Dodgers’ Matt Treanor has a vested interest in the Olympics

The Dodgers’ series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks wasn’t the only game that was on backup catcher Matt Treanor’s mind Monday.

As his teammates dressed in the clubhouse, Treanor sat in front of his locker, staring at a computer. This is how Treanor is following his wife, beach volleyball star Misty May-Treanor, as she tries to win her third consecutive Olympic gold medal in London.

May-Treanor and partner Kerri Walsh Jennings beat a Czech team, 21-14, 21-19.

“Misty’s very understanding of what I do,” Treanor said. “Of course, I want to be there to support her. But she knows what I’m watching.”

Treanor has never seen his wife compete in in the Olympics.

Treanor and his wife were dating when she won her first gold medal in 2004 in Athens. Treanor was catching for the Florida Marlins’ triple-A affiliate at the time. He watched the gold-medal match with his teammates.

When May-Treanor and partner Kerri Walsh repeated as Olympic champions in Beijing four years later, Treanor and the Marlins were visiting the San Francisco Giants.

“I was in this clubhouse when they played the final. Fredi Gonzalez was my manager,” Treanor said. “It wasn’t on live TV, so we got it on a live stream via the Internet. There were a handful of us watching in the manager’s office.”

He said he gets more nervous for her games than his own.

“When you’re watching her, you don’t have any control,” he said.

Treanor gained an appreciation for his wife’s profession when they started dating.

“You see these good-looking women in shape with bikinis on and all of a sudden, you’re really not paying attention to the bikinis any more and are like, ‘Wow, they’re really athletic and aggressive,’ ” he said.

In turn, May-Treanor keeps track of the Dodgers.

When Treanor told her in a recent phone conversation that the Dodgers had traded for Hanley Ramirez, she replied, “Yeah, I saw.”

Treanor said he and his wife serve as sounding boards for each other.

“Sometimes not being around her kind of stinks because she’s great with the mental stuff,” he said. “Misty is as focused as any athlete I’ve ever met. That’s what makes her special.”

Heating up?

James Loney was out of the Dodgers lineup Monday, as Juan Rivera started at first base.

Loney hopes his recent spike in production can turn him into an everyday player again.

“Obviously, if my at-bats are good, I will be in there more,” Loney said.

Loney began Monday batting .328 this month. He is batting .257 this season.

But as the left-handed-hitting Loney has become part of something resembling a first base platoon with Rivera, he has started only 14 games in July.

Manager Don Mattingly cited Loney’s history against Arizona Diamondbacks starter Trevor Cahill when explaining why he played Rivera. Loney is 0 for 8 in his career against Cahill. But Rivera wasn’t much better; he is two for 18 after Monday.

Short hops

Ted Lilly will make his second minor league rehabilitation start for Class-A Rancho Cucamonga on Friday. The start will be at least one of two more Lilly will make in the minor leagues before returning to the Dodgers. … The first 50,000 fans at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday will receive a Kirk Gibson bobblehead doll.

dylan.hernandez@latimes.com