They Need Ishii to Take Control

The Dodgers have challenged starter Kazuhisa Ishii to do more for a rotation in flux.

Manager Jim Tracy and pitching coach Jim Colborn want Ishii to help fill the hole opened when Kevin Brown was traded to the New York Yankees in December, and more changes could be on the horizon if new General Manager Paul DePodesta decides to move a starter for needed help on offense.

The Dodgers believe the inconsistent left-hander is ready to deliver.

“The novelty has worn off,” Tracy said. “Not from my standpoint but from the standpoint of the way the rest of the league perceives him, and their approach toward him from start to start because they know who he is now.

“They know what they’ve seen from him in these first couple of years and they respond to him in that manner. They wait to see which Kazuhisa Ishii is going to be out there. But if Kazuhisa Ishii throws the ball over the plate with regularity, he’s going to get people out.”

And that’s still the Dodgers’ concern about Ishii, who finished second in the National League with 101 walks last season after leading the league with 106 in 2002.

He usually worked behind the count again in 2003, throwing too many pitches while averaging 5.4 innings a start and going 9-7 with a 3.86 earned-run average and 140 strikeouts.

Ishii was 14-10 with a 4.27 ERA in his rookie season, averaging 5.5 innings and striking out 143.

The Dodgers continue to tinker with Ishii’s mechanics in an effort to help him become more efficient.

Ishii has slowed his motion in bullpen sessions at Dodgertown because Colborn now believes his command problems stem from “getting cocked too quickly and then coming out of it too quickly. He’s holding his power longer now and it should help Ishii lower his pitch count and work deeper into games.”

The Dodgers also need Ishii to pitch well deeper into the season.

He got off to a fast start in 2002, going 11-5 with a 3.58 ERA in his first 17 starts but went 3-5 with a 5.57 ERA in his last 11 starts.

It was a similar story last season.

Ishii was 8-3 with a 2.94 ERA in 18 starts. After the All-Star game, he was 1-4 with a 6.07 ERA in nine starts. He gave up 12 earned runs in seven innings in his last two starts while struggling with a left knee injury the team described as “minor.”

“I want to improve my consistency,” Ishii said through an interpreter. “I’m working hard to get ready for the season.”

Ishii is under contract for $2.6 million this season and $3.2 million in 2005, the final guaranteed season of his six-year deal, and the Dodgers hold contract options for 2006 and ’07. One way or another, this could be a big year for him.

“To me, when the god of baseball judges if he was successful in his career, he’s going to judge him on did he do everything to do his very best,” Colborn said. “He’s been open to suggestions to get better, he’s made adjustments in his motion, he’s gotten to the park earlier and been visible doing workouts on his own.”

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Scott Boras, the agent for closer Eric Gagne, is expected to discuss Gagne’s contract situation with the team when he arrives in Dodgertown next week. Gagne, who can’t become a free agent until after the 2006 season, is hoping for a multiyear contract offer, and team sources said the situation probably hinged on how much Boras would want in a two- or three-year deal.

Second baseman Alex Cora (broken right forearm) continues to make progress and hopes to be ready by opening day. Cora is scheduled to undergo X-rays today. ... Guillermo Mota’s trial for drunken driving has been set for April 26, according to a spokesman for the Glendale district attorney’s office. A pretrial hearing will be held April 12.