Nomo’s Production Is Down

The Dodgers acknowledged someone would have to absorb the 211 innings lost when Kevin Brown was traded to the New York Yankees in December for Jeff Weaver.

However, the Dodgers did not expect Hideo Nomo’s sharp decline in productivity after off-season shoulder surgery.

After working 220 1/3 and 218 1/3 innings the previous two seasons, Nomo has pitched only 46 2/3 innings while trying to regain velocity and suffering a damaged fingernail.

Nomo was hit hard again Tuesday and lasted only five innings in Toronto’s 7-1 victory at SkyDome. It was Nomo’s first start since May 19. The opening-day starter has failed to pitch into the seventh in 10 starts, putting a burden on the bullpen.

Likewise, Kazuhisa Ishii has continued to make things difficult for Manager Jim Tracy and pitching coach Jim Colborn.

Ishii leads the staff in victories at 7-3 with a solid 3.64 earned-run average, but the left-hander’s inability to throw strikes consistently has limited him to 64 1/3 innings in 11 starts. Moreover, Tracy has to be careful in handling the bullpen to have enough support behind Ishii.

The Dodgers hope to qualify for the National League playoffs for the first time since 1996, but do they have enough innings -- and quality innings -- in their rotation?

“Right now, maybe not,” catcher Paul Lo Duca said. “Obviously, we need to get more than five innings from the starters. Our bullpen is great, but you need to save them. You’re going to need to get more from the starters.”

Weaver has helped to this point with 76 1/3 innings, trailing only team-leader Odalis Perez, who has worked 78 2/3 innings. Jose Lima and Wilson Alvarez have also contributed while sharing the fifth spot.

The Dodgers have carried 12 pitchers at times this season and might again soon. Tracy said he believed the Dodgers don’t have to pitch as well as they did last season because of their improvement on offense.

“This rotation is perfectly capable of stepping up and doing what’s necessary to pitch us to where we need to be,” Tracy said. “No question about it.”

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Lo Duca joined Tracy and Colborn in expressing optimism about Nomo, who is 3-6 with a team-high 7.33 ERA.

Lo Duca said his batterymate pitched better against Toronto than the statistics indicated. In fact, Lo Duca said, Nomo did some things better against the Blue Jays than in nine previous starts.

“His arm strength was a lot better,” Lo Duca said. “That’s where the concerns have been. His fastball was 87, 88, 89 [mph], so that was good.” Nomo’s command wasn’t as good, Lo Duca said.

“He did struggle with location,” the catcher said. “He gave up a lot of two-strike hits where he didn’t get [the ball] in the right spot.

“His split-finger at times was good, here and there, but he couldn’t locate it. He hadn’t been on the mound for a little while, so the feel was going to be a little different. But the arm strength was there.”

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Ishii has a knack for wiggling out of jams that he creates while issuing walks, and Tracy has accepted the situation.

“He’s had an uncanny nature of doing it,” Tracy said. “I also know that if Kazuhisa gets to the point of the consistency with his command, with his stuff, he just doesn’t get hit around. He’s won here and he’s won in Japan.”