Opening weekend Down Under goes well

The Dodgers opening weekend in Sydney, Australia was a success. Clayton Kershaw proved that spring training doesn't matter with a five-hitter and Hyun Jin-Ryu looked masterful in beating Arizona for a two-game sweep of the opening series that wasn't an opening series.

The Dodgers return to the U.S. for several more exhibition games before starting the season again. Here are some first impressions...

• Yasiel Puig can hit and cover ground in the outfield but he still needs to work on his "wild horse" base running.
• Dee Gordon will win the second base job if he hits like he did in Game Two.
• Andre Ethier still has a sweet stroke and has learned to play centerfield. Matt Kemp is close but if he can't go Ethier would do fine.
• Brian Wilson is the real deal as a setup man. Despite giving up a four-run ninth inning in a 7-5 Dodgers win the LA bullpen should be stellar.
• Adrian Gonzalez is the best pure hitter on the Dodgers.
• Juan Uribe has found the fountain of youth because he is still the best option at third base.

Sydney's Cricket Ground transformed into a fine baseball stadium and the Australian fans seemed to like baseball, even getting into the wave in the stands.