BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : A Short, Strange Trip for Rodriguez

The Dodgers have had some fascinating player discoveries, but there are few stories more compelling than that of reliever Felix Rodriguez, who made his major league debut Saturday night, pitching one-third of an inning against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Rodriguez, 22, was raised on a sugar cane plantation in the remote town of Montecristi, Dominican Republic, without electricity or running water. Now he’s in the big leagues, called up Friday.

Rodriguez was a catcher only two years ago, never having thrown a pitch. Today, scouts say that he has the finest arm in the organization.

“You can go up and down through the baseball encyclopedia,” said Fred Claire, executive vice president, “and I don’t know if you’ll find anyone at the major league level who has pitched only two years of his life.”

It was two years ago in spring training when third base coach Joe Amalfitano began marveling at Rodriguez’s arm. He had just seen him throw the ball so hard that it knocked the glove off second baseman Jody Reed’s hand.

Amalfitano turned to Manager Tom Lasorda and said: “What’s the story with that guy? If he ever has any trouble hitting, we should think about making him a pitcher.”

Lasorda listened, and seven innings later in that March 20, 1993, game against the Toronto Blue Jays, summoned Rodriguez into the game. Rodriguez, who never had even been on a pitcher’s mound, pitched a shutout inning.

Rodriguez’s stay might be short considering that his triple-A experience consists of three games, but in time, Claire says, “You’re going to be seeing a tremendous relief pitcher.”