HOUSTON - He is 36 and a parent himself, so when, on his first day as a Los Angeles Dodger, Chase Utley was asked whether he was thrilled that his mother and father would now be able to see him play more often, it sounded somewhat silly.
But, as Utley likes to say, that's baseball. In his sport, it's often difficult to separate the child from the adult.
Fittingly, it was the affection a young Utley still felt for his hometown team that, after weeks of discussions involving other West Coast contenders, led to the waiver deal that sent the six-time Phillies all-star to the Dodgers last week.