Rod Barajas has a Dodgers debut at Dodger Stadium to cherish

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Catcher Rod Barajas has been in the major leagues since 1999. Has hit over 100 home runs. Played in the World Series.

And yet when Barajas came to the plate in the second inning Monday night in his first appearance as a Dodger at Dodger Stadium, something strange was going on.

‘My hands were shaking, my knees were shaking,’ he said. ‘It was just a childhood dream come true.’

Barajas is a local guy, who played at Santa Fe Springs High School and Cerritos College. As a child, he would attend games at Dodger Stadium and dream of this moment, one suddenly threatening to become overwhelming.

‘Butterflies were floating around,’ he said. ‘I went up for my first at-bat, I could feel my hands shaking. I stepped out of the box and said, ‘Come on, you’ve done this before.’

‘But that didn’t work. I just needed to get that first at-bat out of the way. The second at-bat I was able to relax a little more and just play baseball.’

Barajas ended up grounding into a double play in the second, though that did drive in a run. His second at-bat was a tad more memorable.

Against Phillies ace Roy Halladay, he lined a home run out to left, directly over where his name was displayed on an electronic scoreboard.

Almost better, he nearly caught his first no-hitter. Hiroki Kuroda carried his no-hit bid into the eighth inning before Shane Victorino lined a one-out single.

‘I had total confidence he’d get it,’ Barajas said. ‘I thought this was going to be the one. I’ve caught quite a few one-hitters, but with the stuff he had, the movement, velocity, the location -- I felt it would be a special night.

‘Unfortunately, it didn’t happen, but he still pitched an awesome game.’

Still, the night proved pretty special for Barajas. He’d hit a home run against Halladay, caught a one-hitter and the Dodgers won. Not bad for a home debut.

‘To be a part of a dominant pitching effort, to be able to scrape of one off the top of the fence against one of the best pitchers in baseball -- it’s definitely special,’ he said. ‘I don,t think anyone in my family will ever forget it.’

Barajas, 34, is that rare player these days, someone who wants to be a Dodger.

When Mets Manager Jerry Manuel called him into his office in Pittsburgh on Aug. 22, he knew what the news could be.

‘He said, ‘Hey, you’ve been claimed.’ At first I was disappointed,’ Barajas said. ‘I liked New York, I enjoyed the team, like the situation. And then he said it was the Dodgers, and the disappointment was gone.

‘I was happy and excited to be finally be part of this organization and put this uniform on.’

-- Steve Dilbeck