Dodgers Dugout: Pitching help is just a phone call away

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell,  and I have managed the Dodgers to a 20-8 record in my Strat-o-matic Baseball Daily league. Of course, I’ve been smart enough not to pitch Chris Hatcher.

Help is a phone call away

So, I could spend another newsletter talking about the Dodgers’ pitching problems. I could go on about Scott Kazmir and Alex Wood and mention how Clayton Kershaw and Kenta Maeda are a combined 6-2 with a 1.73 ERA while Kazmir, Wood and Ross Stripling are a combined 3-7 with a 5.11 ERA. Or I could mention how Pedro Baez continues to fall apart in key situations, just like he did last season. But I am not going to mention any of that.

Instead, I am going to look at a couple of potential rotation solutions. In Oklahoma City, the Dodgers have two top  prospects in Julio Urias and Jose De Leon.

Urias pitched six perfect innings Monday night before being removed after throwing 77 pitches. For the season, all he has done is go 3-1 with a 1.88 ERA with 29 strikeouts in 24 innings. His WHIP is 0.708 and his strikeout-to-walk ratio is almost 10-1.

However, Urias has never thrown more than 88 innings in any season in his pro career, so it is unlikely the Dodgers will rush him up this month. It’s also unlikely that they will want him to pitch more than 130 innings or so this season in order to protect his arm (Urias is only 19). They certainly don’t want his major-league service time to start until absolutely necessary so they can keep him under control, contract-wise, for as long as possible. But could Urias be brought up now and pitch better than Wood or Stripling? Probably. So could the next guy.

Jose De Leon’s season started a month late because the Dodgers also want to protect his arm. De Leon, 23, made his first start this week and pitched five scoreless innings, striking out nine and walking one while giving up two hits. He has never thrown more than 114 innings in a minor-league season, so they will be cautious with him.

Of course, there’s also the guys on the disabled list: Hyun-jin Ryu, Brandon McCarthy and Brett Anderson. Of those three, I’m most interested in Ryu, who was a solid No. 3 starter before going down with a torn labrum. He hopefully will be back around the All-Star break. Anderson and McCarthy will return after the All-Star break, giving the Dodgers a multitude of starters: Kershaw, Maeda, Kazmir, Wood, Stripling, Ryu, McCarthy, Anderson, Urias and De Leon.

Which five of those guys would you pick? Kershaw and Maeda, obviously, but after that? Well, if he continues to pitch like he is now, I would give Urias a break during the season, conserving his innings so he could be brought up in August for the playoff push. If he pitches well, I’d consider going over 130 innings to keep him on the roster for the playoffs. Unless he dramatically starts pitching better, I’d put Wood in the bullpen as a situational left-hander. I’d also bring up De Leon in September. If you asked me right now what I would hope the Dodgers rotation is in September, I’d say Kershaw, Maeda, Ryu, Urias and De Leon. However, it is extremely unlikely that will happen.

It is more likely the rotation will be: Kershaw, Maeda, Ryu, Kazmir and McCarthy or Anderson.   

Of course, the All-Star break is still two months away, so the rotation will really be determined by who is pitching well after that.

By the way, Kazmir keeps complaining about a sore left thumb and wrist. Add to that the fact that he isn’t pitching so great and it leaves me wondering why the Dodgers don’t just put him on the disabled list and give Zach Lee another shot.

What Vin Scully means to me

I asked you to tell me your best Vin Scully memories, and I got a lot of responses. I will publish selected ones in each newsletter. And keep emailing them to me.

Rick Robb: I was 10 years old and lived in San Pedro when the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles following the 1957 season.  I cannot tell you how many transistor radio batteries I used when listening to Mr. Scully.

The Dodgers were the first professional team I followed and attribute that to Mr. Scully.  He has had a knack for making me feel like at I am at the game wherever I have lived.  He calls an unbiased game and gives you an accurate picture of what is happening on the field.  Sometimes, his analysis is so spot on that I think he is a little harsh on the Dodgers .  I love his background stories.

I live in Northern Calif. (SF Giants country) and am always surprised when someone here comes up to me when I am wearing a Dodger cap and says that they are a Dodger fan.  I think that Mr. Scully is responsible in part.

Ask Ross Porter

Former Dodgers announcer Ross Porter will be answering select reader questions for the rest of the season. Email me a question for Ross, and I will pass it on. His latest response:

Arturo Montoya: When the November 1993 trade of Dodgers pitcher Pedro Martinez for Expos second baseman Delino DeShields was made, the Dodgers brass' initial defense was that the Dodgers "got an everyday player for a once-in-five-days pitcher." Ross, what did those within the Dodger inner family really think at the time of the trade?

Ross: That trade would never have been made, Arturo, had it not been for Jody Reed. The Dodgers were confident that Reed, a 31-year-old second baseman, would return to the club after they offered him a three-year, $7.8-million contract after he hit .276 in 132 games. But Reed rejected the deal, became a free agent, and wound up with just one alternative. He had to settle for a one-year, $350,000-plus-incentives pact with the Brewers, one of the biggest mistakes in free agency history.

Dodgers General Manager Fred Claire had to find a second baseman, and the 24-year-old DeShields was available. In four full seasons with Montreal, he had averaged .277 and 47 stolen bases a year and his salary was $1.54 million. Martinez, 22, had pitched in 65 games for the Dodgers that year, 63 as a reliever, won 10, lost 5, and had an earned-run average of 2.61. Pedro was making $119,000 at the time. Because of his size (5-11,170), previous shoulder problems and questionable stamina, Manager Tommy Lasorda and other Dodger officials, including the medical staff, didn't see Martinez as a successful starting pitcher.

Baseball executives called it a trade good for both teams. Expos fans were more upset than Dodger boosters. DeShields got a one-year, $2.7-million contract and Martinez $200,000 for one season.

Delino played three years in Los Angeles (.250, .256, .224 with 114 steals). Pedro won three Cy Young Awards, posted a 219-100 career record with a 2.95 era, and was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

The TV situation

If you would like to complain about the Dodgers’ TV situation, here’s who to contact:

For the Dodgers, click here or call (866) DODGERS ([866] 363-4377). (I hope you like form letters).

For Time Warner, click here.

For your local cable or satellite provider, consult your bill for the customer service number and for the website.

And finally

The Dodgers suspended Erisbel Arruebarrena for the rest of the season. Read all about it here.

Have a comment or something you'd like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me and follow me on Twitter: @latimeshouston