BASEBALL Tribe deals Bradley on eve of opener

To say the least, the season will be a challenge.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Desperate to score runs and willing to take a chance, the Los Angeles Dodgers got troubled outfielder Milton Bradley from the Cleveland Indians in a trade Sunday for a minor leaguer and a player to be named.
The deal capped a tumultuous week for the Indians' cleanup hitter. He was pulled from an exhibition game Wednesday by manager Eric Wedge for failing to run out a pop fly that dropped, barred from training camp the next day and later sent to the minors.
Bradley was expected to start in center field today when Los Angeles opened at home against San Diego.
"I think Milton's gotten a bad rap to this point," Dodgers general manager Paul DePodesta said. "I actually talked to him this morning and he said that this was the best thing he could have possibly hoped for."
Said Indians manager Eric Wedge: "It's disappointing it didn't work out here."
"We feel like we have to handle this thing appropriately and that's what we're trying to do," he said.
The exchange
The Dodgers, whose 574 runs were the fewest in the majors last season, sent outfielder Franklin Gutierrez to Cleveland. He was the Dodgers' minor league player of the year in 2003.
The Indians open tonight at Minnesota.
"I like our team," said shortstop Omar Vizquel, the lone holdover from Cleveland's World Series teams in 1995 and '97. "We've got a lot of young guys who are real hungry."
Matt Lawton, who has been slowed by injuries the last two years, will start in left field for Cleveland.
"Everybody has to contribute," Lawton said. "We don't have those two or three guys in the middle of the lineup hitting 40 home runs and carrying us."
The Indians, who went 7-20 in the first month of last season, plays 22 of 23 April games against AL Central opponents -- 13 of them against favorites Kansas City and Minnesota.
"I think it's a challenge for us," Wedge said. "We're all about facing challenges. Even though we've got a bunch of young kids, they're mentally tough. We're developing more of that. With each year they'll be stronger mentally and be able to handle everything."
Bradley hit .321 with 10 homers and 56 RBIs and stole a team-leading 17 bases in 2003. He did it while missing the final six weeks because of a lower back injury, and was sidelined for 61 games because of injuries.
Along with going on the disabled list four times in two seasons, Bradley has had other problems. Last year, he had run-ins with Dodgers catcher Paul Lo Duca and Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi, and also threw his helmet and bat in the direction of plate umpire Bruce Froemming.
The departure
Indians general manager Mark Shapiro and Bradley talked Sunday and wished each other well. Shapiro said he did not ask for an apology, nor did Bradley offer one.
"The majority of his time here he was a good teammate and a good member of our organization," Shapiro said. "There were moments in time that he compromised the standards and expectations that we communicated to him, not one time, but a pattern of times."
Minus Bradley, the Indians will probably platoon Coco Crisp and Alex Escobar in center field.
Gutierrez, 21, hit .282 with 20 homers and 68 RBIs for Class A Vero Beach, and did well in a short stint with Double-A Jacksonville. He stole 20 bases and made the roster of the 2004 All-Star Futures game.
Gutierrez is expected to start the season at Double-A Akron.
The Indians have until June 30 to decide on the other player.