Rupe taken out after straining muscles

Nick Christensen

Thursday, April 21, 2005 | 9:43 a.m.

Las Vegas 51s starting pitcher Ryan Rupe exited in the second inning of his team's eventual 8-3 loss Wednesday after straining his left intercostals muscles -- the muscle area between the ribs.

Manager Jerry Royster said that Rupe would probably be out "a long time" and that Harold Eckert would likely make Rupe's next scheduled start.

Eckert pitched four innings of relief for Rupe, giving up six runs on seven hits and walking four Stingers batters. He struck out two. Mike Neu closed out the last four innings for Las Vegas, allowing two runs and three hits.

Rupe's injury came a night after 51s reliever Tom Farmer was hit on the arm by a line drive from Casey Smith. The ball hit off Farmer's muscle tissue and he is expected to miss at least three days.

During the game, the Dodgers called up Double-A reliever Alfredo Gonzalez. In nine innings for Jacksonville, Gonzalez has given up three earned runs and four hits while striking out nine.

Despite the poor numbers in the box score, Royster heaped praise on his two long relievers.

"What they did was awesome today," Royster said. "I know there were eight runs but those weren't all their fault either."