Wednesday, March 26, 2003 | 11:19 a.m.
NEXT UP
What: Dodgers vs. Rockies
When: Thursday, 7:10 p.m.
Where: Cashman Field
TV: Fox Sports Net2, Ch. 50
Radio: KSFN, 1140-AM
Tickets: Fewer than 500 remained at the end of business Tuesday. They can be purchased at the Cashman Field box office or at TicketMaster outlets (at Smith's Food & Drug, Tower Records or Nellis AFB.
After Joe Thurston walked into his room at the Dodgertown compound in Vero Beach, Fla., just before midnight Tuesday, he sounded as if he had won his first Little League game.
The Dodgers had just returned from a 45-minute bus ride from Port St. Lucie, where they beat the Mets, 3-2. Thurston got a hit and scored a run, and his passion for the game was apparent in his voice.
"It's always going to burn deep inside of me," he said. "It will always be lit. This is something I've always wanted to do, since I was 5 or 6. Now, it's reality for me. At one point, it was almost taken away.
"So I always want to be humble about that and realize that this game isn't always promised to you. So I'll have fun playing the game as long as I can. The day I don't have fun is probably the day I shouldn't be playing."
That is why, after the Dodgers play an exhibition game against the Colorado Rockies on Thursday night at Cashman Field, Thurston's heart won't be broken if the 51s' parent club doesn't keep him in Southern California.
Thurston, a second baseman, will keep playing in overdrive whether he's bopping around the National League or the Pacific Coast League, attempting to duplicate the fantastic season he recorded a year ago with Las Vegas.
Thurston's heart already has been mended.
As a youngster, he recognized that his heart raced whenever he exerted himself. As a high school senior in Vallejo, Calif., his heart soared to 250 beats per minute. Tests revealed a small abnormal area in the ventricles of his heart triggered the condition.
He only remembers that surgery lasted "a few hours." Because doctors removed the abnormality that caused Thurston's Super Ventricular Tachycardia, he did not require drugs for treatment or an implant to monitor his heart rate.
Thurston was playing baseball a week later, and has had no problems since the surgery. Before surgery, however, he was unsure of his fate.
"I prayed hard, asking God to help me in this situation," Thurston said. "I was confident that everything would be fine. But with any surgery, you never know. There was a possibility something could go wrong.
"When I woke up from the anesthesia, though, I knew everything would be fine."
Thurston has been very fine, having collected the Dodgers' minor-league player-of-the-year honors twice in the past three seasons. Within the organization, he is known as "Joey Ballgame."
Upon his September call-up last season and on his 23rd birthday, he became the first Dodgers rookie to get four hits in a game, against San Diego, since Todd Hollandsworth in 1996.
In Las Vegas, he led everyone in the minors with 196 hits and 297 total bases in '02. He hit .334 to help the 51s win a franchise-record 85 games, including the PCL's Southern Division title, and Baseball America named him its Triple-A player of the year.
"Vegas is awesome," Thurston said. "There are good fans there. They didn't always have a lot of fans throughout the week, but the fans who were there were great. They're dedicated, and they support us through thick and thin.
"We were also blessed to have a good team that won more than we lost. But it's a great place to play, just a good baseball atmosphere."
Should Thurston start the season wearing a 51s cap, he'll be reunited with John Shoemaker, his Double-A manager. A longtime Dodgers employee, Shoemaker makes his debut as Las Vegas manager this year.
"He's an awesome manager," Thurston said. "He's a guy who likes to work hard, who wants to get the most out of his players. He's always willing to do whatever he can to make his team feel comfortable, and win. He's a winning coach, and a great person."
Thurston's batting average has hovered around .200 this spring, and Dodgers manager Jim Tracy was disappointed over his recent inability to lay down a sacrifice bunt in a game against St. Louis.
Alex Cora, meanwhile, has turned in a spectacular play or two at second, and observers believe he forms a smoother double-play combination with shortstop Cesar Izturis. Cora also has struggled at the plate this spring, but hit .291 with the Dodgers last season.
When the Dodgers tossed in second baseman Mark Grudzielanek, with Eric Karros, to get catcher Todd Hundley from the Cubs, Los Angeles appeared to show confidence in Cora or Thurston, or both.
"All that meant to me was, it gave me an opportunity to see what I have or what I can do," Thurston said. "But even if (Grudzielanek) were here today, I'd still have to go out and do what I can do. I can only control what I can control.
"If I start the season in Las Vegas, I won't be bummed at all. I'll be playing a game I love. It won't be a thing where I'm in Triple-A because I did a bad job or they don't like me. It's just one of those things. Wherever I'm at is where I'm supposed to be." "
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