Monday, Aug. 15, 2005 | 9:35 a.m.
For 11 days, Scott Erickson has been on a rehabilitation assignment with the Las Vegas 51s.
But it's not his arm, shoulder or leg that he's healing. It's his form and confidence.
A 14-year veteran of the major leagues, Erickson signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in January and earned a spot in the starting rotation after being a non-roster invitee to spring training.
But while Erickson showed promise in Vero Beach, to the tune of eight earned runs in 36 innings, he struggled after April 1.
By the time he made his last start for the Dodgers on May 20, his ERA had bulged to 7.22, his record 1-4 in eight starts.
Erickson was relegated to the bullpen until Aug. 3, when he was sent down to the 51s. His major league ERA was 6.02 in 55 1/3 innings, and he pitched in just 11 games after being pulled from the rotation.
Not only was he a struggling pitcher, he was a struggling pitcher who simply hadn't seen much time on the hill.
"I was maintaining, I think, but I wasn't pitching," Erickson said. "I wasn't getting any work. I need to go out there and throw and pitch. It's a lot more fun to play the game when you're on the field than when you're watching the game when you're in the bullpen."
He's made three starts with the Las Vegas 51s, most recently Sunday, when he gave up six runs on five hits and two walks in 7 2/3 innings of the 51s' 7-2 loss to Tucson at Cashman Field.
His Pacific Coast League ERA is 7.94 in 17 innings.
On Sunday, Erickson threw 110 pitches against the Sidewinders in his longest outing this season. 51s manager Jerry Royster said the duration of Erickson's afternoon was a sign that the only 51s' 37-year-old starter isn't ready to hand over the ball for good.
"You can't throw 110 pitches under those conditions" if your career is done, Royster said. "He hasn't pitched very well, I'm not trying to say that. It's probably been a while since he's done that well. I know it was only Tucson. But it's what he did and how he went about it."
Royster said Erickson has instantly become the 51s' hardest worker, even on days when he's not pitching.
"The work that he does before the game allows him to throw 110 pitches," he said. "He outworks everybody. He outruns them, outstretches them, everything."
At an optional batting practice on the 51s' recent road trip to the Midwest, Erickson was one of five pitchers to show up.
"He just didn't understand how the rest of the guys -- how are they going to get ready for the game," Royster said. "And today he was doing it again an hour before the game."
Erickson is hoping for a call-up to the Dodgers when the rosters expand in September. But he knows that to get that return ticket to Los Angeles, he'll have to show quite a bit of improvement during the next two weeks.
"It's basically stamina right now and trying to get the velocity up a little bit. Getting muscle memory and good sound mechanics. On the field it's a lot easier than when you're throwing bullpens all the time," he said. "Let's hope they're in a position to need some people to come up there and I'll definitely be ready."
Royster said he thinks chances are good that Erickson will get the call come September.
"Under the circumstances, I'd say they're pretty good if they sent him down here," Royster said. "Otherwise they would have released him if they didn't have any plan for him.
"He has a goal; there's a thing that he wants to do. He believes in himself so we'll see."
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