It was a funny line, but cricket uses a shiny 5 1/2-ounce ball that feels every bit as hard as a horsehide. Marsh said later he wasn't worried that the Dodgers' expensive property might take a ball in the noggin.

"They weren't bowling too quick," Marsh said.

When the brief session was over, Ramirez expressed admiration for Marsh and the skills of cricketers, although he cringed when told that some at-bats can span nine hours.

"That's too long," Ramirez said.

Asked to recall his longest at-bat, Ramirez said, "Maybe 10 pitches."

Ramirez's escapades in the outfield are legendary, but at least he has a large leather glove to protect himself. In cricket, only the wicketkeeper wears gloves in the field.

"It's unbelievable," Ramirez said. "I don't know how they do it. The ball comes like 110 (mph) and they catch it with no glove."

Sometimes they catch it in the ribs. That's where Ramirez's longest drive hit Anil Cheruvu, one of the fielders from the Arizona Cricket Club.

Cheruvu had an alibi used by many a baseball outfielder: he lost it in the sun.

"I got blinded," he said. "He got me right in the ribs. I guess I'll have to keep the red mark for a while."