Reyes Recalled From Minors

Left-hander Dennis Reyes looked good enough to get an encore.

The Dodgers, an arm short because of two doubleheaders in a five-day period, have recalled Reyes from triple-A Albuquerque to pitch in tonight’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies and, perhaps, in one additional start.

Reyes was 1-2 in three games with the Dodgers last month, but impressed the club with his confidence and maturity.

The team will have to send someone down today to make room for Reyes on the roster.

*

Ramon Martinez won’t soon forget the moment when he learned his best friend and fellow Dodger right-hander Pedro Astacio had been traded to the Colorado Rockies.

It was Monday in the lobby of a Manhattan hotel. Martinez and Astacio, having just arrived on the Dodger charter flight, were planning on going out to dinner when Astacio was called to the room of the team’s executive vice president, Fred Claire.

Astacio came back down, obviously shaken, and told Martinez that he had been traded.

“To where?” Martinez asked.

“To the desert,” Astacio replied.

Denver’s Coors Field may be an oasis for most hitters, but it is a bleak spot for those forced to expose their won-lost records and earned-run averages to its harsh pitching conditions.

Other than Astacio, no one on the Dodgers feels worse about the trade than Martinez. Inseparable on the road, Martinez and Astacio also spend much of their time together in the off-season back home in the Dominican Republic. They visit each other’s homes, situated an hour’s drive apart, go to the beach, or, as Martinez put it “just hang out.”

Astacio was already upset Monday over the news that he had been removed from the Dodgers’ starting rotation. On top of that came the news of the trade.

“I told him that he was going to get a new chance,” Martinez said, “that he was going to be No. 1 or No. 2 for Colorado [in their rotation].”

Martinez, who came off the disabled list Wednesday after a two-month stay, and Astacio cheered each other’s triumphs and commiserated over the losses.

Martinez remembered a series in Philadelphia a few years ago when they pitched back-to-back games against the Phillies. Martinez got blown out in his outing. The next day, the same thing happened to Astacio.

“We both got our butts kicked,” Martinez told Astacio. “Let’s go out and have a drink.”

They’ll still find time to go out, but it won’t be the same.

ON DECK

* Opponent--Philadelphia Phillies, three games.

* Site--Veterans Stadium.

* Tonight--4:30 p.m.

* TV--Channel 5.

* Radio--KABC (790), KWKW (1330).

* Records--Dodgers 69-58, Phillies 45-77.

* Record vs. Phillies--7-1.

TONIGHT’S GAME

DODGERS’ DENNIS REYES (1-2, 4.58 ERA)

vs.

PHILLIES’ CURT SCHILLING (13-10, 2.91 ERA)

* Update--Reyes has struggled at Albuquerque, another city known to wreak havoc with pitchers’ earned-run averages. He is 5-3 at the triple-A level with a 6.19 ERA. In 52 2/3 innings, Reyes has struck out 42, but struggled with his control, walking 32.

* Saturday, 4 p.m.--Dodgers’ Hideo Nomo (11-10, 4.10) vs. Phillies’ Tyler Green (3-1, 4.91).

* Sunday, 10:30 a.m.--Dodgers’ Ismael Valdes (8-10, 2.76) vs. Phillies’ Matt Beech (2-7, 5.06).