Curtis Granderson’s walk-off homer upstages Dodgers’ late comeback in Julio Urias’ debut
NEW YORK – The euphoria from the top of the ninth inning, when the Dodgers mounted a four-run rally against one of the game’s best closers, had barely faded when the baseball soared into the night. A starling comeback mutated into a bleak defeat, as Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson launched a walk-off home run off reliever Pedro Baez to usher in a 6-5 loss.
“That happened awfully quick,” Manager Dave Roberts said inside the visiting manager’s office, next door to a glum clubhouse.
On this night, little went according to script for the Dodgers (25-24). Julio Urias, the 19-year-old left-handed phenom, greeted the hope and hype of his debut with a ragged performance. The barrage against Mets closer Jeurys Familia, capped by a three-run double from Chase Utley, only added bitterness. The loss snapped a four-game winning streak during a week when the team plays seven games against the Mets and the Cubs, a pair of potential playoff entrants.
In order to reverse a course toward a summer of mediocrity, the Dodgers must find more production from an offense that has been one of baseball’s weaker units. The ninth inning flurry provided hope. Granderson snuffed that out with one swing.
“For us, for the pitching, the hitting to come together on a certain night, those nights are hard to come by,” Roberts said.
Baez became the third Dodgers reliever to allow a solo homer after 2 2/3 innings from Urias. Urias showed flashes of brilliance, but far more evidence of his youth. He threw almost as many balls (39) as he threw strikes (42). He walked four and gave up five hits. He could not unleash the weapons that so devastated hitters in the minor leagues these last two months.
“Sometimes I tried to fool them,” Urias said through a translator. “And I wasn’t able to.”
Urias was the first teenage pitcher to start a game since Felix Hernandez debuted for Seattle in 2005, the first Dodger to do so since Fernando Valenzuela in 1980. The comparison to Valenzuela, another undersized left-handed pitcher, felt inevitable. Both hail from Mexico; Urias from Culiacan, Valenzuela from Navojoa. But the contrast between the two will become apparent soon.
Valenzuela ignited a craze that spanned two nations. Urias will likely shift to the bullpen or return to the minor leagues by June.
“To compare anyone to Fernando and what he did – after you look at the impact he made on the Mexican community, as well as the Dodgers, and baseball in general – is unfair,’” Roberts said. “Julio is Julio. I understand the comp. But that’s a tall order.”
Even so, excitement was expected. Urias has always been precocious. He debuted in the Midwest League when he was 16, five years younger than the average player at the level. At 18, he zoomed from Class-A Rancho Cucamonga to triple-A Oklahoma City. This spring, he earned his second invitation to big-league spring training.
Early in camp, A.J. Ellis caught Urias during a session of live batting practice. He noticed the wealth of development accrued since he saw Urias the previous spring. Urias operated at a more rhythmic pace. He conveyed a presence on the mound. “It was very under control, which was impressive to see,” Ellis said.
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Urias also displayed more comfort with his slider. The Dodgers encouraged him to use the pitch in addition to his curveball, changeup and low-90s fastball.
“He’s got four legit pitches,” Clayton Kershaw said. “That’s more than I have now.”
At 7:21 p.m., several members of Urias’ family raised their phones in the air at Citi Field to record his first pitch. It was a 90-mph fastball, high, for ball one. Urias admitted later he felt nervous, his mind racing with memories of his journey from Mexico to the majors. He finished off Granderson six pitches later with a 94-mph heater for a called third strike.
“I will never forget the first strikeout, especially being against a batter like Granderson,” Urias said. “I will never forget everything that happened in this game, because this is the happiest day of my life.”
Roberts did not have to worry about a recurrence of Ross Stripling’s no-hit debut. In the game’s second at-bat, Mets shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera shipped a 93-mph fastball into left field for a double.
The Mets declined to swing early in the count. The approach proved beneficial in several ways. Urias could not wet his feet with quick outs. His pitch count rose skyward. The Dodgers allotted him 90 pitches for the night, and he needed 36 to finish the first inning.
“They had a plan, to run the count and go deep and see pitches,” Roberts said. “Forcing a young pitcher to continue to make pitches and repeat.”
Urias flashed some nerves after Cabrera doubled. He flung a fastball into the backstop for a wild pitch. Urias walked outfielder Yoenis Cespedes on fastballs well outside the zone. Roberts suggested the imprecision resulted from adrenaline.
Unable to end the inning, Urias soon experienced more misfortune. He snapped a curveball at second baseman Neil Walker’s knees. Walker stroked an RBI double. Outfielder Juan Lagares followed by punching a slider up the middle to drive in two more runs.
The three-run flurry prompted the bullpen phone to ring. Chris Hatcher started to warm up. Urias recovered to strand a pair of runners.
Urias survived the second but experienced fatigue in the third. He loaded the bases with a pair of walks of batters. The next man to walk was Roberts. He left the dugout and raised his right arm, signaling for Hatcher’s arrival and Urias’ exit.
Facing Mets starter Jacob deGrom, the Dodgers mounted little offense. When Urias left, the night’s intrigue vanished – until the ninth inning. Familia gave up three singles. Yasmani Grandal walked with the bases loaded. Then Utley smacked a fastball into right-center field to tie the score.
“I like the fact that we battled against one of the better closers in the game,” Utley said.
The elation faded with two pitches in the ninth. Granderson parked a 97-mph fastball in the seats. Roberts resigned himself to another defeat.
“To sustain any momentum,” Roberts said, “has been tough for us.”
Follow Andy McCullough on Twitter: @McCulloughTimes
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