1 Los Angeles Dodgers

All winter Danys Baez had braced for the phone call telling him that he'd been traded by the Devil Rays, for whom he had played two seasons and developed into an All-Star closer. Long rumored to be heading to the Mets, Baez was stunned to hear in January that he had been acquired by the Dodgers in a four-team deal. "I was shocked, a little upset," says Baez, who knew he would have to be the setup man in Los Angeles for closer Eric Gagne. "To go back to [setting up] after working so hard to prove I could be a closer is not easy, but I think the Dodgers thought they needed me badly. And now I'm going to do everything I can to help them win."

Baez, who had 41 saves for Tampa Bay last season, may not be finishing games at Chavez Ravine this summer, but he will nevertheless find himself in a pivotal role. The Dodgers hope he can upgrade a staff ( L.A. ranked 12th in the NL with a 4.38 ERA) that was a big reason they went from a postseason berth in 2004 to their worst finish since 1992 a year later. The staff's woes were exacerbated by the absence of Gagne, the '03 NL Cy Young winner, who appeared in only 14 games because of injuries before getting shut down for the season in June following elbow surgery. Baez and a full-strength Gagne give the Dodgers the best late-inning bullpen duo in the league; Baez also provides much-needed ninth-inning insurance should Gagne falter or suffer another injury.

"Health is a top concern for this team," says new general manager Ned Colletti, who paid a steep price for Baez and righthanded reliever Lance Carter, trading prized pitching prospects Edwin Jackson and Chuck Tiffany to Tampa Bay. "Everyone's feeling good right now, but so many of our key players-- Gagne, J.D. Drew, Brad Penny--have had [health] issues."

Players went on the disabled list so frequently last season that L.A. used 20 rookies, the most in the majors, and only second baseman Jeff Kent made enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title. The team, though, is encouraged by Gagne's recovery; in camp he threw his entire arsenal of pitches and hit the mid-90s on the radar gun. But new manager Grady Little will keep the three-time All-Star on a short leash: He's already decided that Gagne, who in September '04 went two innings four times as the Dodgers were chasing a pennant, will be restricted to the ninth inning.

Baez is a similarly hard thrower who relies primarily on a 96-mph fastball. Even if he plays second fiddle to Gagne this year, Baez may find himself getting the final out soon enough: Gagne is in the final season of a two-year, $19 million deal. " Grady Little and I sat down with Danys [early in spring training], and immediately he told us he would accept whatever role he was given," says Colletti. "Obviously, ideally he'd be a closer, but he also just wants to do what's best for the club."

To improve its lineup, Los Angeles made a splash in the off-season with the signing of free-agent shortstop and leadoff man Rafael Furcal (who swiped 46 bases last year; the Dodgers had 58 total). But its most intriguing move was signing Nomar Garciaparra to a one-year, $6 million deal. The former Red Sox and Cubs shortstop, who hasn't had an injury-free season since '03, is slotted to play first base. "So far he looks fine," says Colletti. "Offensively there's no question he can still produce. He's only 32. He should be in the prime of his career."

Garciaparra is reunited with Little, the folksy former Boston skipper who is most famous for leaving in Pedro Martinez too long in a 2003 ALCS Game 7 loss to the Yankees. "This game has a way of humbling," says Little, who was let go by the Red Sox after that season. "When I went to spring training in 2003, they picked me up at the airport in a limousine. In 2004 when I went to camp with the Cubs [as a minor league roving instructor], the travel secretary told me I could go to Budget and pick up my Ford Focus."

Having moved on again, Little finds himself in an enviable situation. The NL West is baseball's worst division, so as long as his new charges stay healthy, he should be on his way back to the postseason.

IN FACT
Dodger Stadium is regarded as a haven for pitchers, but the last L.A. starter to win more than 16 games was Chan Ho Park (18 in 2000). The last to win 20 was Ramon Martinez in 1990.

CONSIDER THIS
a modest proposal