Making The Team: Two Dodgers Non-Roster Invitees To Watch

By Bobby DeMuro
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Updated: February 11, 2015

Hope springs eternal every February as all 30 Major League clubs invite non-roster players to Spring Training to compete for spots on the big league roster. The vast majority of those players are either young prospects who will end up in the minor leagues, or veterans in the twilight of their career, hoping to extend their playing days as far as possible.

Not surprisingly, the vast majority of non-roster invitees either wind up down on the farm, or released to pursue opportunities with other clubs. Nevertheless, these non-roster players can sometimes make an impact in unexpected ways. Today, CaliSports News looks at two intriguing non-roster invitees with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Erik Bedard [Image via @GSmartMAG]

Erik Bedard
Erik Bedard, who will turn 36 during spring training, may be most recently remembered for removing himself from his own no-hitter in 2013. Considering Bedard’s injury history – an elbow surgery, three shoulder surgeries, and several other stints on the disabled list – the removal in just the seventh inning after 109 pitches may have been wise.

Bedard may ultimately be remembered as a pitcher with all the tools who never turned the corner in terms of health or performance. He only started more than 28 games once in his career, and has never thrown 200 innings in a season. In his best year, 2007, he went 13-5 with a 3.16 ERA in 182 innings for the Orioles, logging 221 strikeouts and allowing just 141 hits and a 1.088 WHIP. In seven seasons since then, though, he’s averaged just 92 innings a year, including missing the entire 2010 season.

The Dodgers have low expectations for Bedard, and rightfully so. The deck is stacked against him to stay in the organization, but considering the Dodgers’ issues with their fourth and fifth starting spots, it’s not inconceivable he could make an impact as a starter if Brandon McCarthy and Brett Anderson are injured or ineffective. That is assuming, of course, that Bedard can stay healthy himself, and pitch well this spring. While Bedard may never throw a regular season pitch for the Dodgers, he represents that ever-elusive starting pitching depth all clubs covet when February rolls around.

Julio Urias [Image via @truebluela]

Julio Urias
The opposite of Bedard in virtually every way, Julio Urias won’t turn 19 until August and yet this will be his second spring in big league camp. The Mexican-born left handed pitcher is coming off a 2014 that saw him strike out 109 batters in 87 innings at Class A-Advanced Rancho Cucamonga. In the notoriously offensive-minded California League, Urias allowed only 60 hits, a .194 BAA, and 4 home runs in 25 games/20 starts. His 87 innings indicate the Dodgers didn’t want to extend him too deep into games, but his numbers and age indicate a fascinating future.

Having been initially scouted on the same trip to Mexico that sought Yasiel Puig after his Cuban defection, Urias has the makeup and talent to overcome his 5’11, 160 pound frame. Interestingly, Urias had a tumor removed from his left eye as a child. While the potential of future blindness scared off some scouts, the Dodgers were steadfast and Urias has full use and vision in the eye despite a drooping eyelid.

As for his future, Urias reminds many of Fernando Valenzuela; a Mexican-born young lefthander who could create pandemonium in Chavez Ravine with a quick ascent to the big leagues. And while a 2015 Major League debut might be slightly out of the question, as he needs to prove himself against more seasoned hitters in AA and AAA, his future is as bright as any for the Dodgers.

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