…as the Mets continue their westerly trek with a stop at Chavez Ravine, i did a quick Q & A with Jon Weisman, who blogs about the Dodgers for the excellent Dodger Thoughts…

D.J. Short:

What has Joe Torre’s arrival meant to the Dodgers organization?

Jon Weisman:

It has excited X number of people inside and outside the organization, but I think it’s too soon to say what the real impact has been. In part because of the team’s March sojourn to China, Torre openly treated April as a kind of extended Spring Training, testing out different lineups and continuing to have Esteban Loaiza and Hong-Chih Kuo in tryouts for the fifth starter position. His latest gambit has been to take advantage of Russell Martin’s athleticism by having him play third base as a way to rest him from catching while keeping his bat in the lineup. I like the open-mindedness behind that, but if Torre falls too deeply in love with it, that will mean Gary Bennett is getting too many at-bats. Similarly, it’s possible that Torre has buried third-base prospect Andy LaRoche, which would be a shame. But things change from week to week, and it’s just too soon to say what Torre’s impact is.

D.J. Short:

Why did it take so long for Torre to realize that Matt Kemp needs to be in the lineup everyday?

Jon Weisman:

It could be any number of reasons. Despite his obvious talent, Kemp carries a lot-to-learn tag. He strikes out a lot and walks very little, which can be tough for managers to look at. And while Torre didn’t start Juan Pierre on Opening Day, he clearly wanted him to play some. The Dodgers faced some guys like Jake Peavy in the early going that Torre thought Pierre would better handle. All that being said, Kemp’s been a regular since the second week of the season; given the extended Spring Training issues cited above, that’s not really that long a time. Kemp has started 22 of 31 games this season.

D.J. Short:

Be honest, does it make you nervous seeing Russell Martin at third base?

Jon Weisman:

Maybe I’m crazy, but not in the slightest. I’m a lot less worried about him getting hurt at third base than at catcher. I kind of get a kick out of it, and I could forsee him following a Craig Biggio path to the infield to extend his career. Of course, Martin’s value is highest at catcher, so I’m in no rush to see him move away from the position.

D.J. Short:

Andruw Jones looks pretty lost at the plate right now. Is there any reason to believe he can turn it around?

Jon Weisman:

Somewhere between the 50+ homers of a couple years ago and the one homer of this year is the real Jones. There’s no reason to think that either is his true level now. I take some comfort in the fact that he looks so lost at the plate that it’s not your run-of-the-mill decline. Of late, I’ve started likening it to the problems Steve Sax had throwing to first base about 25 years ago. It was just so off-the-charts bad, it almost couldn’t be real. Sax got his act together, and I think Jones can too. I think it’s most likely that he turns things around to the extent that he pulls together a low-OBP, 20-25 homer season. Not so great for the big bucks, but I’m thinking he can still help the team.

If he doesn’t, though, wow.

D.J. Short:

What’s the update on Jason Schmidt? Can he be counted on this season?

Jon Weisman:

He’s on track for a rehab assignment in the next month or so. I think he’ll end up throwing some major league innings this season, but I’m intrigued by where they might be. By the time Schmidt is ready to be activated, the Dodgers very likely may have already pulled the trigger on calling up phenom Clayton Kershaw from the minors. I don’t know that anyone inside or outside the organization expects Schmidt to be a better pitcher than Kershaw this season. His contract would make it unsightly, but could Schmidt become an effective reliever? It’s similar to the dilemma the Dodgers face with the oft-surgeried Kuo, who by all rights should be the fifth starter today if the Dodgers would just leave him alone there instead of jerking him around. Anyway, things could be very interesting in the rotation by the second half of the season – unless, of course, someone else gets hurt – which with the Dodgers, is always a possibility in your mind.

…thanks, Jon…