Daal Corners Astros in Win

The Houston Astros prepared for a feast Saturday night, and Dodger left-hander Omar Daal left them scrounging for crumbs.

Daal tantalized the Astros for 6 2/3 innings, mixing his not-so-fast, 86-mph fastballs with a variety of pitches that barely made catcher Paul Lo Duca’s mitt pop, offerings that would seem palatable to a decent high school player.

But Daal rarely left anything over the plate, blanking Houston on two hits to lead the Dodgers to a 4-0 victory before 29,652 in Minute Maid Park.

Daal’s first victory over the Astros--he began the game with an 0-6 record and 7.43 earned-run average against them in his career--moved the Dodgers within six games of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League West and kept them a game ahead of the surging San Francisco Giants in the NL wild-card race.

Eric Karros capped a three-run first inning with a two-run double, and relievers Paul Shuey, Jesse Orosco and Paul Quantrill completed the Dodgers’ NL-leading 14th shutout of the season, while Houston suffered only its fifth shutout.

Daal, who was so frustrated about starting the season in the bullpen he made numerous requests to be traded, improved to 11-6 and is 4-0 with a 1.87 ERA in his last eight starts.

“It can be a frustrating 0-fer,” said Astro first baseman Jeff Bagwell, whose seventh-inning liner with runners on first and third was snagged by Daal, who started a double play. “You don’t see guys who throw that way anymore, finesse pitchers. Most starters throw 92-95 mph.

“You just have to be selective and aggressive at the same time, find a pitch you’re looking for and go to right field. Of course, it doesn’t always work out that way. That’s the game plan for Tom Glavine, and what does he have, 250 wins?”

The word “overpowering” would not be found in any description of Daal, but when you can locate five pitches--fastball, cut fastball, changeup, curve and slider--on the corners, when you have excellent command and rhythm and know how to set up hitters, who needs the heat?

“You come to the park against a guy like Omar thinking you’re going to get some good swings, but the guy never throws the ball over the middle of the plate,” Dodger Manager Jim Tracy said. “He just paints you....

“If you’re going to make a comparison to some of the better left-handers who were not overpowering but were intelligent and used very little of the plate, you’d have to go back to guys like Randy Jones and John Tudor. Both of those guys were impact pitchers.”

Daal was an impact reliever, going 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA out of the bullpen in April and May, but he has been one of baseball’s best starters since the All-Star break, allowing two earned runs or fewer in each of his last eight starts.

Daal, who makes $5 million this season, accused the Dodgers of “taking money out of my pocket” earlier this season, because he felt his demotion to the bullpen would lessen his value on the free-agent market this winter.

The chances of Daal, 30, returning to Los Angeles next season seemed remote at the time, but his recent run may force the Dodgers--and Daal--to reconsider.

“I really like this organization,” said Daal, who allowed only one infield single in the first six innings Saturday. “I wasn’t happy going to the bullpen, because I knew I could be a starter, and I proved what I could do.

“I was mad early in the season, but every time I took the ball, I did the job, because I’m a professional.”

Would Daal want to return in 2003?

“Let’s wait and see what happens,” he said. “If they offer a contract, my door is open. Right now, my focus is on helping this team get to the playoffs.”

The Giants, meanwhile, beat the Diamondbacks on Saturday for their seventh straight win, and the Astros are six games behind the Dodgers in the wild-card race.

“It’s still early, but with the way San Francisco has been playing, we just need to keep winning,” Dodger right fielder Shawn Green said. “It’s obvious [the Giants] are a dangerous team when [Barry] Bonds and [Jeff] Kent are hot. We’ve got to find ways to win these games. The better we do now, the easier it will be the last few weeks.”