Adams to Remain in Rotation

By Jason Reid

June 30, 2001 12 AM PT

SAN DIEGO — Manager Jim Tracy made it official Friday, saying Terry Adams will remain in the rotation for the foreseeable future.

Interim General Manager Dave Wallace, Tracy and pitching coach Jim Colborn believe Adams, formerly the No. 1 setup man, provides more stability than second-year starter Eric Gagne.

Gagne has pitched well since being demoted to triple-A Las Vegas, going 3-0 with a 1.74 earned-run average in three starts.

But Wallace and Tracy are reluctant to recall Gagne while the club is struggling to remain in the National League West race.

“I don’t want Terry Adams thinking, ‘Hey, I’m being evaluated every single time I go out there,’ ” Tracy said. “I don’t want him wondering, ‘Am I capable of being a starter?’ He’s shown me that he’s very capable.

“He’s had five starts. They have not been brilliant starts, but we’re talking about a guy who’s doing it for the first time in his career at the major league level.

“Of the starts that he’s had, he left with a chance for us to win each game. He’s never gone out there and had a start where it was just a rotten crooked number.”

Adams can become a free agent after the season, and a strong finish could enhance the right-hander’s status in the starter’s market.

“Well, if I’m successful at it, it could be a career move like anybody else’s job,” said Adams, 3-2 with a 5.15 ERA overall. “I’ve been kind of stuck in the middle-relief role and setup role for the last five years.

“If [starting] improves my career, furthers my longevity in the game and helps me provide better things for my family, then sure, I’d love to have the opportunity to be in a big league rotation. Anybody would be foolish not to want that chance.”

Versatile reliever Matt Herges was the Dodgers’ biggest surprise last season as a 31-year-old rookie.

Tracy said Herges has anchored the bullpen again, providing consistency in a unit that has been shuffled because of injuries and ineffectiveness.

Herges was 4-6 with a 3.53 ERA entering Friday’s game, and among the league leaders with 33 appearances and 51 innings.

“He’s exactly what he was last year: the glue to that bullpen because of his ability to do so many things in different situations,” Tracy said. “Whether it’s the middle of the game or the latter part of the game, this man does so many special things for this club.

“His resiliency to bounce back the way he does, you can’t say enough about that. Without question, once again, he’s the bonding piece to that entire bullpen.”

Left-hander Jesse Orosco rebounded after a brief slump, Tracy said.

Orosco, 44, pitched 1 1/3 perfect innings in his previous two appearances, striking out three of the four batters he faced.

“Jesse Orosco adds something to this clubhouse,” Tracy said. “In his own way, he’s really looked up to. Let’s face it, he stumbled a little bit about a week or 10 days ago, but I have respect for this man also. I’m not one to quit on my players.”

TONIGHT

DODGERS’ CHAN HO PARK

(8-5, 2.86 ERA)

vs.

PADRES’ KEVIN JARVIS

(4-7, 5.51 ERA)

Qualcomm Stadium, 7

TV--Fox Sports Net 2. Radio--KXTA (1150), KWKW (1330).

Update--Park has limited opponents to a .189 batting average in June. Jarvis is 1-3 with a 7.62 ERA this month.