Dodgers’ Joe Torre declines Hong-Chih Kuo’s offer to pitch Friday

Reporting from Atlanta — 

On the night Hong-Chih Kuo was named the Dodgers’ new closer, he told Manager Joe Torre he was available to pitch.

Torre’s response: Thanks, but no thanks.

“He volunteered last night, but we weren’t going to go there,” Torre said.

Kuo, who has had four elbow operations, had pitched Wednesday and Thursday. Pitching Friday was out of the question.

Figuring out how often to use Kuo in the ninth inning will be part of the challenge Torre will face as he waits for All-Star Jonathan Broxton to reclaim the role.

“Whether he’s pitching in the seventh, eighth or ninth inning, his arm doesn’t know the difference,” trainer Stan Conte said. “He assumes the risk no matter what role he’s in.”

Torre said he will continue to limit Kuo’s time on the mound and has identified Octavio Dotel as the preferred closing option on days Kuo isn’t available.

“I think Joe’s done a good job with Kuo this year and I think he’ll continue to do a good job with him while putting it all in perspective, which is a difficult thing to do,” Conte said.

Despite Kuo’s dominance, Torre resisted the urge to use him on consecutive days through the All-Star break. Kuo, who was an All-Star, pitched on successive days for the first time Aug. 7-8. He has done that only once since, on Wednesday and Thursday.

The two times Kuo pitched on consecutive days, he was in for only one-third of an inning on the second day.

Kuo, who has said for the last 2½ years that he assumes that any pitch he throws could be his last, wouldn’t say how frequently he thought he could pitch.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I go day by day, you know?”

Torre talks about his future

While unlikely to reach a point where it would require an hourlong television special, Torre’s anticipated announcement about his future plans has taken a life of its own.

As rain fell at Turner Field before the Dodgers’ game there Saturday, Torre fielded questions about when and how he might decide to inform others whether he will retire or continue to manage.

Torre, who is in the final year of a three-year, $13.1-million contract, said no decision has been reached.

He said he wants to make a decision by sometime around Labor Day out of courtesy to the Dodgers and his potential successor, hitting coach Don Mattingly.

Torre said he won’t publicly announce the decision until the Dodgers’ postseason fate is officially determined.

“If we’re in a pennant race, I’m certainly not going to have this take precedent over that,” he said. “I think that’s only fair.”

What if the Dodgers clinch a playoff spot on the final day of the regular season? Would Torre steal the spotlight then?

“I’ll take it for a couple of hours, yeah,” he said, laughing. “That would be a nice way to do it.”

What if the Dodgers clinch a playoff berth but are still in the hunt for the division title?

Torre laughed and walked away.

“These rainy-day questions,” he said.

Etc.

From the take-it-for-what-it’s-worth department, Torre said Manny Ramirez has been telling Conte that he wants to start a minor league rehabilitation assignment in the coming week. Ramirez is due to return to Los Angeles from the Dodgers’ spring training facility on Monday.

dylan.hernandez@latimes.com