Dodgers Can’t Seal the Deal

Welcome to the major leagues, Jose Nunez.

The batters are better, the pressure is greater and mistakes travel further than in Class A, facts the young Dodger left-hander learned the hard way Tuesday night in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ 3-2 victory before 22,927 at Dodger Stadium.

Manager Jim Tracy turned to Nunez to preserve a 2-1 lead in the seventh inning and the Diamondbacks turned giddy, eagerly facing a wide-eyed rookie making his debut against two of the National League’s top left-handed batters.

The outcome was predicable--and painful for the Dodgers.

It took only 10 pitches from Nunez, 22, to put the Diamondbacks ahead, 3-2, on Luis Gonzalez’s two-run home run into the right-field pavilion seats after Mark Grace’s leadoff double.

“He faced us in [spring training] in Las Vegas and got us out 1-2-3,” Gonzalez said. “I knew he was coming back with a breaking ball. He buckled me the first time and he made me look silly.”

Nunez (0-1) retired the next three batters, but failed in the difficult test he might not have been ready to take.

“Nunez was a pitch away from doing a fabulous job,” Tracy said. “I admire his effort. He showed us a lot of things tonight. He threw nothing but strikes. I’m encouraged by what he did.”

Randy Johnson is still at the head of the class.

The Big Unit was not typically sharp in Arizona’s opener, but he was more than good enough against the Dodgers’ shaky lineup.

Johnson (1-0) worked seven innings and struck out 10 in a 132-pitch effort, displaying the form that has earned him consecutive Cy Young Awards and three prizes overall.

Dodger catcher Paul Lo Duca had two hits--including a go-ahead, two-run double in the fourth--but his teammates combined to get only three more against Johnson and two relievers.

Diamondback setup man Byung-Hyun Kim walked two in the eighth but struck out the side, including Jeff Reboulet to end the inning, and closer Matt Mantei pitched the ninth for the save.

Pinch-hitter Chris Donnels singled with two out, but Mantei got Marquis Grissom to pop up to short.

The Dodgers also had five hits in a 1-0 opening-day victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.

Nunez’s rough inning became the focus instead of Eric Gagne’s solid five-inning outing.

Gagne gave up one run, struck out six and left with the lead after surprisingly earning a rotation spot in spring training over Ramon Martinez, who was released.

The Dodgers believe the young right-hander is ready to contribute, and they feel similarly about Nunez.

But are they correct?

Nunez was selected from the New York Mets in the Rule 5 draft, and Tracy said in spring training the team planned to protect him early in the season.

Summoning Nunez to face Grace and Gonzalez seemingly is not the best way to accomplish that goal.

The native of the Dominican Republic pitched in South Carolina last season, and standing on the Dodger Stadium mound in the first week of April to face Grace and Gonzalez is not the same thing.

The Dodgers capitalized on Johnson’s command problems in the fourth, going ahead on Lo Duca’s double.

After Eric Karros struck out for the second of three times against Johnson (Kim also struck him out), the left-hander walked Shawn Green and Reboulet.

Johnson quickly worked an 0-2 count against Lo Duca, who lined the fifth pitch to him into the gap in left center, scoring the tying and go-ahead runs.

Gagne had pitched fairly well after giving up Matt Williams’ run-scoring single in the first, having escaped several jams.

The Diamondbacks had a runner advance to third in the second and again in the fourth and failed to score.

After getting the lead, Gagne retired the first two batters in the fifth and the Diamondbacks stranded two runners to end his work.

Tracy had seen enough and did not want to risk ruining Gagne’s positive work although he had thrown only 84 pitches, including 58 strikes.

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