PHOENIX -- For former Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, it's undoubtedly strange not to be gearing up for another Spring Training at Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Fla.

After all, the Hall of Famer is entering his 60th season with the Dodgers organization, and the franchise began training in Vero Beach in 1948, with the Dodgers continuing the tradition in 1958 despite moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles.

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But now the Dodgers are entering their first season at their brand-new facility at Camelback Ranch, located just outside of Glendale, Ariz.

Lasorda, however, is excited about the change, and to show Los Angeles fans how he easy it is to get to the new training site, he took a custom Gibson Guitar bus from Dodger Stadium to Camelback Ranch on Thursday.

"It was all done because the McCourts are showing the people how nice it is to come over here to Arizona," Lasorda said in reference to team owners Frank and Jamie McCourt. "To go from L.A. to Vero Beach was tough, but to get to Glendale is easy. It's a great ride or you can fly over in 50 minutes. Today we showed how you can enjoy your ride over."

The new Spring Training site, which is also shared with the White Sox, is exactly 367 miles from Dodger Stadium, which translates to about a five-hour car ride. It's much closer and more affordable than the old site, which was more than 2,500 miles from Los Angeles.

But it was still a difficult move for the Dodgers to leave Dodgertown, especially because of its history.

Lasorda, though, said the move was made for the fans because the Dodgers were the last West Coast team to make the move to Arizona.

But it's still going to require some getting used to for Lasorda and the rest of the franchise. Lasorda, however, likened it to the first time he reported to Spring Training at Vero Beach in the spring of 1949 as a 21-year-old pitching prospect.

"I'm feeling like I did the first time I went to Dodgertown in Vero Beach," Lasorda said. "I didn't know what it was going to be like and I didn't know what would happen to me and I didn't know if I would ever succeed. But here I am after 60 years with this organization."

Lasorda will again be present at Spring Training with the Dodgers this year and will also come back to Los Angeles for the World Baseball Classic finals at Dodger Stadium in March because he is the global ambassador for the Classic.

But even with all the change surrounding the Dodgers this offseason, the ever-optimistic Lasorda has high hopes for next season.

"I'm looking forward for us to get on the field," Lasorda said. "I think we're going to have an outstanding year with a great leader in our manager Joe Torre. And I believe this year we'll be better than the last."