At 43, Reliever Orosco Says Time on His Side

The ride would not have lasted this long had Jesse Orosco acted his age.

The left-hander is still pitching after all these years, defying time and conventional baseball wisdom.

Orosco returned to the Dodgers 12 years after his first stint with the team, hoping to continue a career that seemingly should have ended long ago.

Defying odds is what the 21-year veteran does best, and now he plans to surprise the Dodgers.

“A lot of people come up to me and say, ‘What, are you a freak of nature?’ ” Orosco said Saturday after workouts at Dodgertown.

“It’s a compliment. I guess I’ve kind of surprised myself too, because I never imagined I would be playing this long.”

Orosco, who will turn 44 on April 21, is the major leagues’ all-time leader in appearances with 1,096.

The Dodgers signed Orosco to a one-year, $700,000 contract that guarantees him $115,000 if he does not make the team. He was paid $1.1 million last season.

“It’s a great honor to be in this situation because I had to pitch 20 seasons to get [the record],” Orosco said. “I’m aware that it’s not a record like Cal Ripken’s [consecutive games played] record, but it’s still a record, and just pitching a long time says a lot in itself.”

While compiling a record of 84-75 with 141 saves and a 3.03 earned-run average, Orosco also has played with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals.

Orosco, competing for a role in the bullpen, sat out most of last season after undergoing surgery on his pitching elbow, but he said his arm still has many pitches left.

“I know I can still pitch,” Orosco said. “I still have confidence in myself, and age is not a factor to me.

“I don’t think it’s a factor for the Dodgers, or they wouldn’t have signed me at age 43. I know I’m competing for a job and that’s fine. I know it all depends on me.”

The Dodgers signed Orosco after he auditioned for General Manager Kevin Malone and Manager Jim Tracy at Dodger Stadium.

Tracy likes what he sees.

“The guy knows how to get left-handed hitters out,” Tracy said. “The only question is can he do it on a consistent basis.”

Reliever Mike Fetters, who also played alongside Orosco in Baltimore and Milwaukee, believes his friend can still contribute.

“When I first played with him in Milwaukee, and I was a lot younger, he could still outrun me,” Fetters said. “That surgery he had last year was the first time he had ever been on the [disabled list] in 22 years. That amazes me.”

Orosco might continue to amaze people until he’s 50.

In the late ‘80s, Orosco’s agent, Alan Meersand, told Orosco he could pitch until he was 50.

“When Alan first said that I basically took it like a joke,” Orosco said. “But now I kind of laugh about it because I’m getting closer.”

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Terry Adams arrived at Dodgertown after defeating the club in arbitration and being awarded a one-year, $2.6-million contract.

Not surprisingly, the setup man said the process was unsettling.

“I wouldn’t want to go through it twice,” said Adams, angered because of how the Dodgers criticized his performance in the hearing. “It’s not a pleasant experience and it affects you.”

Adams also said he was disappointed that the Dodgers, after initiating talks about a three-year contract to avoid arbitration, would not make “the right deal.”

“They wanted to do a multiyear deal but we couldn’t agree . . . and it’s going to be a lot tougher now after what they put me through,” said Adams, 6-9 with a 3.52 ERA and two saves last season. “Right now, I’m just looking forward to being a free agent.”

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Third baseman Adrian Beltre, recovering from an emergency appendectomy and infection that caused him to lose 24 pounds, participated in drills.

“He’s obviously a little further along than what we anticipated, but we’re still anxious to get some solid food in him,” said Tracy of Beltre, on a liquid diet. “But we’re not to that point so we’re not going to force it.”

Tracy believes Beltre will be ready for opening day unless he has a setback.

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Right-handed reliever Al Reyes had surgery to repair his separated non-pitching shoulder.