In inscrutable order …

  • I’m continuing to follow the rehab progress of Arizona pitcher Brandon Webb closely, partly because he’s on a division rival, partly because I imagined a scenario where Webb might have become a Dodger. Anyway, Webb described himself as “stagnant,” according to The Associated Press, but it’s better for him than having an actual setback.
  • One contender made it through this year’s version of Dodger Idol. Ricky Rivas of El Paso Texas, who pitched for El Paso in independent ball last year, was signed to a minor-league contract after showing his skills at the Dodgers’ annual open tryout. Tommy Lasorda, Logan White and DeJon Watson were among those judging.
  • To encourage carpooling, the Dodgers’ AAA affiliate in Albuquerque grants free parking to cars containing at least four people. Fees of $5 for other cars — which apparently is an increase — will go “directly toward improvements to the entire Sports Complex area … “
  • Buried in this story by Ken Gurnick of MLB.com about Garret Anderson’s impact on the bench is a note that backup shortstop candidate Nick Green is playing “without limitations” despite offseason back surgery.
  • While Brian Giles looks increasingly retirement-bound, Doug Mientkiewicz reasserted that he thinks his shoulder problems shouldn’t prevent him from playing, according to Gurnick.
  • Orel Hershiser has joined ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball broadcast team, working with Jon Miller and Joe Morgan.
  • Speaking of Dodger greats: Ramon Martinez — the beloved one — is at Camelback Ranch as an instructor. See for yourself.
  • This Baseball Prospectus piece by Shawn Hoffman corroborates my view that the nasty payroll projections contained in a recent court filing by Jamie McCourt are nothing to be concerned about. “Unless they’re all on some kind of psychoactive drug cocktail, or possibly preparing for the next round of MLB collusion, there’s no way those projections are anything but a sales tool, pitching an investor on what they think he’ll want to hear,” Hoffman writes.
  • Chad Moriyama of Memories of Kevin Malone looks at minor league prospects with high strikeout totals and doesn’t find much that would make one feel good about the future of Dodger farmhand Kyle Russell.
  • Fifty years ago today, according to the Daily Mirror, the Dodgers were all excited about pitching prospect Phil Ortega (Filimeno Coronado Ortega for long).