PLAY BALL: When those words open the...

PLAY BALL: When those words open the baseball season today, fans across Ventura County will be rooting for hometown players who made the big leagues. Terry Pendleton, for one, has a loyal following in Oxnard, where he started in Little League at Colonia Park. . . . On occasion Pendleton returns to Channel Islands High School to inspire young ballplayers, said Don Cardinal, his former coach who recently retired. “He comes back and signs their hats and gloves and they really love that.”

ALL ABOARD: The first Metrolink train pulls out of Oxnard at 5:31 this morning, aimed at helping relieve traffic congestion on quake-damaged freeways (B5). . . . In grand tradition, Oxnard leaders plan a big send-off before they hop the train to Moorpark and then take a shuttle bus back. Bill Davis, the county’s Metrolink representative, warns of mistakes made by Camarillo politicians. “When the train stopped, I said, ‘C’mon guys, let’s get off the train.’ They just kept yakking.” And they missed their stop.

CYBER SURFING: Beginning this morning, Ventura County library patrons can take the information superhighway to get books from libraries as far north as Paso Robles. County librarians are joining a computer network that allows patrons to search library shelves in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties and borrow any of their 1.1 million books. . . . Within six months, terminals at the 14 operating branches will be able to search some data bases on the Internet.

BATTERY CHANGE: So you’ve either changed your clocks to daylight-savings time or you’re an hour late for work. Never mind that for now. County fire officials have another chore for you: Change your smoke alarm batteries. . . . They say 75% of homes have a smoke detector, but half of those don’t work because of an old or missing battery. The “Change Your Clock, Change Your Batteries” program is brought to you by the Assn. of Fire Chiefs, the American Burn Assn. and the ever-helpful Eveready Battery Co.

Major Leaguers

Baseball players from Ventura County:

Terry Pendleton (Oxnard): Braves

Jeff Tackett (Oxnard): Orioles

Scott Radinsky (Simi Valley): White Sox

Bobby Ayala (Oxnard): Mariners

Kevin Gross (Fillmore): Dodgers

Bret Saberhagen (Thousand Oaks): Mets