Ethier as role model not just a role

But the Dodgers did much better in that category by adding outfield prospect Andre Ethier to the mix. As the organization and fans will soon find out, they'll be hard-pressed to find anyone who'll impress more with his attitude on and off the field.

Ethier's on-the-field work ethic was noticed during the Arizona Fall League, when he was given the second annual Dernell Stenson Sportsmanship Award, as chosen by the managers, coaches and league officials. As part of the award, MLB.com auctioned off a Derek Jeter autographed ball to raise funds to be donated to a charity of Ethier's choosing.

Ethier quickly showed what kind of person he is behind the player when he decided not only to give the $550 MLB.com raised to Childhelp USA (read about this worthwhile charity at www.childhelp.org), but by also donating $1,000 of his own money to this organization that works to combat child abuse across the nation.

"I feel really strongly that you have to be involved in your community and me being a Phoenix guy, getting a chance to play in the Fall League here in Phoenix, it's a great chance for me to help out some local charities here," Ethier said of Childhelp, which is based in Scottsdale. [They] help kids and families get back on the right foot after having been in abusive relationships. They haven't been fortunate enough to have the things I've been given in my life, so it's an opportunity for them to have some stability under their feet. It's based in Arizona here -- I'm glad to get my hands into something locally based -- and hopefully I can further my relationship with the people there."

The folks at Childhelp certainly wouldn't object. Founded by actresses Sara O'Meara and Yvonne Fedderson, Childhelp has put a spotlight on an issue often ignored by the country. The organization has built residential treatment facilities exclusively for severely abused children, established advocacy centers in three different regions and began the first national toll-free child abuse hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD). O'Meara and Fedderson also helped establish April as National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Perhaps it is kismet, then, for Ethier to get involved, considering his season officially gets underway the very same month.

"It's very important [he's getting involved]," said Sylvia Hopkins, Childhelp's vice president of marketing. "[Athletes] obviously attract attention. If they're going to be an ambassador of sorts, show themselves as an example, I think that's being a good role model. Especially for children, who look up to sports figures as role models. It's extremely important to us because kids look up athletes.

"We're trying to build awareness. The more people are aware, the more they'll feel empowered to call if they see abuse of some sort. It's not just writing checks, though that's important; we wouldn't exist without it. Everybody can do something."

To that end, Ethier would like to further his relationship with Childhelp in the future. He will have to do that with less time spent in Arizona, though. While with the A's, he had the good fortune of spending Spring Training at home in Phoenix. Now he'll have to travel to Dodgertown in Florida to get ready for the season.

"It's a month and a half less at home for me, which is pretty much what everyone else does," Ethier said. "I'm just one of the fortunate ones who got to play where he lives. But I can think of a lot of worse things, a lot of other things I'd rather not be doing that people struggle with every day, than going to Florida for a month and a half, put on a uniform and play a little baseball. It doesn't sound like a bad gig to me."

It should be noted that strong character aside, Ethier's pretty good at the on-field side of this gig. He's coming off his best all-around season, hitting .319 with 18 homers and 80 RBIs for Double-A Midland before getting promoted to Sacramento for its Triple-A playoff run at the end of the year. For his efforts, Ethier was named the Texas League's Offensive Player of the Year.

He was even better during the AFL. Ethier hit .366 (seventh in the league) with 21 RBIs (tied for ninth) in 23 games. He also had 21 walks against just 10 strikeouts for a league-leading .495 on-base percentage while posting a .598 slugging percentage, tied for eighth-highest in the Fall League. His Desert Dogs won the AFL title while Ethier played alongside Dodger products he had no idea were going to be his teammates this coming spring.

"It'll help tremendously," said Ethier of playing with Los Angeles prospects like Andy LaRoche and James Loney. "It's very comforting to know I'm not being thrown into a whole new environment. We hadn't even played against the Dodgers organization in Minor League Baseball, so I'm not familiar with any of their faces.

"Being able to play on a team with a couple of those guys is going to help out a lot, especially those guys who'll be in big league camp also. I'm glad I could be with a great group of guys like that. It was sad to leave the A's, but it's time to turn a new leaf and start something new, move down south down the coast a little bit."

Ethier's ultimate goal is to break camp with the big league club down the coast in Los Angeles, but also knows he may have to spend some time with his new friends in Las Vegas first. Either way, he's quickly learning about how those committed to this organization bleed a certain color.

"A lot of people have been saying that Dodger Blue runs deep, if you're a Dodger fan, it's running through your veins," Ethier said. "Growing up, I never was a big follower of the Dodgers, but now I'm glad to be a part of it. I hope it'll start bleeding out of my veins here pretty soon."