Dodgers Let the Kids Play

In the 72 hours that preceded last July’s trading deadline, Dodger General Manager Paul DePodesta imported five players into the major league clubhouse and exported five others. This year’s 72-hour window opened Friday, with DePodesta adding two players, subtracting two others and pledging renewed efforts to trade for a hitter.

The Dodgers might be nine games under .500, but they’re four games out of first place in the National League West after Friday’s 7-5 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium. By promoting what he called “premium, premium prospects” in catcher Dioner Navarro and reliever Jonathan Broxton and slotting them into key roles, DePodesta said the Dodgers are playing to win this season.

“These are the kinds of guys you want to be careful with,” DePodesta said. “We wouldn’t bring them up if we didn’t think they could make a difference. This is a sign we’re going to do everything we can to make a run at this.”

The to-do list still includes a hitter to support Milton Bradley and Jeff Kent in the middle of the lineup, although a baseball source said Friday the Dodgers have not recently spoken with the Cincinnati Reds about slugger Adam Dunn and the teams do not appear to match up well in trade talks.

“I’d love to do something,” DePodesta said. “To be able to get a bat to replace some of the production we’ve lost in [the injured] J.D. Drew would be important.”

The Dodgers got 11 hits Friday, including three from Kent and a three-run homer from Ricky Ledee. Cesar Izturis scored the winning run in the seventh inning, snapping a 5-5 tie. He scored on a comebacker after St. Louis pitcher Matt Morris trapped him off third base but failed to run him back to the base.

“Cesar was in no-man’s land,” Dodger Manager Jim Tracy said.

Although the Dodgers have discussed starters Jeff Weaver and Odalis Perez in trade talks, DePodesta said he did not anticipate trading a starter and probably would not unless he could acquire another one.

“In some other deal, we’d have to bring some other pieces back,” he said, “unless the offensive piece we got back was so outstanding.”

He made one minor trade Friday, sending onetime prospect and triple-A Las Vegas second baseman Joe Thurston to the New York Yankees for a player to be named.

But, with so many teams within striking range of a playoff spot, DePodesta said the primary obstacle in making a significant trade was “a lack of available players.” He cut catcher Mike Rose and reliever Scott Erickson, suggesting the call-up of Navarro from triple-A and Broxton from double-A Jacksonville reflected an inability to upgrade via trade at catcher and reliever.

“We feel these guys are as good or better than what we could get in those two spots,” DePodesta said.

When Broxton, 21, moved from the rotation to the bullpen last month, his fastball moved from 93-95 mph to 95-98 mph, including one measurement at 101 mph. In 19 innings as a reliever, he struck out 28 and walked four.

He made his major league debut in the sixth inning, giving up one run and two hits and striking out two, with a fastball ranging from 93 to 96 mph. In a best-case scenario, Broxton develops into this year’s Yhency Brazoban, call-up in July and trusted setup man in August. In that same scenario, Navarro shepherds the pitching staff into October as a rookie catcher.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out,” Tracy said.