Nomar, Sweeney scratched from China trip; Tom Martin released

Nomar's hand is still swollen, so there is no point in him going on the trip. Sweeney has been battling a sore left knee all spring, and club officials decided not to subject him to a long airplane flight. Nomar has been replaced by minor leaguer Kevin Howard, Sweeney has yet to be replaced. ... The Dodgers released veteran lefty reliever Tom Martin this morning when it became apparent he had no shot of making the club. The move was made to give Martin more time to hook on with another organization before opening day. Joe Torre said Martin did NOT ask for the release. ... Also, four 40-man roster pitchers -- Mario Alvarez, Jon Meloan, James McDonald and Justin Orenduff -- were reassigned to minor-league camp. Apparently, they have NOT been officially optioned yet, but those moves would have to come sometime between now and opening day.