Interleague Record Doesn’t Worry Little

While picking pieces of the Pittsburgh Pirates from their teeth on the flight to Minneapolis after a series sweep, the Dodgers couldn’t help but look ahead and wonder why they have struggled in interleague play.

Along with the rest of the National League.

The Dodgers were swept at Oakland and managed to win only one of three at home against the Seattle Mariners last week. They did sweep the Angels in mid-May, putting them at 4-5.

The NL as a whole has been worse, going 64-103 in interleague play.

Manager Grady Little downplayed the significance.

“When we look up at the end of the season, we’ll be looking at our overall record and not what we did against American League teams,” he said.

As if to point out that the Dodgers are far from alone in their struggles, Little said, “Go down the standings and look at the records in interleague play. You might be surprised.”

Only the Colorado Rockies (7-2) and New York Mets (5-4) have winning records against the AL. The St. Louis Cardinals, who lead the NL Central, are 3-6.

As for the Twins, they are coming off a three-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs and are 10-2 in interleague play.

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The Dodgers have not played at Minnesota since the 1965 World Series. The Dodgers won the seventh game on a two-hit shutout by Sandy Koufax at Metropolitan Stadium.

A more recent memory involving the Twins is their visit to Dodger Stadium last June. Dodgers first baseman Hee-Seop Choi hit six home runs in three games and looked as if he might fulfill the potential then-general manager Paul DePodesta believed he had.

These days Choi is playing at Pawtucket, the Boston Red Sox’s triple-A affiliate, and is batting .214 with eight home runs.

He has walked a lot, boosting his on-base percentage to .346.

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Nearly three weeks after the amateur draft, the Dodgers have spent about $5 million to sign all but two of their first nine picks.

Scouting Director Logan White is still negotiating with fourth-round pick Kyle Orr and eighth-round pick Tommy Giles. Tenth-round selection Andy D’Alessio also is unsigned.

Orr is a power-hitting first baseman from British Columbia, Giles is an outfielder who led Miami in home runs and D’Alessio is a left-handed-hitting first baseman from Clemson.

White said he believes Orr is close to signing. Giles and D’Alessio played in the College World Series and are only beginning talks with the Dodgers.

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The Dodgers are listing Brett Tomko as the projected starter Wednesday against the Twins, but there is a strong chance the right-hander could land on the disabled list instead.

Tomko strained an abdominal muscle during the fourth inning of his start Friday and is still sore. Odalis Perez or Jae Seo would make the start if Tomko can’t.