Proctor is glad to be back
Among baseball’s most active pitchers over the last two seasons, Scott Proctor described the 10 weeks he spent on the disabled list as “agonizing.”
“It’s one of those things you hope you never have to go through again,” said Proctor, who landed on the DL in late June because of tendinitis in his right elbow. “Sitting and watching the games, watching the guys battle, it was tough. You play this game because you want to be on the field, not to be on the sidelines.”
Proctor pitched in his first game since June 21 on Wednesday, when he came out of the bullpen in the sixth inning of the Dodgers’ 6-4 victory over the San Diego Padres, which completed a sweep. He got one out and walked one.
Proctor says his elbow isn’t completely healed.
“It wasn’t about the pain being completely gone,” he said. “It’s about making the pain manageable. If you throw a baseball, you’re going to have pain no matter what.”
But pitching through pain is what prolonged Proctor’s recovery and had the right-hander sporting a 6.82 earned-run average when he was sidelined.
“I don’t regret anything I did other than putting the team in tough situations,” he said.
Short hops
Angel Berroa will remain the Dodgers’ starting shortstop for the time being and not just because Nomar Garciaparra needs rest. Berroa is batting .375 (nine for 24) over his last seven starts. “Right now, he’s got a good thing going,” Manager Joe Torre said. . . . Takashi Saito threw a 32-pitch bullpen session Thursday and didn’t report feeling any discomfort. . . . Brad Penny threw in a bullpen session this week and hasn’t been ruled out to return this month as a reliever. . . . Clayton Kershaw spent three nights with triple-A Las Vegas last week. “I’m only 20, so I can’t do too much,” he said. Did he visit any of the casinos? He said, “No,” but added, “That’s the politically correct answer.”
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ON THE WEB
Join Andrew and Brian Kamenetzky as they blog live from Dodger Stadium during the pivotal series against the Diamondbacks at sportsblogs.latimes.com.
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