GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Dodgers’ now-annual intrasquad ping-pong tournament has begun. In a spirited match, the team of Howie Kendrick and Sergio Santos defeated Jimmy Rollins and Chad Gaudin. The teams were chosen at random. Clayton Kershaw, who often wins these things, is paired with rookie Corey Seager. At last check, they haven’t played yet.
The ping-pong tournament is a trivial affair, of course. One consequence is that it can change the tone of the clubhouse, at least temporarily. So far it’s been a quieter room compared to the past few years — no surprise when you subtract a pair of outgoing cut-ups like Matt Kemp and Hanley Ramirez. Many of the newcomers have kept to themselves so far. A ping-pong tournament can change that.
Javy Guerra and Onelki Garcia are both in the White Sox camp. We might see them today.
Speaking of former Dodgers, Chad Billingsley’s return date has been pushed back to “late April” in Philadelphia.
Here are the lineups for the noon game at Camelback Ranch. The Cactus League lidlifter, as they say:
Dodgers:
Jimmy Rollins, SS
Carl Crawford, LF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Yasmani Grandal, C
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Joc Pederson, DH
Chris Heisey, RF
White Sox:
Adam Eaton CF
Melky Cabrera LF
Jose Abreu 1B
Adam LaRoche DH
Avisail Garcia RF
Alexei Ramirez SS
Gordon Beckham 3B
Tyler Flowers C
Carlos Sanchez 2B
(Jose Quintana LHP)
