Column: A calmer, more mature Andre Ethier is taking it all in as Dodgers head to postseason

Andre Ethier has returned from his deathbed as a baseball player so many times, it can’t really be a surprise that he’s played his way on to another postseason roster.

For the second consecutive year, Ethier sat out the first five months of the regular season because of an injury, only to return in September to show the brain trust in the Dodgers front office there was still more baseball in him than their computers anticipated.

Overcoming adversity wasn’t always an Ethier trademark. Earlier in his career, he was known for his emotional volatility, which he would display by slamming helmets and attacking bat racks. Former manager Don Mattingly once said in frustration that Ethier threw away 100 at-bats every season because of his inability to control his temper.

Now, at 35, Ethier is a symbol of stability in times of health. Whatever the situation, however intense the pressure, the Dodgers can count on Ethier to provide them with competitive at-bats and solid outfield defense, which is why the former All-Star is expected to be one of the 25 players on their roster for their National League division series.

The calm is a byproduct of “knowing your place, knowing where you’re at in your career,� Ethier said. Or, as he stated more succinctly later in the conversation, “I have nothing to lose, right?�

Ethier punctuated the rhetorical question with a laugh.

He wasn’t this light-spirited when he was younger, either. He was always articulate with a sense of humor, but had an edge that bordered on anger.

Time and experience mellowed him.

The Dodgers have served as a final stop for several former stars in recent years and many of them were nothing like how they were described earlier in their careers. The 37-year-old version of Garret Anderson who played a half-season for them was about as approachable a player as they have ever had. A 34-year-old Josh Beckett was warm and engaging.

What makes Ethier’s situation different, of course, is that his entire career to this point has played out in the same place. Los Angeles watched him reach the major leagues and transform from a promising rookie to an All-Star to a dependable part-time player, from an insecure newcomer to a sensitive superstar to a level-headed veteran.

An entire generation of Dodgers fans grew up with him over the last 11 seasons, which is why he remains one of the most popular players on the team. No player received louder ovations at Dodger Stadium this month. The cheers should be louder in the coming weeks.

Ethier was reluctant to acknowledge it, but these could be his final games with the Dodgers. He is in the last guaranteed season of a five-year, $85-million contract and the team is expected to decline his $17.5 million for next season.

Ethier broke into the major leagues as part of what was supposed to be a golden generation of Dodgers prospects, a group that included Russell Martin, Matt Kemp, James Loney, Chad Billingsley and Jonathan Broxton. Ethier outlasted every one of them.

The longest-tenured player on the Dodgers, Ethier is old enough to have played under Grady Little and alongside Manny Ramirez.

On a recent trip to Philadelphia, Ethier was asked by some of his teammates about the Dodgers’ NL Champion Series against the Phillies in 2008 and 2009. “It seems so far ago,� Ethier said. “We’re seeing that stadium there in Philadelphia, it’s not even half full. In 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, I mean, every time we went there, whether it was the playoffs or the regular season, that stadium was packed. It was a crazy environment.�

He is open to sharing his experiences. Once considered a selfish player — perhaps unfairly — Ethier has become an older-brother-type figure to many of the younger players on the team, including Cody Bellinger, Austin Barnes and Joc Pederson.

“I’m not trying to be a mentor, I’m trying to be friends with them, I’m trying to be cool,� Ethier joked.

There was an element of truth to that, however.

“I don’t want to talk to them like I’m always trying to teach or show them something,� Ethier said. “I want to be a guy who can be one of their buddies in the locker room, someone who has been there and seen a lot of stuff, but can also be relatable. It’s great to live through the things they’re going through for the first time.�

Ethier has started only seven games this season, but said he is having as much fun as he’s ever had playing baseball. He’s looking forward to experiencing the postseason again, something he wasn’t sure would be possible when he was rehabilitating a back injury earlier this year.

“I’m calmer now, but you still get butterflies, you still get that feeling, that excitement, that energy,� Ethier said.

As for his future, he said he will deal with it when he has to. He thinks he can play for a few more seasons, and he should have some options, whether it’s with the Dodgers on a less lucrative deal or with another team. But the decision isn’t for him to make alone, as he and his wife have three children, with a fourth coming in December.

“It’s not just me and my wife out here in L.A. 12 years ago by ourselves, flying by the seat of our pants, learning this big league life,� he said.

For now, Ethier is making sure to take in every inning he plays in the outfield, every pitch he takes in the batter’s box. Based on the roar of the crowds, it sounds as if the fans are, too.

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