Dodgers Acquire Ward in Trade With Astros

The Dodgers added some outfield depth and power to their bench Saturday, acquiring outfielder Daryle Ward from the Houston Astros for minor league pitcher Ruddy Lugo.

Ward, the 27-year-old son of former Angel Gary Ward, will provide Manager Jim Tracy with a left-handed bat to spell the right-handed Brian Jordan in left field and some pop on a bench that lacked a proven power hitter. He can also play right field and first base.

“I’m pumped. I have a headache from being so excited,” Ward said.

The Astros’ starting left fielder in 2002, when he hit .276 with 12 home runs in 453 at-bats, Ward was expendable because of Houston’s signing of free-agent second baseman Jeff Kent to a two-year, $18.2-million deal. That pushed Craig Biggio from second to center field and Lance Berkman from center field to left.

“There was a lot of talk about adding a right-handed hitter, but if you’re backing up Brian Jordan, it’s nice to have a left-handed hitter,” Dodger General Manager Dan Evans said.

“I like his power. He’s experienced, but he’s still young. He’s a guy who will help us in 2003 but who we have for another three years.”

Ward, who recently signed a $1.35-million contract for 2003, hit .258 with 20 home runs and 47 runs batted in as a reserve outfielder (264 at-bats) in 2000. He hit .263 with nine homers and 39 RBIs in 213 at-bats in 2001.

The 6-foot-2, 240-pound Ward, who has limited defensive range, got a chance to start in 2002, and to some his power production was disappointing. But he did have a career-high 31 doubles and 72 RBIs and hit .313 with runners in scoring position.

“I started off slow on the power end,” he said. “You want to hit 25 home runs, 10 to 12 in each half. I had 10 in the second half. I think I was a little too excited to be playing [every day]. Maybe I was trying to do too much.

“This year I want to be more mature about it because you have to be consistent to play in the big leagues.”

The Dodgers pursued free-agent outfielder Jose Cruz Jr., but his price tag was too high, and they showed some interest in veteran outfielder Reggie Sanders, but Evans opted for the left-handed power of Ward, who hit a home run that was estimated at 479 feet at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park on July 6.

Lugo, the brother of Astro shortstop Julio Lugo, was a combined 10-3 with a 2.89 earned-run average at Class-A Vero Beach and double-A Jacksonville last season.

The 22-year-old right-hander was traded along with outfielder Marquis Grissom from Milwaukee to Los Angeles for Devon White before the 2001 season.

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Production Numbers

A look at Daryle Ward’s five-year major league career, all with the Houston Astros (regular-season statistics):

*--* Year G AB HR RBIs AVG 1998 4 3 0 0 333 1999 64 150 8 30 273 2000 119 264 20 47 258 2001 95 213 9 39 263 2002 136 453 12 72 276 Total 418 1,083 49 188 269

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