Moneyball Still Might Be a Factor

Taking a page from the Jerry Buss ownership manual, Frank McCourt was vacationing in Cape Cod recently while his Dodgers were sinking like a leaky schooner in the National League West.

Yet any suggestion that McCourt has written off the season and instructed General Manager Paul DePodesta to pull in the sails and ignore the trade winds is strongly disputed.

“No way,” DePodesta said. “It’s the opposite. He wants to improve the club.”

The Dodgers are trying to reel in a power hitter “earlier rather than later,” but haven’t found a willing partner.

DePodesta is believed to have targeted Adam Dunn, the Cincinnati Red outfielder-first baseman. However, Red General Manager Dan O’Brien and interim Manager Jerry Narron want to wait until after the All-Star break before unloading players.

Dunn, 25, is fourth in the league with 20 home runs and is batting .243 with a .384 on-base percentage. He hit 46 homers last season and is a relative bargain. He avoided arbitration by signing a one-year, $4.6-million contract and will be arbitration eligible next year too.

Other available players who fit Dodger needs and McCourt’s budget include outfielders Aubrey Huff of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Carl Everett of the Chicago White Sox.

Huff, who makes $4.9 million, is batting .252 with only five home runs after batting .307 with 86 homers the last three seasons. Everett, who makes $4 million, is batting .269 with 12 home runs.

More expensive possibilities include Hideki Matsui of the New York Yankees ($8 million), Matt Lawton of the Pittsburgh Pirates ($7.8 million), Sean Casey of the Reds ($7.8 million) and Preston Wilson of the Colorado Rockies ($12.5 million).

How much McCourt is willing to spend is an open question.

The Dodgers should have about $12 million to spend if McCourt is to be taken at his word. He promised a $100-million payroll and currently the figure is about $88 million, which includes $10 million the Dodgers are paying Shawn Green and about $7 million owed injured pitcher Darren Dreifort that won’t be recouped through insurance.

The Dodgers are willing to prune prospects from their talent-rich farm system because they would be unable to protect them all in the November Rule 5 draft. Better to get value now in a trade than get nothing for them later, they reason.

DePodesta proved he is willing to part with a top prospect last year when he traded Franklin Gutierrez, the best outfielder in the farm system, to acquire Milton Bradley from the Cleveland Indians.

Now it is Bradley’s lingering injury that is prompting the need for another slugging outfielder. He sat out all of June because of a torn ligament in the ring finger of his right hand and there is no timetable for his return.

Dunn would be a good fit because he could join J.D. Drew and Jayson Werth in the outfield until Bradley returns, and could play first base during Hee-Seop Choi’s dry spells.

There has been talk that the Dodgers would acquire Red third baseman Joe Randa, but that is unlikely because DePodesta chose to sign Jose Valentin instead of Randa during the off-season.

Valentin is due to come off the disabled list in August and Antonio Perez has been an adequate third baseman and the team’s most consistent hitter for average.

DePodesta’s sense of urgency was triggered by the recent eight-game losing streak.

He believes the players are giving maximum effort and he wants to show them that he is doing all he can to improve the roster.

“It’s easy to be proud of our guys,” he said. “They’ve played hard every night. It would be worse for me if I thought that wasn’t the case.”

Staying close until a trade is consummated might get easier. The next seven series are against teams a combined 68 games under .500.

“The players, coaching staff and front office are all in this together,” DePodesta said. “We still think we can win the division. We all do.”

ON DECK

Opponent -- Arizona Diamondbacks, three games.

Site -- Dodger Stadium.

TV -- FSN West 2 tonight and Sunday, Channel 11 on Saturday.

Radio -- 980, 1330.

Records -- Dodgers 37-41, Diamondbacks 39-41.

Tonight, 7:30 -- Brad Penny (3-5, 3.83) vs. Javier Vazquez (7-6, 4.53).

Saturday, 1 p.m. -- Derek Lowe (5-8, 3.66) vs. Claudio Vargas (2-4, 8.44).

Sunday, 7 p.m. -- D.J. Houlton (4-1, 5.44) vs. Brad Halsey (4-6, 4.42).

Tickets -- (866) 363-4377.

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Paul’s players

The Dodgers have struggled to a 37-41 record. Here is how some of the players that General Manager Paul DePodesta has acquired have fared this season:

*--* Player Avg. HR RBIs * Kent 302 15 58 * Bradley 298 10 26 * Drew 280 12 32 * Choi 237 13 31 * Valentin 194 2 12 Pitcher IP W-L ERA * Lowe 111 5-8 3.66 * Penny 82 3-5 3.83 * Erickson 46 1-4 6.60

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