COVER STORY
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Maury Wills will miss people like Winkle. “People are so
nice, from the fans to the groundspeople to the maintenance
guys and the servers at the Dodgertown restaurant,” Wills
said. “They’ve become like part of the family to me.”
Wills is 74 now, but as he worked with players in a netted
area that bore the sign “Maury’s Pit,” he looked as fit and
agile as he did when stealing second in a cloud of dust.
Wills’ first spring-training at Dodgertown was his rookie
year in 1951. “My salary was $135 a month, and meal
money was $1.25 a day,” he said. “We slept eight players to
a room in the old Naval barracks, and there was no heat and
no air conditioning.”
Wills paused and smiled. “And you know what? It was
the greatest experience of my life, and I would do it again.”
CAMPUS FEELING
The barracks have long since been replaced by garden
apartments, where rookies and spring-training instructors
like Wills stay. But the high-paid Dodger regulars rent beach
homes far from Dodgertown. “Still, there’s a college-campus
feeling about Dodgertown, and it’s a wonderful place to
be,” Wills said. “I’m a traditionalist, and I don’t like change.
Top, Duane Beuhler of Council Bluffs, IA, gets a signature from Nomar
Garciaparra before a game. Above, Dodger legend Maury Wills talks
with Juan Pierre after working with players on their bunting techniques.