While the Los Angeles Dodgers have aggressively promoted some prospects and recent draft picks, they’ve handled Julio Urias with the utmost care since signing him out of Mexico.
Multiple injuries within the starting rotation forced the organization’s hand in calling up their prized southpaw for his Major League debut. Urias was initially used as a spot starter but returned soon after for multiple weeks.
Throughout Urias’ stay in the Majors, the Dodgers maintained he was working on an innings limit and would be shut down at some point. The clock struck midnight for the 19-year-old after his July 4 start against the Baltimore Orioles.
Urias was optioned back to Triple-A Oklahoma City, where he was to work as a starter and relief pitcher. That plan didn’t last for long as more injuries required the Dodgers to recall Urias.
Facing the Washington Nationals a second time this season, the southpaw allowed one run, five hits, and had four strikeouts on 78 pitches over four innings of work. Batterymate A.J. Ellis had nothing but praise for Urias following the performance, per ESPN’s Doug Padilla:
“This guy is a major league pitcher,” catcher A.J. Ellis said. “He belongs here and has proved that he belongs here. Gosh, it’s scary to think he’s 19 years old. What’s going to happen as he goes through the league and figures out ways to sequence his stuff and figures out ways to put guys away with two strikes? It’s going to be really scary what this guy is going to become.”
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts also spoke highly of Urias, pointing to factors beyond his statistics:
“I think there’s a lot [to Urias] when you dig into the numbers,” Roberts said. “For me, more important than the numbers is how he’s handled the various situations, the pulse that he’s had in big spots on big stages and how he’s responded. This young man has really grown in the last few months. For me and the organization, it’s not even about the ERA. It’s about the experience he’s gained. He’s certainly part of the solution.”
Five of Urias’ nine starts this season have been against teams currently on track to reach the postseason, with three of the five outings coming on the road. He was immediately thrown into the fire, facing the National League champion New York Mets and NL runner-up Chicago Cubs, both on the road, in his first two starts.
On the season he’s 1-2 with a 4.69 ERA, 3.33 FIP and 1.51 WHIP. More impressively, Urias is averaging 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings and sports a 27 percent strikeout rate. He was sent back to Oklahoma City on Friday, with Austin Barnes getting recalled.
