Prospect Is Traded to Indians

PHILADELPHIA —  The Dodgers surrendered another promising prospect to the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday to complete the Milton Bradley trade, saying it was a fair price to pay for a center fielder who has contributed to their fast start.

“He’s upgraded us both offensively and defensively, and there’s a handful of games that we don’t win if he’s not here,” General Manager Paul DePodesta said. “To me, there’s no way we are currently where we are in the standings if we don’t have Milton Bradley.”

The Indians, who had obtained outfielder Franklin Gutierrez in the April 4 trade, will receive hard-throwing right-hander Andrew Brown, who was 1-3 with a 4.02 earned-run average for double-A Jacksonville. The 23-year-old led the Southern League with 58 strikeouts in 40 1/3 innings and was considered a rising star in the Dodger organization.

“His strikeout-to-innings-pitched ratio was off the charts,” Manager Jim Tracy said. “I think if he stays healthy, it’s safe to say he’s going to pitch in the big leagues eventually.”

Brown, acquired by the Dodgers in the Gary Sheffield trade, pitched only one inning last season before undergoing elbow surgery and sat out the 2000 season because of an elbow injury. But his 6-foot-6 frame and deceptive delivery make him tough to face, Tracy said.

“He has to appear like he’s standing right on top of you if you’re a hitter,” Tracy said.

Brown will report to the Indians’ double-A Akron affiliate, where Gutierrez is hitting .328 with two home runs and 16 runs batted in through 36 games.

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Three balls that stayed inside Citizens Bank Park during Tuesday’s home run derby also illustrated how much of a hitter’s haven the new ballpark might be.

Pitcher Wilson Alvarez hit an off-balance single off the left-field wall, Pat Burrell hit a sacrifice fly to deep center with one hand and Bradley hit a ball practically straight up that right fielder Bobby Abreu caught against the out-of-town scoreboard.

“I was amazed,” Tracy said. “One not even good swing can end up resulting in multiple runs.”

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DePodesta said he would defer to Tracy whether Shawn Green should be left in the cleanup spot despite having the second-lowest batting average among the regulars and ranking fourth in RBIs.

“I do obviously talk to him about those things, but I’m not going to walk down there and tell him to change the order or anything like that,” DePodesta said of Tracy. “Ultimately, that’s why he’s here.”

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Dave Roberts is “very unlikely” to be activated today when he is eligible to come off the disabled list from a strained right hamstring, Tracy said, though the left fielder could return before the end of this nine-game, three-city trip. Roberts has resumed running straight ahead “at about 80%,” Tracy said, but still must run at an angle before rejoining the lineup.... Reserve outfielder Jayson Werth was three for six in his first two games with triple-A Las Vegas while recovering from a strained abdominal muscle.

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Derrick Hall, former Dodger senior vice president of communications, has joined KB Home as vice president of communications. Hall, who resigned from the Dodgers in March, will oversee all public relations and media efforts for KB Home, one of the nation’s largest homebuilders.

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Times staff writer Jason Reid contributed to this report.