VERO BEACH, Fla. (AP) -Juan Pierre reported to camp a day early, and said he’s prepared to do whatever the Los Angeles Dodgers need from him.
He hopes that means playing every day, no matter where in the outfield it might be.
Pierre, who has the most stolen bases (382) and second-most hits (1,378) in the majors since 2001, lost his starting center field job during the offseason when the Dodgers signed Andruw Jones to a two-year, $36.2 million contract.
“I’m no dummy. The guy has won 10 Gold Gloves,” Pierre said Monday. “It’s up to me to move and do the best job I can. I’m not going to sit here and say I don’t want to play center field. I’m just going to play it by ear and go from there.”
Pierre said new Dodgers manager Joe Torre has told him he’ll probably be moving to left field. Standout youngsters Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier are among those competing for playing time in the outfield, with Jones set in center.
“I know my game. It’s not pretty,” Pierre said. “I’m not going to be all over SportsCenter. Some people value what I do. Some people don’t.”
One thing Pierre doesn’t do is hit for power – he has 12 homers in 1,169 career games. That makes a difference on a team that has lacked punch in recent years.
And on defense, his arm is a liability.
But he has more hits than anyone in the majors outside of Seattle’s Ichiro Suzuki in the last seven years and has a lifetime batting average of .301. The 30-year-old left-handed hitter batted .293 with no homers, 41 RBIs and 64 steals last season.
“I only can control what I do,” said Pierre, who signed a five-year, $44 million contract with the Dodgers before last season. “I’ve got to get better offensively and defensively. If I’m healthy, I want to be out there for 162 (games). “
Pierre has played in 162 for five straight years. He enters this season having played in 434 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the big leagues. He actually has appeared in 821 straight dating back to 2002, but his appearance as a pinch runner on June 3, 2005 snapped his “games played” streak, according the major league rule book.
“It’s not important,” he said of the streak. “It’s been a blessing I’ve stayed healthy this long. You sign a contract for 162. I like to think it’s honoring the contract. I want to be out there every day.”
Pierre acknowledged there was an element of hurt feelings when Jones signed.
“The Dodgers got finally got a center fielder,” he said, assuming that was the attitude in some circles. “That kind of hurt a little bit.”
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