Escobar no problem for 51s

Nick Christensen

Wednesday, April 20, 2005 | 9:39 a.m.

On Monday night, the Las Vegas 51s got some major league help for a victory. On Tuesday, shoddy relief pitching cost them a win against a major league pitcher.

Angels starter Kelvim Escobar, rehabilitating an inflamed elbow ligament, struggled against the 51s lineup in his four innings at Cashman Field. But Salt Lake came back for six ninth-inning runs and escaped with an 8-7 victory in front of an announced crowd of 2,006.

Like Dodgers pitcher Brad Penny, who made a rehab appearance Monday for the 51s, Escobar had no problem with his velocity, consistently registering 95 mph on the stadium's automated radar gun.

"It felt great," Escobar said of his elbow. "I think I felt too good. I was turning the ball a little bit up, that's how good I felt. I wasn't worried about making pitches and things like that. I was just letting the ball go and see how my arm is going to react. After everything, it went good and I'm happy."

But unlike Penny, Escobar lacked control on many of those 95-mph fastballs. In the second inning alone, Escobar threw 15 balls at seven batters, and plunked 51s second baseman Joe Thurston on an 0-2 pitch. Leading off the third inning, Chin-Feng Chen hit a 3-1 pitch at least 450 feet down the left-field power alley.

Escobar finished with five hits, two runs and six strikeouts in four innings pitched in his second rehabilitation assignment since suffering the injury late in spring training. He admitted that his focus wasn't so much striking out Triple-A batters as it was making sure there was no residual pain.

"It gets better when your concentration is better," he said. "I wasn't worried about how many balls I throw today. I was just testing my elbow and arm. I'm sure next time it will be better. I'll be throwing more strikes and more relaxing."

In spite of the loss, Las Vegas manager Jerry Royster was pleased with the way his team handled playing against major league talent.

"I was totally impressed," Royster said. "The way they go about today's game is how you bat against real major league pitchers. This guy will probably pitch in the playoffs if they get in."

Royster said Chen's home run was particularly notable because it demonstrated his growth as a batter.

"It's a situation where he had to be thinking along with him," Royster said. "It wasn't just a guess and he hit a home run off a major league pitcher. He'd seen some pitches, and he knows the guy's probably going to try and do that to him. That's a good at-bat."

While Escobar's status seemed clear Tuesday -- he said he plans to pitch when the Angels play host to Oakland this Sunday -- the status of Penny was a little more hazy.

The Dodgers clearly expressed caution after his Monday start -- he has thrown in only two real games since last September. If Penny were to slide into the Dodgers' rotation, he'd be slated for his debut Sunday at Colorado's Coors Field.

But fifth starter Elmer Dessens suffered muscle spasms early in the Dodgers' win Tuesday at Milwaukee, meaning Penny's immediate presence may be more pressing than a precautionary Sunday start at Sacramento.

"They haven't made anything official," Royster said. "I thought he threw well. It's not up to me, but he looked pretty good from where I was sitting."