Sele Agrees to Pay Cut and Will Start Today

Ending several days of indecisiveness, the Dodgers re-worked the contract of veteran pitcher Aaron Sele and promoted him from triple A to replace Odalis Perez, who is expected to remain on bereavement leave through Friday.

Sele, 35, accepted a pay cut from $900,000 to $500,000 and will start today against the Milwaukee Brewers.

“For me, it’s about being in the big leagues,” he said.

The Dodgers had planned to honor an agreement with Sele and release him this week because they had no place for him on the major league roster. Sele, who was 3-0 with a 2.43 earned-run average at Las Vegas, was prepared to become a free agent rather than remain in the minors.

The plan changed when Perez departed for the Dominican Republic to spend time with his mother, who is hospitalized. Putting Perez on the weeklong bereavement list temporarily opened a roster spot, and the Dodgers opted for Sele rather than bring up top prospect Chad Billingsley.

He accepted the pay cut because he would have had to negotiate a new contract with another team had the Dodgers released him, and he wasn’t convinced he could have made a better deal.

Essentially, Sele enables the Dodgers to buy time with Billingsley. Although the 21-year-old right-hander has pitched extremely well at Las Vegas, the Dodgers want him to log another six to eight starts before bringing him up.

To make room for Sele on the 40-man roster, injured reliever Yhency Brazoban was moved to the 60-day disabled list. Making room for Sele when Perez returns is a more difficult problem, and one General Manager Ned Colletti won’t address until he must.

“Thirty things could happen between now and then,” he said.

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The Dodger Dream Foundation opened its sixth field for the L.A. Department of Recreation and Parks on Saturday, holding a dedication ceremony at Evergreen Recreation Center in Boyle Heights.

About $220,000 was spent on lights, a scoreboard, synthetic infield and bleachers. The field is home to Roosevelt High and the Evergreen Little League.

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Manager Grady Little said closer Eric Gagne would begin throwing from a mound in the next few days and will begin a minor league rehabilitation assignment “some time this month.” Gagne is recovering from surgery to remove a nerve from his pitching elbow.

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Add these to the growing list of Little’s quirky observations:

* He compared closer Danys Baez’s recent control problems to an illness, saying, “It’s a situation where what’s happened in the bullpen is a contagious thing. He caught the bullpen virus or whatever you want to call it. He’ll be fine.”

* He explained shortstop Rafael Furcal’s slow start by referring to his heritage and the temperature, saying, “Players from the Dominican Republic have a history of not playing well in cold weather.... The ball hurts their hands when they make contact.”

Asked to provide examples, he said, “I’m talking in general. I’m not going to name any names.”