Dodgers

He had just made the final out in a city where his name is booed, his jersey is reviled, and his team had been swept. His power had disappeared, his swing was spotty, and his season was a wreck. Matt Kemp would have been excused for quickly disappearing through the dugout at San Francisco's AT&T Park on Sunday night and forgetting all about an earlier promise to third base coach Tim Wallach. “But that was the neat deal about it,” Wallach said. “He was standing there waiting for me.” PHOTOS: Greatest moments in Dodger Stadium history Kemp was waiting to cross the diamond to sign an autograph for a terminally ill Dodgers fan, waiting to summon the passion necessary to pass along the hope that he now found so precious.

ATLANTA - Second baseman Mark Ellis was activated from the 15-day disabled list Sunday, having been cleared by the medical staff to return to the lineup after playing in two minor league games. "I'm done rehabbing," Ellis said. Ellis played all nine innings Sunday in the Dodgers' 5-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves. Ellis, 35, had been sidelined for three weeks because of a strained quadriceps muscle. "It's been tough, without a doubt," Ellis said. "You always feel you can help a little bit. I know one guy's not going to make a difference, but you feel you can help.

I lost my dad decades ago. But then this guy comes along who likes to sing as he walks, a jolly Irishman who laughs and cracks wise with a hint of the devil in him and I remember that guy. We become friendly, but then who isn't a friend of his? He gives me his email address, and I don't know, do you believe in signs from beyond? Or remarkable coincidences? Vin Scully uses an email address that makes you believe his nickname is "Red. " My dad's name was John, but everyone called him "Red.

MILWAUKEE - Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier have felt responsible for the Dodgers' stagnant offense. On Monday, they did something about it. Kemp and Ethier each hit long home runs in the Dodgers' 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. BOX SCORE: Dodgers 3, Milwaukee 1 "If things get going, it's going to revolve around us," said Ethier, who began the game batting .255. Kemp, who is coming back from an off-season shoulder operation, had hit only one home run. That came April 24 against the New York Mets, when he barely cleared the right-field wall at Citi Field.

On busy Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, some well-kept facades conceal a secret. Behind the Mediterranean with wooden doors, the white stucco two-story with a red tile roof, the long wall obscuring a three-structure compound, hides a singular, massive wealth fueled by obsession. This is Larry Ellison territory, where a Bay Area billionaire with seemingly endless patience and resources is buying up the best spots along Malibu's 21 miles of coast. PHOTOS: Expensive things Ellison has bought The Oracle Corp.

For all the anguish he caused, there were moments when Manny Ramirez was a unique, irresistible, almost childlike force. That would be the Manny who was electric at the plate, and jovial and carefree in the clubhouse. Not the drug-busted, non-talking, non-producing Manny. But when he was going good, there was no one like him, neither via his baseball prowess or special antics on and off the field. Ramirez, who turns 41 on May 30, is not willing to give up the ghost just yet. After failing to hook up with the Oakland Athletics last season, he is now playing baseball in Taiwan.

Stan Kasten, the veteran baseball executive leading one of three groups considered as front-runners in the Dodgers bidding, toured Camelback Ranch on Tuesday. Kasten and Mark Walter, the money man behind Guggenheim Baseball Partners, met in Phoenix with major league owners on Monday. The third primary partner, Magic Johnson, was unable to attend because of a scheduling conflict. The other two leading contenders among the bidders: hedge-fund billionaire Steven Cohen, who toured Camelback Ranch on Saturday and returned as a fan on Sunday, and St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke.

PHOENIX -- There was a noticeable buzz in the Dodgers' clubhouse Wednesday morning. The previous night, traveling secretary Scott Akasaki had sent the players a text message informing them that a group led by Magic Johnson had agreed to buy the team. "I think that's tight, man," Matt Kemp said. "For Magic to be one of our owners. He knows what the Dodgers mean to L.A. Of course, Magic is real important to L.A. and the fans love him, so to get him to be a part of the Dodgers organization is a very good thing for us, and I think this is a pretty good day for the Dodgers.

Ivan DeJesus strained his left oblique abdominal muscle, harming the infielder's chances of being on the Dodgers' opening-day roster as a key bench player. "It's hard to compete [for a job] when you can't be out there," Manager Don Mattingly said Sunday before the Dodgers were to play the Angels at Camelback Ranch, weather permitting. DeJesus, 24, inured himself while swinging during an at-bat Saturday night in the Dodgers' game against the San Francisco Giants. He's scheduled to have an MRI exam on Monday to evaluate the damage.

Phoenix - There isn't a newcomer comparable to Albert Pujols or C.J. Wilson at the Dodgers' spring-training complex. As a result, there's noticeably less buzz coming out of the Dodgers' camp than the Angels'. But Los Angeles will always belong the Dodgers, Manager Don Mattingly said Tuesday before his team's first full-squad workout of the spring. “You know, honestly, if you really want what I think about it, it's kind of like the Mets and the Yankees,” Mattingly said of the two New York teams.

MILWAUKEE - Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti was evasive when asked Monday about Don Mattingly's job status, refusing to say whether the last-place team could fire its manager this week. Against this backdrop of uncertainty, Clayton Kershaw pitched his second complete game of the season, a 107-pitch masterpiece in a 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park that ended the Dodgers' three-game losing streak. "Every time I get in trouble, Kersh saves me for one more day," Mattingly said jokingly.

ATLANTA - Clayton Kershaw will pitch for the Dodgers in their series opener against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday at Miller Park. If he wants to win, he should probably be prepared to pitch nine innings, maybe even more. Over the last three days, the last-place Dodgers went into the late innings leading the Atlanta Braves. They lost all three times, including Sunday, when Brandon League's spectacular eighth-inning meltdown sent them crashing to a 5-2 defeat. BOX SCORE: Atlanta 5, Dodgers 2 League was the third Dodgers reliever to turn a lead into a decisive deficit in the three-game series at Turner Field, following Paco Rodriguez and Kenley Jansen.

When I think of our local baseball teams and their supporters, I envision my wife in a bathing suit. Or trying to get into one. Every year when spring arrives, I hear about her summer plans and how good she's going to look in a new bathing suit. About the same time I hear from Angels and Dodgers fans overwhelmed with optimism. No matter what I write here next, I'm not going to win. That is if the truth matters. But I've also noticed over the years that any attempt at humor when it comes to the local baseball teams or bathing suits isn't going to go over well.

ATLANTA - There is a new-age school of thought that believes teams should use their best relievers the way the Dodgers are using Kenley Jansen - in potentially game-altering situations, often in innings other than the ninth. But Manager Don Mattingly said his decision to use Jansen in this manner is based on his team's needs rather than a desire to revolutionize the modern bullpen. Even with Brandon League struggling, Mattingly has hesitated designating Jansen as the closer because doing so would severely limit his options leading up to the ninth inning.

In honor of the Billboard Music Awards, which will be presented Sunday in Las Vegas, Times staff writer Kevin Baxter offers a music-themed look at Major League Baseball. (Statistics through Friday's games. Last week's rankings in parentheses): TOP OF THE HIT PARADE 1. ST. LOUIS “Start Me Up”  Rotation tops MLB with seven shutouts, 2.53 ERA and 24 wins (1) 2. TEXAS “Here Comes the Boom” Rangers lead majors with 26 homers in 16 May games (4) 3. N.Y. YANKEES “New York State of Mind” First-place Yanks an AL-best 15-9 at home (3)

On the morning that would deliver to the Dodgers their greatest arm in two generations, Clayton Kershaw awoke with a thought. The baseball draft was not televised in 2006. Each team made its picks on a secure conference call line with the league office. If you wanted to know which team had drafted you, then you could wait for a phone call or follow along on the Internet. "I thought I was going," Kershaw said, "to the Tigers. " How he ended up with the Dodgers is a compelling tale.

When a Lakers icon buys the Dodgers, you can bet current Lakers take notice. Lakers stars Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol had a lot to say after the news broke Tuesday night that the group headed by Magic Johnson will be the Dodgers' new owners. "I'm upset he didn't cut me in," Bryant said jokingly. "I'm going to have to talk to him about that. " But Bryant has a hard time seeing himself ever owning a sports team. "No. Well, I mean, if it's in a big market like Los Angeles or something like that, then yeah.

It's a baseball truism that managers are hired to be fired. (Sort of like newspaper columnists.) You can be everyone's absolute darling one season and on the curb handing out résumés the next that read, "Won two historic World Series" (see: Terry Francona). Which brings us to Don Mattingly, entering his second season at the helm as Dodgers manager. All things  - and expectations  - considered, Mattingly had a strong debut. For someone who had never managed at any level, who was operating under a circus ownership and with a less-than-overpowering roster, he silenced critics with an even hand.

ATLANTA - More than a quarter of the season is complete. The losses are continuing to mount. But in the wake of a come-from-ahead, 3-1 defeat to the Atlanta Braves on Saturday night, Manager Don Mattingly remained adamant that the last-place Dodgers are underperforming. The alternative would have been to concede that the $230-million ballclub is incapable of winning consistently. "I'm not going to believe that," Mattingly said. "I know we're capable. " BOX SCORE: Atlanta 3, Dodgers 1 Mattingly pointed to how before losing their first two games of a three-game series at Turner Field, the Dodgers won four of five games.

ATLANTA - Will Don Mattingly be the Dodgers manager for the remainder of the season? Team President Stan Kasten wouldn't say. "I don't discuss the manager and I never do," Kasten said. "Ever since spring training, we said that, when you wanted to talk about him every day. We had a rough start but we expect to get through this. " Kasten was reminded he was asked a yes-or-no question. "What was the question again?" Kasten asked. Will Don Mattingly be your manager for the rest of the year?