For Starters, Dodgers Need Pitching Help
Which are the real Dodgers? The team that opened the season 12-2, that won games in dramatic fashion with late-inning comebacks and timely two-out hitting? Or the team that has lost six of the last seven, letting second-tier teams score early and often and then failing to mount the very same kind of late-inning comeback that made them everybody’s (including Sports Illustrated’s) early season darling?
The answer of course is neither. The Dodgers are not as bad as they’ve been playing lately, and they were never as good as their press clips from the first two weeks of the season. The ball bounced the Dodgers’ way for a while, into the gloves of Milton Bradley and Jason Repko and under the gloves of Jason Ellison. Now it’s bouncing the other way, into the glove of Craig Counsell and off the wall instead of over it, leaving Ricky Ledee at third with the tying run.
What the two streaks have in common, however, is more troubling. And that is giving up a bunch of runs early. Jim Tracy has done a remarkable job in persuading the team (if not the fans, who left en masse on Opening Day long before the ninth inning) that they’re never out of a game no matter how far behind the starters put the team. Comeback wins are great for team chemistry, but you can’t count on them to propel your season.
Going into spring training, the Dodger rotation was hardly impressive. They had three number two starters (Derek Lowe, Brad Penny, and Odalis Perez), all of whom had question marks. Was Derek Lowe the guy who won all three playoff series for the Sox or was he the guy who had a mediocre regular season? Was Penny’s arm injury career-threatening, or could he be the kind of postseason pitcher he was for the Marlins in 2003? Was Perez the guy with the great E.R.A. or the guy who seemed to lose every game 3-2?
So far, the answers to those questions have been mostly positive. Lowe has been a terrific addition, compiling an ERA around 2.00 over his first five starts. Perez has walked too many batters, and given up too many runs, but still won three of his first four. And Penny pitched, which is more than many expected of him at all.
The rest of the starters have been depressing. I don’t understand why the Dodgers thought they could fill the back of their rotation with guys who had proven their inability with other clubs, but that’s what they’ve gotten in Elmer Dessens, Scott Erickson, and Jeff Weaver. Dessens has pitched like the career 39-49 pitcher he was when the Dodgers acquired him. Erickson was a frontline starter during the Nixon administration, but hasn’t had a winning season this millennium. And the best thing that can be said about Weaver is that he’s cheaper and less atrocious than Kevin Brown, the man the Dodgers unloaded to get him. Weaver’s 6.23 ERA includes a shutout. In his other four starts, he’s given up 21 runs in 21 innings. That’s only a run per inning!
One of these three (probably Dessens) is losing his spot now that Penny is back for good. But for the Dodgers can’t compete unless they get another quality starter. The bullpen has been lights out, and will only get better with the return of Eric Gagne. But when you play from behind, you don’t get many save opportunities, leaving one of your greatest weapons in your holster.
The answer of course is neither. The Dodgers are not as bad as they’ve been playing lately, and they were never as good as their press clips from the first two weeks of the season. The ball bounced the Dodgers’ way for a while, into the gloves of Milton Bradley and Jason Repko and under the gloves of Jason Ellison. Now it’s bouncing the other way, into the glove of Craig Counsell and off the wall instead of over it, leaving Ricky Ledee at third with the tying run.
What the two streaks have in common, however, is more troubling. And that is giving up a bunch of runs early. Jim Tracy has done a remarkable job in persuading the team (if not the fans, who left en masse on Opening Day long before the ninth inning) that they’re never out of a game no matter how far behind the starters put the team. Comeback wins are great for team chemistry, but you can’t count on them to propel your season.
Going into spring training, the Dodger rotation was hardly impressive. They had three number two starters (Derek Lowe, Brad Penny, and Odalis Perez), all of whom had question marks. Was Derek Lowe the guy who won all three playoff series for the Sox or was he the guy who had a mediocre regular season? Was Penny’s arm injury career-threatening, or could he be the kind of postseason pitcher he was for the Marlins in 2003? Was Perez the guy with the great E.R.A. or the guy who seemed to lose every game 3-2?
So far, the answers to those questions have been mostly positive. Lowe has been a terrific addition, compiling an ERA around 2.00 over his first five starts. Perez has walked too many batters, and given up too many runs, but still won three of his first four. And Penny pitched, which is more than many expected of him at all.
The rest of the starters have been depressing. I don’t understand why the Dodgers thought they could fill the back of their rotation with guys who had proven their inability with other clubs, but that’s what they’ve gotten in Elmer Dessens, Scott Erickson, and Jeff Weaver. Dessens has pitched like the career 39-49 pitcher he was when the Dodgers acquired him. Erickson was a frontline starter during the Nixon administration, but hasn’t had a winning season this millennium. And the best thing that can be said about Weaver is that he’s cheaper and less atrocious than Kevin Brown, the man the Dodgers unloaded to get him. Weaver’s 6.23 ERA includes a shutout. In his other four starts, he’s given up 21 runs in 21 innings. That’s only a run per inning!
One of these three (probably Dessens) is losing his spot now that Penny is back for good. But for the Dodgers can’t compete unless they get another quality starter. The bullpen has been lights out, and will only get better with the return of Eric Gagne. But when you play from behind, you don’t get many save opportunities, leaving one of your greatest weapons in your holster.
posted by John Rosenthal @ 3:57 PM
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