While the Dodgers and Giants found another place to renew their heated rivalry, Jose Reyes took a liking to his new spot in the lineup.
Longtime adversaries first in New York, then California and now in the Cactus League, the Dodgers and Giants squared off again Thursday in a fresh locale: Scottsdale, Ariz.
Russell Martin homered off Matt Cain and drove in three runs as Los Angeles spoiled San Francisco’s spring training home opener with a 16-7 victory.
Both teams are now in Arizona after the Dodgers left their longtime home in Vero Beach, Fla., to open their new facility in the Phoenix area this year. The Giants have trained in Arizona since 1952.
“It was pretty weird,” Cain said. “It’s good to see these guys, but it’s always also kind of nice to go into a season when they haven’t seen us and we haven’t seen them. Sometimes you think you have an advantage if you are a pitcher.”
The game was played before a placid crowd of 5,803 at Scottsdale Stadium and was a pale comparison to what Dodgers manager Joe Torre saw in another famous rivalry in previous springs.
. They sold banners and buttons and stuff. It was stupid. The fans wanted it that way,” said Torre, who spent 12 seasons as New York’s manager before taking over the Dodgers in 2008.
“When I say stupid, I don’t say it shouldn’t have been done. The fans get that from their angst. It was funny. Thank goodness you went and played somewhere it was funny, as opposed to times we had to go through so often. We know the difference. Everybody knows when the bell rings.”
Reyes looks ready to go right now.
Dropped from the leadoff spot to No. 3 in the order, he hit a grand slam, a solo homer and had six RBIs to power the New York Mets past the Florida Marlins 9-0 at Port St. Lucie, Fla.
“I didn’t do anything different,” Reyes said. “I just put my best swing on the ball and tried to go from there.”
New York also scored nine runs in its spring training opener, beating Baltimore 9-3 on Wednesday. New leadoff man Luis Castillo was a star in that one, with four RBIs and two hits.
Mets manager Jerry Manuel is juggling his lineup this spring to see if he wants to keep the changes for the regular season. The idea is to benefit Castillo, coming off an ineffective season, and give Reyes a chance to knock in more runs.
“We really think Jose is ready to really take it to the next level,” Manuel said.
Carlos Beltran also homered for New York and drove in three runs.
na was scratched from Friday morning’s “B” game start against Italy because of tenderness in his pitching elbow. Manuel said the decision was precautionary because Santana has a history of feeling elbow soreness this time of the year. Santana remains on track to make his Grapefruit League debut Tuesday.
At Tampa, Fla., Yankees star Alex Rodriguez got another mixed reception in his first spring training game at home since admitting he used performance-enhancing drugs from 2001-03. Rodriguez tested positive for steroids while playing for Texas.
The three-time MVP went 0-for-2 and left after five innings of New York’s 5-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. The sellout crowd of 10,693 at George M. Steinbrenner Field included the Yankees owner.
Rodriguez homered Wednesday in the Yankees’ exhibition opener against Toronto. He heard some catcalls at the Blue Jays’ ballpark, but also drew a standing ovation after his home run.
This time, he struck out in the second and grounded into an inning-ending double play in his other at-bat.
“I thought it was fine,” Rodriguez said. “It feels good to be between the lines.”
Rodriguez said he had not yet met with investigators from Major League Baseball, which wants to interview him about a trainer from the Dominican Republic and the cousin the third baseman said injected him with a banned substance called “boli.”
ion game in Dunedin in an SUV driven by Yuri Sucart, who has been identified as the cousin.
The Yankees told A-Rod to keep his cousin away from the team.
“It’s been addressed,” Rodriguez added. “And, no further comment.”
Earlier, general manager Brian Cashman said: “It’s been handled.”
In other news, Ken Griffey Jr.’s first spring game in his return to the Seattle Mariners likely won’t come until Wednesday night against the Australian national team.
Jose Rijo, a special assistant to Nationals general manager Jim Bowden, was fired by Washington, the latest fallout from a scandal involving a top prospect from the Dominican Republic who lied about his age and name.
The team also fired Jose Baez, the Nationals’ director of operations in the Dominican Republic, and cut ties with Rijo’s baseball academy in the Dominican Republic.
In other spring training games:
Cubs 7, Brewers 4
At Mesa, Ariz., Milton Bradley’s spring training debut was cut short by an injury. Chicago’s new right fielder walked in the first inning, then was lifted for a pinch-runner as soon as he reached base.
The injury was described as mild tightness of his left quadriceps, but Bradley said being removed was precautionary. Bradley, who agreed to a $30 million, three-year deal in January, worked out after he was pulled and said he’ll be fine.
Braves 8, Astros 7
., Roy Oswalt was sharp in a World Baseball Classic tuneup for Houston, allowing just one hit in three innings. He struck out United States teammate Chipper Jones twice.
Nationals 2, Tigers 1
At Viera, Fla., Collin Balester, Jordan Zimmermann and Terrell Young each pitched two scoreless innings for Washington.
Pirates 3, Red Sox 2
At Fort Myers, Fla., Jon Lester worked on his changeup and threw two scoreless innings for Boston.
Twins 10, Reds 4
At Sarasota, Fla., Micah Owings used his first opportunity to show Cincinnati he can pitch as well as he hits by working three scoreless innings in the final spring opener at Ed Smith Stadium for the Reds. The team signed a lease to move next year to Goodyear, Ariz.
Blue Jays 6, Phillies 2
At Clearwater, Fla., top pitching prospects Carlos Carrasco and J.A. Happ each tossed two shutout innings for Philadelphia. Carrasco struck out three.
Orioles 11, Cardinals 3
At Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Baltimore right-hander Danys Baez allowed three walks and two runs in one inning, his first outing since September 2007. He underwent elbow surgery the following month, and the former All-Star closer is now trying to win a job with the Orioles as a starter, a role he hasn’t held since 2002.
Mariners 4, Padres 4, 10 innings
lanco in a tuneup for the World Baseball Classic. Hernandez is slated to start Venezuela’s opener March 7 against Italy in Toronto.
Angels 3, Athletics 1
At Tempe, Ariz., new Los Angeles closer Brian Fuentes worked a scoreless inning before a sparse crowd of 1,643.
Royals 7, Rangers 2
At Surprise, Ariz., Kyle Davies pitched two scoreless innings and Ross Gload hit a bases-loaded triple for Kansas City. Josh Hamilton homered for the second consecutive game for the Rangers.
Diamondbacks 15, Indians 9
At Goodyear, Ariz., prized prospect Matt LaPorta homered off Arizona All-Star Dan Haren.
White Sox 4, Rockies 1
At Tucson, Ariz., Huston Street made his Colorado debut, giving up a run and three hits in one inning. He is competing with Manuel Corpas for the closer role, a job he held in Oakland last season.
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