Reservations Fade Over Reserves

Skeptics who wrote letters to the editor weren’t the only ones questioning whether outfielders Jayson Werth and Jason Grabowski could be considered key additions when they arrived in the Dodger clubhouse on the eve of the season.

Grabowski had all of 16 major league at-bats and Werth had batted .208 with 22 strikeouts in 48 at-bats last season with the Toronto Blue Jays.

“Here’s a couple of guys that initially, eyebrows and eyes rolled because you have to get out one of your scouting notebooks to find these guys,” Dodger Manager Jim Tracy recently acknowledged.

April seemed to reaffirm the notion that the newcomers were as out of place as Homer Simpson on the cover of GQ. Grabowski, who was primarily used as a left-handed pinch-hitter, had one hit in his first 18 at-bats. Werth strained an abdominal muscle two days into the season, necessitating two months on the disabled list.

Then came the opportunity that has turned the lightly regarded prospects into increasingly prized commodities: regular playing time.

Filling in for left fielder Dave Roberts, who was sidelined by a strained right hamstring, Grabowski began to display the power that had prompted General Manager Paul DePodesta to pay the Oakland Athletics $30,000 for the 28-year-old toward the end of spring training.

Grabowski hit a two-run homer that lifted the Dodgers to a victory over the Chicago Cubs, hit two homers in a narrow loss to the Philadelphia Phillies and scored the winning run after leading off the ninth inning with a pinch-hit double in a victory over the Montreal Expos.

“I just took it as it came,” said Grabowski, who is batting .288 since his first 18 at-bats and .272 in 21 starts. “I wasn’t expecting much more than pinch-hitting and an occasional start, but getting that extra playing time definitely helped.”

Werth returned in early June with a bang, hitting a homer in his first game back while shrugging off the indignity of having his unusual first name misspelled on the placard above his locker and on the scoreboard at Arizona’s Bank One Ballpark. The 25-year-old hit .450 in June and found a regular spot in the lineup early this month when right fielder Juan Encarnacion went on the disabled list with inflammation in his left shoulder.

More recently, Werth has supplanted Roberts in the lineup against left-handed pitchers and has been given a few starts against right-handers.

“They have both stepped up in a big-time way,” Tracy said of Grabowski and Werth, who comprise the core of what the manager has labeled “the best collective group of role players I’ve had in the four years I’ve managed this team.”

DePodesta said that strengthening the Dodger bench was a priority in spring training. In Grabowski and Werth he saw up-and-comers who possessed power, versatility and youthful exuberance.

Both players were drafted as catchers, Grabowski by the New York Yankees and Werth by the Baltimore Orioles. Both abandoned the position after knee injuries in the minor leagues.

“I’m really not built as a catcher,” said Werth, who, at 6 feet 5 and 210 pounds, is two inches taller and 10 pounds heavier than Grabowski. “Ability-wise, I was fine. But as far as my body goes, I think I’m more suited for the outfield.”

Werth seemed suited for big things considering that his grandfather, uncle and stepfather played in the major leagues, and he had a backyard batting cage by age 8.

Werth credited his stepfather, Dennis Werth, who played in parts of four seasons with the Yankees and Kansas City Royals, with much of his development.

Since being acquired by the Dodgers in a trade that sent pitcher Jason Frasor to Toronto, Werth has refined his stroke with the assistance of hitting coach Tim Wallach, and the results are as undeniable as the Dodgers’ standing atop the National League West. Werth is batting .304 with six homers and 17 RBIs in 22 starts.

“To me, he’s got a chance to be a superstar,” Wallach said of Werth, who is batting .281 overall. “He’s got that kind of talent.”

Another upside to Grabowski and Werth is that if they do not fit into the Dodgers’ long-term plans, they will have trade value based on their breakthrough performances this season, though Tracy stressed that “they have value to this team.”

“Hopefully,” Grabowski said, “people notice what I can do, whether it’s here or other teams, and hopefully I’ll get a chance.”

Said DePodesta: “Both guys have done all that we could have imagined, maybe even a little more, and have a chance to be around here for a while. They are low in service time, so this just wasn’t something where they were going to be here in 2004. These guys both have a chance to be part of the future of this club.”