Dodgers’ web doings: Fifth spot in rotation has been nothing but trouble

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I guess Carlos Monasterios’ second chance at winning the fifth spot in the rotation Friday in Denver means Dodgers Manager Joe Torre has forsaken his ‘I was down to the [blank] in the alphabet’ strategy.

Although the Dodgers rotation has improved markedly in May, the fifth spot remains a serious black hole.

Research by Eric Stephen at truebluela.com shows the Dodgers have had easily the worst combined performances in the fifth spot (11.12 ERA) among all clubs in the National League.

Friday will mark Monasterios’ second start. Monasterios, who essentially never pitched above the Class-A level until this season, went four innings on May 1 against the Pirates, allowing one earned run.

With the Dodgers calling up left-hander Scott Elbert Friday, they now have another potential starter in the fold. Elbert has appeared in 29 games for the Dodgers the last two years, but was used exclusively as a starter for triple-A Albuquerque.

The Dodgers will likely need at least two more starts from the fifth spot until Vicente Padilla is activated from the disabled list.

Of course, it isn’t like they can count on complete pitching health the rest of the season and won’t need to identify that ‘sixth’ starter for future need.

Also on the web:

Thebaseballopinion.com blog speculates on what it might cost the Dodgers in prospects to actually land Astros ace Roy Oswalt.

ESPN.com’s Jason Stark quotes a club official saying he can’t see the Dodgers spending the necessary money to acquire Oswalt and his contract and thinks their best shot is Seattle’s Cliff Lee.

Dodgerdugout.com tries to look into the mind of GM Ned Colletti as the Dodgers approach the trading deadline, figuring the team is going to have to pay top dollar for pitching at some point.

The Dodgers will catch a break this weekend in Denver in not having to face Rockies ace Ubaldo Jimenez, as NBC.com’s Tony DeMarco quotes Colorado Manager Jim Tracy calling him the best pitcher in baseball.

At Dodgers.com former Dodgers general manager Fred Claire writes a column, interviewing another former team GM, Dan Evans, on his wanting to keep Jose Lima’s legacy alive. Lima was the last free agent Evans signed as Dodgers GM, and was his agent at the time of his death.

ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick gives credit to the Dodgers’ maligned starting pitching for the team’s turnaround in May.

SI.com’s Tom Verducci has three suggestions for improving baseball’s draft, including allowing teams to trade picks.

--Steve Dilbeck