Local Heroes: The Dodgers and Angels each...

Local Heroes: The Dodgers and Angels each begin their seasons this week with a Valley player in the lineup. For the Dodgers, it’s a new face: third baseman Todd Zeile. The graduate of Hart High in Newhall comes home after a tumultuous two seasons in which he played for four teams. In Anaheim, left fielder Garret Anderson, a graduate of Kennedy High in Granada Hills, will begin his third season as an Angel in the outfield.

Trailblazers: Taft High in Woodland Hills has the distinction of producing the two men believed to be the only managers in major-league history with Valley ties. New Houston Astros skipper Larry Dierker was a pitcher for the Toreadors in the 1960s, and Kevin Kennedy, fired by the Boston Red Sox after last season, was a catcher at the school in the early 1970s.

Visiting Heroes: Alex Rodriguez, above, and Ken Griffey Jr., the Seattle Mariners’ two young superstars, each spent about 15 minutes signing autographs before the Mariners’ exhibition game against the minor-league JetHawks on Sunday in Lancaster. One of the happy recipients of a Griffey autograph was 10-year-old Jonathan Sidwell, whose family timed a visit from Red Bluff, Calif., to coincide with the Mariners’ appearance. “It’s the first time I’ve ever seen him,� the excited Jonathan said as he ran off with his signed ball.

Finally: Patience has paid off for Damon Buford, a graduate of Birmingham High in Van Nuys who spent most of the last seven seasons in the minor leagues. The Texas Rangers, Buford’s third team, have cleared a spot for him to be their starting center fielder this season.