live on the East Coast and West Coast; we get the best of both worlds.”

Though when they come through Los Angeles on road trips, the whole family comes out to see him. This usually means dinners with parents, siblings, cousins and so forth in La Cañada.

Dobbs is having a successful year with the Phillies, with a .309 batting average and a .458 slugging percentage. He has five home runs in 168 at-bats, though most of those at-bats have come in pinch hitting situations.

He’s seen more time lately, though, due to an injury to regular third baseman Pedro Feliz.

Dobbs had a great little trip through L.A., going 3-for-9 with a home run and two runs batted in.

With current Dodgers’ third baseman Casey Blake off the books next year and Dobbs being a free agent this off-season, he may realize his lifelong dream of playing in a Dodger uniform.

Though it depends on a lot of things falling into place.

“We’ll have to wait and see,” Dobbs said, smirking. “I grew up in Dodger Stadium as a kid. I watched a ton of Dodger games growing up. Coming here and playing here is kind of like a dream come true. I never thought I’d step on this field as a professional.”

But when he’s home, it’s all about family.

Right now, the Dobbs are going to try and get their 2-year-old daughter into the water and have her in waterskis, a Reinhardt family tradition, before long.

“We’re definitely setting her in the water,” Dobbs said. “She’s getting used to the water. We’re hoping to get her into activities early.”

And what about softball? Only seems natural.

“I don’t know,” Dobbs said, laughing a bit. “We’ll have to wait and see what she gravitates to.”