by Ken Rosenthal

MLB on FOX

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Blake, 35, hails from Indianola, Iowa. Kemp, 24, is from Midwest City, Oklahoma.

Different origins, different generations, different races.

Mutual respect.

Blake on Kemp: "I like the way he plays. I think he plays the game the right way. He's a great teammate. He genuinely cares how others do, genuinely cares whether we win or not."

Kemp on Blake: "He's just a cool guy. I enjoy being around him. Good days, bad days, he's always the same. He has fun all the time. I've never seen his mood change — ever. You don't find many people like that."

Yes, it's easy for the Dodgers to be one big happy family when they own the best record in the majors. They host the Phillies, the team with the next-best record, Saturday on MLB on FOX (4:10 p.m. ET).

Statistical analysts, who emphasize performance, often say that chemistry is overrated. But a losing clubhouse can be toxic, and the Dodgers at the end of the 2007 season were a dysfunctional mess.

Kemp and the Dodgers' other youngsters were too brash for several of the team's veterans, most notably second baseman Jeff Kent. The veterans were too judgmental and sour in the estimation of the kids.

"I don't know why they don't get it," Kent said of the youngsters in late September of '07.

What didn't they get?

"A lot of things," Kent said. "Professionalism. How to manufacture a run. How to keep your emotions in it. There's just a lot of things that go on with playing 162 games."

Less than 21 months later, the atmosphere around the Dodgers could not be more different.

Kent, a gruff, old-school warhorse, has been replaced by second baseman Orlando Hudson, a joyful, old-school firefly.

And the differences only start there.

Credit Joe Torre, who replaced Grady Little as manager after the '07 season and applied his trademark calming influence.

Credit left fielder Manny Ramirez, who showed the youngsters not only how to have fun, but also the work ethic necessary to attain greatness.

Credit general manager Ned Colletti, who acquired both Ramirez and Blake last summer, then constructed a bench full of high-character veterans during the offseason.

Catcher Brad Ausmus has appeared in 1,925 major-league games, infielder Mark Loretta 1,657, outfielder Juan Pierre 1,335 and infielder Juan Castro 1,004.

The Dodgers are getting along and getting wins. (Doug Pensinger / Getty Images)

All except Castro previously were regulars. All except Pierre, who has played remarkably in place of the suspended Ramirez, were offseason additions.

"I've watched these guys play a long time, always wishing they would be part of a club I was with — because of how they play, how they go about it," Colletti says.

The Dodgers have yet to lose more than two straight games, so it's only natural that their season is progressing so smoothly. The kids were bound to mature; they're making fewer mistakes on the field, talking less boldly less off it. But the new players certainly help.

Hudson's energy is well-chronicled, and he is one of those unique people who relates well to everyone. But Torre also speaks fondly of the "grownups" on his bench. Ausmus, Loretta and Castro not only accept their roles, but excel at them.

The Dodgers love Ausmus' droll sense of humor — on those rare days when he is in the lineup, he will ask Torre 20 minutes before game time, "am I still in there?"

Russell Martin, the team's starting catcher, relishes Ausmus' assistance in developing game plans, calling him "my own personal dictionary of baseball."

Colletti says he rarely calls players to explain a free-agent signing, but he made an exception after adding Ausmus, contacting Martin to make his intentions clear.

"He's not coming to take your job," Coletti recalls telling Martin. "He's coming to help you get better."

"I love it," Martin said.

Martin, 26, talks openly about how he has toned down his lifestyle, become more serious about his craft.

Right-handers Chad Billingsley and Jonathan Broxton, both of whom are about to turn 25, have emerged as the team's respective ace and closer.

Somewhere, maybe even Kent is cracking a smile.

The Dodgers are a team.