Izzy In, or Out?

The script for “Izzy in the Outfield” has created a buzz, but Cesar Izturis would just as soon not play the lead.

Does Harrison Ford do comedy? Does Adam Sandler take action roles?

The Gold Glove on his mantle is the equivalent of an Oscar, Izturis figures, and if it’s a fair indication of his ability as a shortstop, then the Dodger veteran would prefer not to morph into a character actor reduced to bit parts, filling in for center fielder Kenny Lofton one day, left fielder Jose Cruz Jr. the next, maybe giving middle infielders Jeff Kent and Rafael Furcal an occasional breather.

Izturis was an All-Star shortstop last season. He has turned his back on the outfield before every pitch his entire career. It wouldn’t be hard to do it again.

“I can say no, and maybe that would be it,” he said.

If only he could be so cold and calculating. It’s not his nature. Izturis genuinely wants to help the Dodgers win. He wants to play as soon as his surgically repaired elbow allows him, probably in late May. And he knows that Furcal --signed for three years and $39 million -- is entrenched at shortstop.

“It’s never crossed my mind that I would take his job,” Izturis said. “He’s there now.”

So when General Manager Ned Colletti and Manager Grady Little tell him the best way he can contribute is by plugging as many holes as possible, including that vast foreign area behind the infield, his first instinct is to be as agreeable as a puppy.

Then a wave of resentment washes over him. He quickly shakes it off -- he has never considered himself a prima donna -- and goes to work, increasing his throwing distance, taking ground balls by the bucketful.

One thing he hasn’t done is take fly balls.

“When the time comes, I’ll make a decision and let them know,” he said.

He listens to select voices. One is that of Omar Vizquel, the dean of Venezuelan shortstops and Izturis’ idol as a youngster growing up in the tiny town of Barquisimeto.

Izturis bounced the outfield plan off him.

“I think that’s a bad idea,” Vizquel said. “I would say I’d rather be traded.”

Therein lies the only leverage Izturis possesses. The Dodgers want to keep his trade value high, and an internal squabble wouldn’t help. So Colletti and Little have backed off for now, biding time until he is sound enough to play.

“Nobody is going to put anybody in a position he isn’t ready for,” Little said. “We haven’t played a game yet where we couldn’t have used him somewhere on the field. We’re being patient, but there may come a time when he’s going to have to be patient too.”

Could that mean keeping Izturis on the disabled list longer than necessary unless he is willing to fill the utility role? Nobody wants a stare-down.

The outfield idea was hatched innocently enough. After months of trying to acquire a reserve who can play outfield and infield, it dawned on Colletti that he might have such a player in the clubhouse.

Lofton, 38, will need as many as 50 games off. The switch-hitting Izturis, who has a .261 batting average in five seasons, easily could slip into Lofton’s No. 2 spot.

It looked good on paper. Now, though, Colletti and Little vacillate between wanting to force the issue and thinking perhaps it’d be better to forget the whole thing.

One minute they make a cryptic reference to Alfonso Soriano and how the Washington Nationals all but shamed him into moving from second base to left field, a way of reminding themselves that they hold the ultimate power over a player.

The next minute they realize they don’t want to be viewed as unreasonable with a fan favorite who finds himself in this predicament primarily because he suffered a devastating injury last August that required Tommy John surgery.

“I have great respect for him and who he is and what he means to the franchise,” Colletti said. “He has to be comfortable with it, and be open-minded. It’s more of a thought than an absolute.

“We aren’t saying that as long as you are with the Dodgers, this is your role. We’re saying that at this point in time, with this team, if your arm is healthy, it might make sense.”

The Dodgers also want Izturis, 26, to remain a viable trade piece that could be swapped for a quality setup reliever or a power-hitting left fielder. Izturis is on board with that option too.

However, he believes his trade value is highest as a Gold Glove shortstop, not as a budding Tony Phillips, Chone Figgins or anyone else known for changing positions to fill a team’s immediate needs.

Izturis is paid like a full-time player. He is in the second year of a three-year contract that includes a club option for 2008. He is making $3.1 million this season and will make $4.15 million next year. The option is for $5.85 million, with a $300,000 buyout.

A solution mentioned by everyone involved is a worst-case scenario for the Dodgers -- an injury to another player that would give Izturis a full-time job. Little said that had Izturis been healthy, he would have plugged him in at second base and moved Kent to first when Nomar Garciaparra went on the disabled list.

Second base is palatable to Izturis, especially when he begins testing his surgically repaired arm under game conditions. And if he remains with the Dodgers, that is the most logical place for him to play next season. Kent could move to first and Garciaparra, who is on a one-year contract, could find employment elsewhere.

Then “Izzy in the Outfield” would go the way of so many scripts that create a brief stir only to be forgotten when everyone moves on to the next big idea.

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Times staff writer Tim Brown contributed to this story.

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Switch-fielders

Players who won a Gold Glove at shortstop and then moved to another position:

*--* Player GG Year New Pos. (Year) Ernie Banks 1960 1B (1962-71) Zoilo Versalles 1963, ’65 3B (1969-71) Leo Cardenas 1965 3B (1975) Jim Fregosi 1967 3B (1972-74) 1B (1975-78) Bud Harrelson 1971 2B (1978-79) Dave Concepcion 1974-77, ’79 2B (1987-88) Rick Burleson 1979 2B (1987) Robin Yount 1982 OF (1985-93) Tony Fernandez 1986-89 2B (1997-1998) 3B (1999) Cal Ripken Jr. 1991-92 3B (1997-2001) Jay Bell 1993 2B (1999-2003) Alex Rodriguez 2002-03 3B (2004-05)

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Source: Baseball-reference.com