Prokopec quickly living up to expectations

Steve Guiremand

Friday, April 13, 2001 | 10:33 a.m.

He didn't throw a no-hitter.

He didn't even throw a shutout.

But for one game at Cashman Field, Las Vegas 51s pitcher Luke Prokopec more than lived up to the hype as the top minor league prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers' organization.

The 23-year-old right-hander from Blackwood, South Australia, helped pitch and hit the 51s (3-5) to their second straight victory, a 3-2 win over the Portland Beavers (3-5) Thursday night.

Prokopec, who yielded just one run in 7 2/3 innings against the San Francisco Giants last Friday night in a 10-1 win at Dodger Stadium, allowed twice that many runs after just four batters on Thursday night.

After getting Rickey Henderson to ground out to short and ex-Star Korey DeHaan to strike out to start the game, Prokopec walked red-hot Sean Burroughs (.407 average entering the game) on a 3-2 pitch. First baseman Kevin Witt then hit Prokopec's next pitch deep over the fence in right field to give Portland a quick 2-0 lead.

"That was a 'juice' fastball, I think," Prokopec said. "You couldn't ask for a better pitch to hit in the lane. It's one thing to hit a mistake, but to hit it about 600 feet is another thing. "

Prokopec settled down after that, allowing just two singles, a walk and one hit batter. His numbers for the night: six innings, three hits, two runs, two walks and eight strikeouts.

"After (Witt's home run) he showed you why he beat San Francisco a week ago," Las Vegas manager Rick Sofield said. Prokopec also doubled in his only official at-bat with two outs in the bottom of the third, the first hit off Portland starter Jeremy Powell.

First baseman Geronimo Gil's two-run double off Portland reliever Sean Lawrence capped a three-run sixth-inning rally for the 51s. Prokopec, on a pitch limit of 90 pitches (he threw 89), then gave way to Jim Dougherty, who pitched three innings of one-hit relief to earn the save.

"I was little bit erratic," Prokopec said of his Cashman debut. "I missed my spots a little bit. My slider wasn't quite what I wanted it today. But my changeup was pretty good."

Prokopec said he held no animosity toward the Dodgers for sending him down despite his outstanding start in Los Angeles.

"I got lucky when Brownie (Kevin Brown) went down injured," Prokopec said. "That gave me an opportunity to pitch (in L.A.). Luckily enough I pitched well.

"Like (Dodger manager) Jim Tracy said, it's a lot better (being in Las Vegas) than sitting in the bullpen and not pitching every five days. I still have a lot of stuff to work on. Just one outing in the big leagues doesn't mean I'm ready. That's for sure.

"I'm getting close," Prokopec continued, "but it's just a matter of coming here to work on a couple of things. You never know what might happen. Someone might get traded or moved. It's just a matter of waiting for your opportunity and taking advantage of it."