Is Nicaragua the next hotbed for baseball? A group of U.S. businessmen, including former Major Leaguers Dave Stewart and Reggie Smith, believe it is and plan to build a privately funded academy in the Central American nation.

The International Baseball Association and its affiliate, International Baseball Academies -- Central America, announced plans on Thursday to build a state-of-the-art academy in Nicaragua for promising young players.

"We understand that for academies in the Dominican Republic, the primary mission is to find kids to play ball," said Bob Oettinger, one of the principals of IBACA-Nicaragua "We want to provide Nicaraguan kids that opportunity, but we are also going to incorporate vocational training. They will be getting the best instruction on the field, but also in the classroom. When it comes time to leave the academy, they will have learned skills for other areas."

About an hour west of Managua near the city of Villa del Carmen, the academy will be built adjacent to the Gran Pacifica Beach and Golf Resort on the Pacific Coast. The academy will be constructed in four phases, with the initial phase including a dormitory for 48 players, two full baseball fields, one half-field, eight pitching mounds, batting cages, a cafeteria, a trainers' room, locker rooms, a gym and weight room, a classroom with computers, administrative offices, and storage and maintenance areas.

The academy will accommodate 192 participants, most ranging from ages 14-16. Upon entering the academy, players will agree to give a portion of their signing bonuses to the academy if they sign with a Major League club. Fantasy camps and facility rentals for tournaments and winter ball will also provide a source of revenue for the facility.

Groundbreaking is scheduled for early 2010.

"The thing that impressed us is that we would see young people in uniform walking to pickup games in pastures and any place big enough to host game," Oettinger said. "We were really impressed with the level of play despite the facilities. They showed a lot of skill. We thought that if we can build a facility that's comparable to the Yankees or Mets, just think what these guys can do."

Baseball instruction at the academy will be provided by U.S. and Nicaraguan coaches with a staff that includes former Major League players Brad Lesley, Stewart and Smith. Campers will receive classroom instruction in English, computer skills, nutrition, humanities and business.

"We realize that it is an ambitious project, but we feel can pull it off and have the resources to make it happen," Smith said. "With the passion that they have for the game there, and the fact that it is centrally located, we believe the potential to produce ballplayers out of all of Central America is a tremendous opportunity."

"We want to accomplish what they are doing in other academies," Smith continued. "When they are ready to sign, we want the players to be capable enough to go to the United States."

As part of its research, the group spent time evaluating the baseball academies in the Dominican Republic, and it has worked closely with Major League Baseball's international office on the project. Although not officially affiliated with the project in Nicaragua, MLB has provided coaching clinics and advice on how to work with players.

"Dave came up to us about a year and a half ago about the idea, and as far as player development is concerned, from a baseball standpoint, it's a good idea," said Lou Melendez, MLB's vice president of international baseball operations. "It's a good project, and although we are not affiliated, having someone like Dave Stewart lends credibility to it, and I think they will do a world of good in Nicaragua."

There have been 11 big league players from Nicaragua, with the most recognizable being pitcher Dennis Martinez. In 2009, there were two Nicaraguans -- Vicente Padilla and Everth Cabrera -- on Opening Day rosters.

"We want it to be profitable venture, but we are just as motivated to do something for their country," Oettinger said. "We are so impressed with the people down there that we want something that will make a lasting impression on their lives. One of our guiding philosophies after doing our research is that we believe that Nicaragua, with the proper facilities, can be another Dominican Republic."

INDIANAPOLIS - He's equal parts enigma and champion.

Up to this point, his career has been a success.  It's also been a bit confusing.

Welcome to the strange world and the curious baseball life of Colombian shortstop Orlando Cabrera.

Cabrera, a member of the 2004 World Series champion Red Sox, a perennial postseason player and two-time Gold  Glove winner, is looking for a job.

Again.

"Why he doesn't he have a job? Well, that's something you have to ask all of his other managers,"  said White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, Cabrera's manager in 2007. "That's something a lot of people ask  and I don't have the answer. I think Orlando, when he played for me, he played great. We had a little argument at times but we faced it. He will find a job because this guy is a winner. "

Last season, Cabrera a signed with the A's to start the season and was traded to Minnesota at the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline for  shortstop Tyler Ladendorf. With Cabrera at shortstop, the Twins went on to qualify for the playoffs, marking the fifth time in the last six years that Cabrera appeared in the postseason.

That's quite a postseason streak and probably where the whole "winner" moniker comes into play.

But here's the tricky part: Cabrera played for four different teams during that six-year span and developed a reputation as an unlikely journeyman. Overall, the shortstop has played for six different teams since making his big league debut with the Expos in 1997. He played for parts of eight seasons - arguably some of the best years of his career -- with Montreal before being traded to Boston at the 2004 trade deadline as part of a four-team swap that included Nomar Garciaparra. The Red Sox won the World Series that season and Cabrera, who had previously toiled in anonymity in Montreal, was suddenly thrust into the spotlight.

He signed a four-year, $32 million deal with the Angels in 2005 but was eventually  thrust back on to the trading block when he was shipped to the White Sox along with cash considerations for Jon Garland in the winter of 2007. 

He didn't stay in Chicago for long. On March 6, 2009, Cabrera signed a one-year deal with Oakland.

"I loved every minute of having him," Oakland general manager Billy Beane said. " I think one of the reasons he's been on so many teams is that he is attractive to having and he's been a good player. If you look at his track record, most of the teams he has played on go to the playoffs. "

"I have nothing but great things to say about him," Beane continued. "I wish our club could have played better so we could have kept him the whole year.  He loves to play and he brings an upbeat tempo to everything he does. He's had a great career. You can't argue with his postseason track record."

Cabrera's age, not his intense personality nor his on-and-off again relationship with media,  could be his biggest obstacle at this point of his career. It doesn't help that he led all shortstops in errors with 25. He has a career batting average of .275.

"He's going to play at 35 this year so I think anytime you have a player that has many years, the term will probably vary," Beane said. "He has been a highly sought after guy but anytime time a guy gets into his mid-30s, you are going to vary the length of contract but at the end of the day, I'm a big Orlando fan."

The Twins like Cabrera, too. There's talk he could return to Minnesota to play second base with newly acquired J.J. Hardy at shortstop. The Twins are unable to offer Cabrera arbitration because of his contract agreement with Oakland last season.

"I'm not afraid to try anything," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "I like Cabby. I think he's a winner. He's a good player and he's a winner. If Hardy is our shortstop and maybe we can figure out where Cabby can go, he can play at second, he can play at third.  I think he's an offensive threat. I think he can do a lot of things. I'm not afraid to try anything."

The ability to play second base and shortstop could make Cabrera more attractive free agent but only time - and the market -- will tell.

 "He's a winner," Guillen said. "Everybody is going to want him because he plays to win. He wins everywhere he goes. "

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PHILADELPHIA  - The Yankees did not lose the World Series on Monday.

They just didn't win it.

The 8-6 loss to the Phillies in Game 5 didn't end the series. It just extended it.
The Yankees still lead the Phillies by one game in the best-of-seven series and need one more victory to win their 27th World Series championship.

Life is still good in the Yankee Universe.

Tuesday's day off will only delay the inevitable, Yankees catcher Jose Molina said. The series ends and the celebration begins Wednesday night in Game 6 at Yankee Stadium.
Molina made a declaration. You can say he made a guarantee.

"We are going to be at home. We are going to win and that's it," Molina said. "Wednesday is another game. We'll win it and that's what we are going to do."

Molina's tough talk came on a night starter A.J. Burnett failed to live up to expectation. The right-hander gave up six runs on four hits in two innings before yielding to David Robertson. Once again, Phillies starter Cliff Lee stole the show, slowing down the Yankees offense for seven innings.

Overall, Lee was charged with five runs and walked three batters. Stellar? Hardly. It was still good enough for his second victory of the World Series.

"I felt we put some better atbats on him," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. " We hit some balls hard and we got something going and got a run in the first, and then he got a pretty big lead and we were able to get back into the game.  But I thought our guys had better atbats.  And I didn't think he was as sharp as he didn't throw as many strikes tonight. "

In the Yankees clubhouse, the players seemed more concerned with getting their equipment bags on the shipping truck than putting the loss behind them. They still won two-out-of-three games at Philadelphia's Citizen's Bank Park so the feeling of doom and gloom was noticeably absent.

The Yankees cavalier attitude could be traced in history. They have held a 3-1 advantage in the Fall Classic on nine previous occasions, winning Game 5 six times and completing their run with a championship all nine times.

"We have to play a good game and we have to find a way to win a game," Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter said. "When you look back on it, this is a tough place to play and they are real comfortable playing here. They have a great team and the bottom line is you have to play well to win."

The Phillies will send Pedro Martinez to the mound for Game 6. The Yankees have not made an official announcement but it appears that they will counter with Andy Pettitte on short rest. Should the series reach Game 7, it's likely the Yankees will bring back CC Sabathia, who also started Game 1 and Game 3.

You can argue the Yankees are in a good position in the final two games with their top two pitchers ready to pitch -- or you can argue the exact opposite because their top two pitchers should be tired by now.

"Physically I've got to see how (Pettitte) is," Girardi said. "He threw a side today and felt good.  But I'll check with him Tuesday."

Pettitte hasn't pitched on short rest since 2006 and is 4-6 with a 4.15 ERA in those situations. Overall, he is 12-4 with a 3.73 ERA in the playoffs with the Yankees but only 4-4, with a 4.00 ERA in the World Series play.

The veteran has been in this position before. He had a chance to clinch a World Series title for the Yankees in 2001 against the Diamondbacks and in 2003, he pitched in Game 6 against the Marlins. He came up short both times.

The Yankees don't seem worried.

"We're OK," left fielder Johnny Damon said. "Obviously, we wish we could have won  but it happens. They played a little bit better than us, but we're fine. We understand we have a very good chance and hopefully we can take care of it."

PHILADELPHIA -  History is ringing again.

Following Sunday's 7-4 win against the Phillies in Game 4, the Yankees are one victory away from winning the 2009 World Series championship and picking up their 27th world championship even if everybody in pinstripes refuses to talk about it.

The Yankees lead the series, 3-1 but somehow it feels like it's 0-0.

Welcome to cliche city. Ask the Yankees and they'll say they are "in the moment." They are "playing one game at a time." They are "Not thinking about the future."

But ask Yankees fans and they'll say the moment is now.  Well, the moment will come Monday night.

"It feels good to win this game but we have to come out tomorrow night and try to win again," Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter said. "Every game is big. We have yet to accomplish anything.  Our mindset is to come out here and play the game to win."

Win is what the Yankees have done the last three games against the defending champs. Why not make it four in a row?

"We've never given up," closer Mariano Rivera said. "We have the type of team that never quits.  We've worked hard all year and been working since Spring Training to get to this moment. "

The Yankees have enjoyed the moments. On Sunday, the Yankees led 4-2 after five innings but the Phillies tied the game at 4 after eight innings. In the top of the ninth, the Yankees added three runs behind the heroics of Johnny Damon and Alex Rodriguez.

"It feels good, but again, we've been down this road before, and we have to stay very focused," Rodriguez said. "Those guys are the world champs.  We're going to come out fighting, and so are we, so just staying in the moment."

Monday's moment belongs to starter A.J. Burnett, who is pitching on short rest, and Phillies starter Cliff Lee. You can argue the spotlight belongs to Burnett's personal catcher Jose Molina.

Yes, Molina won a World Series title with the Angels in 2002, but he played sparingly and was primarily known back then as Bengie's little brother.

Molina says he's not nervous and he's not too excited. Yankees fans want to believe him. All of Puerto Rico wants to believe one its favorite sons.

"For me, I'm taking it as another game and play my game," Molina said. "I'm going to look at it as a regular season game and do my job. "

Forgive Molina if he sounds cocky. He expects great things from Burnett and he should.  In four career starts on short rest, the right-hander is a perfect 4-0 with a 2.33 ERA. In his last outing, Burnett outdueled Phillies star Pedro Martinez.

"I've waited a long time for it, and I'm going to take it full stride," Burnett said. "I'm going to go out there with everything I've got, and you take nothing for granted.  I've seen some crazy things this postseason, and I guess that's why they call it postseason baseball, because anything can happen."

"But you've got a great lineup over there, and we're going up against Cliff," he continued. "So I'm just going to try to go pitch for pitch against him and keep our squad in it.  But I'm looking forward to it and can't wait."

Yankees manager Joe Girardi is probably just as excited. He's just not expressing it.

Yet.

"As far as thinking about one game, all I think about is playing a good game Monday,"  Girardi said. "Go out and play a good game tomorrow and let's see where we're at.  Continue to play the type of baseball that we're capable of playing."

Ring, ring, ring.

NEW YORK - Even in defeat, Pedro Martinez came out looking like a winner.

The veteran right-hander shined for six innings in the 3-1 loss to the Yankees in Game 2 of the World Series but took the loss. After the game, he was showed why he will never be considered a loser.

"Regardless of what happened, the fact that I was the loser today for the game, I'm extremely proud and happy being able to participate, compete against a real, real good team, a very solid team, be able to put my team in position to catch up or win that game," he said. "At the same time tell myself that I made the right decision by coming back and getting this opportunity, putting myself in the position to get an opportunity to pitch in the World Series."

He also showed why many consider him one of the classiest players in the game. On his way out of the game in the eighth inning, he smiled at the fans. He talked about how he addressed a loud Yankees fan.

"It's a new Yankee Stadium, but the fans remain the fans," he said. "I remember one guy sitting right in front of the front row with his daughter, sitting with his daughter, and his daughter in one arm, and a cup of beer in the other hand and saying all kinds of nasty stuff.  I just told him, 'Your daughter is right beside you.  It's a little girl.  It's a shame you're saying all these things.'"

That's simply Pedro being Pedro. He speaks his mind and he pitches with heart.

Unfortunately for the Phillies' fans he is not receiving much run support. Thursday marked the second time in a row that Martinez did not have strong run support from his offense. He threw seven scoreless innings against the Dodgers in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series, but the Phillies scored once and lost, 2-1.

He was the tough-luck loser again Thursday.

"I felt like Pedro did a tremendous job," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "He changed speeds, and he definitely moved the ball around, and he was aggressive.  He wasn't afraid to throw inside to some of their big hitters, and he pitched a good game.  Pedro got hurt by the long ball off lefthanded hitters, and that's kind of  it was a heck of a game.  It was a very close game, and we couldn't pull it out."

Martinez's mistakes Thursday came with first baseman Mark T eixeira and Hideki Matsui at the plate. Each Yankees' slugger hit a solo home run,

"When I made a couple of mistakes, I paid for them," he said. "Teixeira's home run to me, seems like he hit a good pitch.  I just have to tip my hat and kind of let it go.  Matsui I was disappointed. I was just into a groove and pitching and throwing pitches, and just flip a curveball there, kind of paid for it."

There's a chance Martinez could pitch at Yankee Stadium once more if his turns comes up again. There's also a chance he never pitches in a big league game again.

."If we win the World Series, I'd suggest you fly to Dominican and come and ask me," he said. "If we don't win it, I'll probably give it another shot. " 

NEW YORK - Yankees mystique and aura yielded to reality Wednesday night in the Bronx.
 The Phillies are the defending champs and that's not an accident.

It took a 6-1 loss in Game 1 of the World Series to remind everybody in the Yankees nation that this is not going to be an easy series. The Phillies are for real and the Yankees have a real fight on their hands.

"Obviously, they are the defending champs," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "They earned their World Series last year, and they earned their right to get back here this year.  They've played extremely well."

On Wednesday, Phillies Cliff Lee allowed one run for a complete game victory. It won't get any easier for the Yankees. On Tuesday, the Phillies will have Pedro Martinez to the mound for Game 2. The Yankees will counter with A.J. Burnett.

"A loss is going to happen," Yankees right fielder Nick Swisher said. "We have lost a game before and we know what to do. We are going to come back t the same time and be ready to go."

Expect both teams to be ready to go. As it turns out, neither team should really be considered the favorite in this series because it's too close to call.

Maybe Yankees fans already knew that fact. Maybe they didn't. The Yankees know how good the Yankees are.

Just ask anybody in the home clubhouse.

"We're a good team, too, and that's why you play a series," Yankees left fielder Johnny Damon said. "They won today and hopefully A.J. comes out and throws the way we know he can. Hopefully, our bats will be better.  We don't like this situation and we can't lose three more. We want to win four. It's one game, one loss and it's over with."
On Wednesday, the Yankees managed six hits against Lee. Six hits against Martinez and the Phillies might not be enough for a victory in Game 2.

Just ask anybody in the home clubhouse.

"The bottom line is we have to swing the bats better than we have," Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter said. "You move on further in the playoffs and it gets more and more difficult.  Pedro knows how to pitch. He's been pitching for a long time and he mixes it up.  He'll be ready. 

Every game at this point is critical."

The Yankees will be ready for Martinez. He is 11-11 with a 3.20 ERA in 32 career starts against them in the regular season, and was 8-4 with a 2.95 ERA in 16 career starts at the old Yankee Stadium.  He is 1-2 with a 4.72 ERA in six postseason appearances against the Yankees, and is 0-2 with a 5.93 ERA in his past five.

Yes, the Yankees would have preferred to lead the series but will settle for a spilt in the first two games at Yankee Stadium. They definitely don't want to go into Philadelphia this weekend trailing, 2-0.

"You like to win the first one at home but it didn't work out the way we wanted," said Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, who struck out three times Wednesday. "You have to have a short memory. Pedro is going to be ready to pitch so we will be ready for him."

The Phillies won by playing Yankees-style baseball. The pitching was strong, they hit home runs and they drove in runners with two outs.

Martinez will be waiting for them. He has something to prove to Yankees fans and New York media.

"I think in every aspect, the way you media guys have used me and abused me since I've been coming to Yankee Stadium , just because I wore actually a red uniform just like this one while playing for Boston. I remember quotes in the paper, "Here comes the man that New York loves to hate."  Man?  None of you have probably ever eaten steak with me or rice and beans with me to understand what the man is about.  You might say the player, the competitor, but the man?  You guys have abused my name.  You guys have said so many things, have written so many things."

"There was one time I remember when I was a free agent, there was talk that I might meet with Steinbrenner," Martinez continued. "One of your colleagues had me in the papers with horns and a tail, red horns and a tail.  That's a sign of the devil.  I'm a Christian man."

Martinez is also a warrior, something Yankees fans already knew. Now, everybody knows how good the rest of his team is.

NEW YORK - Sitting on a podium in front of reporters at Yankee Stadium one day before the start of the Fall Classic, Phillies starter Pedro Martinez was asked about facing the Yankees lineup in Game 2 of the World Series.

He refused to comment.

Another reporter asked the veteran how he would adjust if the Yankees began to hit him hard or took an early lead in the contest.

The pitcher raised his eyebrows and gave the colorful equivalent of a "no comment."

Martinez was then asked about the Yankees fans, the same boisterous fans that chant "Who's your daddy?" every time he takes the mound in The Bronx.

Martinez smiled. This time, a "no comment" would not suffice.

"If there is a boo, it's out of respect. If there is a clap, it's out of respect," he said. "Anything they do, it's acknowledging that I am there and I take it all as a positive regardless of what happens. The fans are here to have fun and as long as they cross the line, I will be pleased with whatever."

Martinez has a long history against the Yankees. He is 11-11 with a 3.20 ERA in 32 career starts against them in the regular season, and was 8-4 with a 2.95 ERA in 16 career starts at the old Yankee Stadium.  He is 1-2 with a 4.72 ERA in six postseason appearances against the Yankees, and is 0-2 with a 5.93 ERA in his past five.

As a member of the Red Sox in 2004, Martinez struggled against the Yankees and playfully called them "my daddy" in a postgame interview. During the 2004 ALCS and in every game ever since, Yankees fans have reminded him of his words by chanting them.

"They've never been nice to me here (at Yankee Stadium)," he said. "I'm just going to keep doing what God has meant for me to do and I'm going to try to execute. I enjoy every single moment I have in baseball, not just at Yankee Stadium. ... I pitch here just like every other field and I take a lot of pride and joy in doing it but I don't think this is my house."

Home, it seems, is in Philly.

A late-season addition in Philadelphia, Martinez went 5-1 with a 3.63 ERA in nine starts for the Phillies. In Game 2 of the NLCS against the Dodgers, he gave up two hits in seven scoreless innings against the Dodgers.

He's already made quite an impression.

"I used to think he was kind of cocky and arrogant, and he's a little cocky, but he's definitely not arrogant," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. " He's a baseball guy.  He has a tremendous feel for the game, and he knows a lot about it, and he loves to compete.  The bigger the moment, the bigger the stage, I think the more he likes it.  He's been very good for our club, and he fits real well. "

Near the end of his media session, Martinez was again pressed about his strategy against the Yankees and the crafty veteran finally answered the question.

Sort of.

 "The whole game is about adjustments," he said. " When you're high, you come low. When you're away, you try to come in. I'm a person that will say I do make adjustments in the middle of the game. I invent little things in the middle of the game to try to get an edge and win the ball game. If it's legal I will try to do it."

NEW YORK - Given the choice of being interviewed in English or Spanish at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz said he would rather do it in German.
He then asked the reporters around him if they spoke French. English is too easy, he said.

Ruiz was joking.

If Ruiz is nervous about Wednesday's matchup against the Yankees in Game 1 of the World Series, he isn't showing it. The Panamanian star is comfortable on the big stage the playoffs provide and has the numbers to prove it.

As it turns out, "Chooch" is also quite the comedian.

"To be here is really something special for me," he said. "This is what you dream about when you are a child and to have the opportunity is a dream come true. But you also have to have fun. This does not happen every year so you have to enjoy the time."

Since 2007, Ruiz has a .296 batting average in 26 postseason games.  This season, he boasts a .346 batting average in nine playoff games. During the regular season this year, Ruiz hit .255. He has a career-batting average of .246.

He hit .375 during the World Series to pace the champs last year.

"I think I just feel more comfortable because of experience," he said. "I am relaxed and I understand what I have to do. I'm not anxious anymore. I am patient at the plate."

The game does not make Ruiz nervous but facing Mariano Rivera does give him butterflies. Like Ruiz, the Yankees closer is from Panama.

"I watched him every time he won the World Series, every out and every game," Ruiz said. "He's represented our country very well and I know Panama will be watching. Maybe half of the country is going for him and half of the country is going for me but that does not bother me. To have two Panamanians here at this level is a great moment and a source of pride for our country."

Ruiz even wished Rivera luck in the series, but not too much luck.

"Once we get on the field we have to do my job and he has to do his job," Ruiz said. "If I get  a chance to win the game with him on the mound, I'm going to do it but at the same time, I know this is a special time for our country right now."

NEW YORK - Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez was surrounded by his teammates and hordes of media Tuesday and this time around it felt much better to be the center of attention.

"Standing here in this booth has reminded me of Spring Training with my press conference and having all of my teammates and the organization sit behind me and literally sit right there when a lot of people were running the other way," he said. "It makes me feel really happy to be contributing and hopefully bring back a championship to the Steinbrenner family."

Times have changed for Alex Rodriguez.

During Spring Training, Rodriguez admitted to using steroids to a national audience during a press conference. Later, he missed a month of the season because of hip surgery. Today, he admitted to having a great time and enjoying the fact that his Yankees are in the World Series against the Phillies.

"It certainly feels good. I definitely rediscovered the joy of playing baseball and that's for sure," Rodriguez said. "It feels good to be on a great team and contribute."

Rodriguez's contributions are a big reason why the Yankees are four wins away from a World Series title. In New York's nine postseason games against the Twins and Angels, Rodriguez hit .438 with five homers, 12 RBIs and nine walks.

It has already been quite a turnaround for Rodriguez. He never imagined he would feel so good at the end of the season after feeling so low to start it.

"For me, it was obvious that in Spring Training that I hit rock bottom," he said. "You can only hit your head against the wall so many times before you figure out there is another way to get on the other side of the wall. For some of us, it has taken a little longer. "

"For me, the goal is to win and be a part of a championship team," he continued. "That's why I came to New York. Winning is the only thing that matters. For me, that's been the big difference. I've focused on one stat and that's wins and losses. I also knew I had tremendous limitations this year with my hip. I didn't know what I would be able to contribute. That put me in a great frame of mind from Day 1."

Rodriguez said a conversation with his closest friends before the season help save his career and possibly his life. In what was described as "tough-love" session, Rodriguez's friends made him think about his life as man and a player.

He listened. Maybe, for the first time.

"I knew I couldn't change a lot of the mistakes I had made off the field and my short-comings on the field in October and the regular season," Rodriguez said. "I knew I had the opportunity with nine years ahead of me to do things right on and off the field. I just surrounded myself with good people, starting with my teammates.  I think that approach overall has made me feel liberated and made me feel different."

 The result has been consistent play and a lot more laughter. The Rodriguez on the field now is a happy Rodriguez.

"One of the things that to me is misunderstood about Alex is that Alex is a good guy," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "He is a good teammate.  He's a teacher in that room.  He helps the young kids out.  He takes care of the young kids.  He's very smart when he's on the baseball field, and sometimes when you have the expectations of what Alex has around him, the only thing that's focused on is his numbers.  But he does a lot more for the club."

Rodriguez's journey continues in Game 1 on Wednesday.

LOS ANGELES - From depths of rejection to heights of acceptance, Dodgers pitcher Vicente Padilla is on the verge of turning a forgettable year into one to remember.

The one-time Rangers' cast-off will start the biggest game of his career on Saturday when he takes the hill for Game 3 of the National League Division Series against the Cardinals in St. Louis with his team up two games to zero in the best-of-five series.

"This is a second life that I have been given, and I'm grateful for it," Padilla said. "I'm going to do my best (Saturday). We'll hope for a little luck and see what happens."

Nobody could have predicted what has happened to him so far this season.

The right-handed pitcher was released by Texas in early August because the club felt he no longer fit in. The Dodgers picked him up 10 days later for the prorated portion of the minimum salary, about $100,000.

The bargain shopping paid dividends. Padilla went 4-0 with a 3.20 ERA in eight games/seven starts with the Dodgers after signing with the club Aug. 19.

 "He's pitched well for us so you never know what's going to happen, you never know who you're going to need or when you're going to need him," Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti said. "So part of our plan all year long is to have enough to get us through whatever we needed. And if it meant having Padilla it was adding Padilla."

Padilla's arrival in Los Angeles was preceded by his reputation. He's enigmatic, they said, and a bad teammate to boot.  Some of his former Rangers teammates bad-mouthed him on his way out the door, and others wondered how he would adjust to the Dodgers' clubhouse.

"The way a person treats me is how I understand who a person is," Dodgers left fielder Manny Ramirez said. "I can't talk about what happened with Vicente in Texas or anywhere else because I wasn't there.  He's treated me with respect and he's treated others here with respect. What else do you want?  Who am I to judge another person?  Let him be who he is.  have no problem with him."

By all accounts, Padilla has fit in fine. Part of the reason for the smooth transition, Padilla said, is because the team is loaded with veterans and he's made fast-friends with the Latin players in the clubhouse.  He lockers in a corner of the Dodgers' clubhouse and is comfortable in his solitude, which sometimes makes others uncomfortable.

He speaks to Spanish media when he's approached and he speaks "baseball-related English," which is sometimes confused as fluent English, to non-Spanish speaking reporters. Padilla often uses a translator for fear of having his words misconstrued or embarrassing himself with poor English.

Some argue Padilla is simply on his best behavior because he is a free agent at the end of the season. Dodgers pitcher Randy Wolf, Padilla's teammate in Philadelphia, said his old friend just needed a fresh start.

"When he came over here, I told some of the people here in LA that I thought he was going to be a big addition for us," Wolf said. "I think a change of scenery was going to be big for him.  I think the way our team is, I think we're very laid back.  We let guys do what they need to do."

Whatever the Dodgers did, it worked.

"He's been fine," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "He doesn't say much. I don't think there are any issues at all."

There were issues in Texas. Padilla went from Rangers Pitcher of the Year in 2008 to bad teammate of the year in less than 12 months, but he insists he's always been the same person. Yes, he throws inside because that's what he believes he has to do in order to establish his fastball. And if he happens to hit a batter along the way, well, that's the hitter's fault for not moving out of the way.

The way Padilla sees it, home plate is the battle field between the hitter and the pitcher, so he'll throw his fastball, sinker, curveball and even his 55-mph eephus pitch to get the upper hand.

It's not personal, and he wonders what all of the fuss is about. Padilla has hit 49 batters in the last four seasons but has not hit a batter since joining the Dodgers.

"If you don't throw inside in this league, you will have problems with good hitters ," Padilla said. "I've always thrown that way."

The right-hander has already come a long way.

Padilla signed with the D-backs in 1998 out of Nicaragua because baseball provided the opportunity to pay the bills and see the world. As one story goes, he showed up for his tryout with the D-backs on a donkey. He said he never dreamed of being the next Nicaraguan pitching sensation like Dennis Martinez or as famous as countryman Alexis Arguello, a former world champion boxer.

Padilla  just wanted to pitch, make a living and help his family. He was raised in poverty by his grandparents 90 minutes outside of Managua under the watchful eye of the Marxist-based Sandinista regime in the war-torn town of Chinandega, so he understands real pressure - and oppression.

Baseball does not elicit real pressure.

"Pressure doesn't help anybody. Why feel pressure?" Padilla said. "You do the work to prepare and you go do the job. You can't control anything but working hard and preparing. You try to do more than you can and things go wrong."

It should come as no surprise that Padilla and Ramirez have quickly become friends. Like Ramirez, Padilla loves the game and understands the business side of baseball. But the duo also share the belief that winning or losing is never a matter of life and death.

Death to Padilla is real. It's as real as the sudden passing of the grandparents that took him in as child and as real as finding his estranged father in bed after a fatal heart attack. When Padilla recounts how he narrowly avoided being recruited as a child soldier by Sandinista guerrillas to fight the US-backed Contras and how many of his boyhood friends ended up dead, he thinks about how fortunate he is to be alive.

The love of family, not sport, drives Padilla. His mother, Flora, is traveling from Nicaragua to St. Louis for Saturday's game.

"People take everything so seriously," Ramirez said. "You can't do that. You only get one life, and it's short. You play hard, and if it doesn't work out, you come back the next day."<p>
Padilla's outlook could have been part of the problem in Texas.  He angered some of his former teammates because opposing pitchers would retaliate after he hit a batter and it appeared as if Padilla didn't care.

He said he cared. It didn't matter. The Rangers tried to send Padilla a message earlier in the season by placing him on waivers after he hit former Rangers teammate Mark Teixeira twice in a game against the Yankees in June. He hit Oakland catcher Kurt Suzuki in what turned out to be his final start for the Rangers, and the A's responded by hitting Michael Young. <p>
Fed up, the Rangers designated him for assignment two days later.

Shortly after his departure, a few former Rangers teammates criticized Padilla for missing meetings and not being a team player. Rangers outfielder Marlon Byrd, Padilla's teammate in Philadelphia, was the most vocal critic.

"I'll say it again, nobody ever came up to me and told me anything in Texas," Padilla said. "If I was such a bad teammate, why didn't anyone come say something to me? We could have talked about it. I loved my teammates and Texas. I just work hard and do my job. "

Ramirez, who left the Red Sox amid criticism two seasons ago, can relate. He also arrived in Los Angeles with a reputation as a bad teammate and questions about his character.<p>
"In this game, you find out who your real friends are when you leave a team," he said. "But you just have to let it go and keep playing. Don't worry about that."

It seems Padilla is heeding Ramirez's advice.

"Everybody wants to make me this bad guy, but what can you do? I can't control that." he said. "I am who I am. I'll just keep working hard and pitch."