Dodgers Are Starting to See Better Days On his first game day as the president of the Los Angeles Dodgers, May 4 in Chicago, Stan Kasten basked in the scenery at Wrigley Field. He might have taken special pride in the flags flapping atop the center-field scoreboard. His new team was on top of the column on the left, representing the National League West, and his two former teams, the Washington Nationals and the Atlanta Braves, led the N.L. pack in the column on the right. The Braves of the 1990s and the Nationals of today were built largely through shrewd scouting and development, which Kasten hopes to nurture again with the controlling partner Mark Walter. "We didn't invent that - that goes back to Branch Rickey, that's baseball," Kasten said. I always say, though, that in Atlanta in particular, we didn't have a secret formula, but we had a secret ingredient, and that's Ted Turner, an owner who really understood and believed and let us do those things necessary, and I really believe that about Mark. That's exactly the way he wants to do it. Now, having said that, I also understand we're in L.A. and we can and should compete now. He's given us the authority, the resources and the mandate to do both at the same time, and that's a thrilling prospect for everybody involved. The Dodgers" hot start could give the new owners a chance to back up those words right away. The division seems to be theirs for the taking, with San Francisco dealing with the absence of Pablo Sandoval, Freddy Sanchez, Aubrey Huff and Brian Wilson, and the other teams struggling for consistency. "There's a commitment to winning," starter Clayton Kershaw said. Every owner wants to win, obviously, but they're fully committed to doing what it takes to do it, which is a pretty cool thing. Besides growing the farm system and bolstering the major league roster, Kasten's group wants to modernize Dodger Stadium, which turns 50 this season. Where does that rank among the new owners" many priorities? "It's on the list of one million first things," Kasten said.