Baseball : Delahoya Cured of Homesickness by Prescription of Good Pitching

Javier Delahoya of North Hollywood didn’t have any trouble finding home when he began pitching in the minor leagues. It was pitching away from home that he first found difficult.

Delahoya was selected by the Dodgers in the fourth round of the amateur draft in June, shortly before he graduated from Grant High. The 19-year-old right-hander was assigned to the Dodgers’ rookie team in Kissimmee, Fla.

“When I first got here, I was lonely and homesick,” Delahoya said from Florida. “I would call my parents three to four times a day. I couldn’t talk to my teammates because I didn’t know them.”

The phone stopped ringing at his parents’ residence after Delahoya made his first appearance against the Baseball City Royals. He struck out five of six batters in two innings and quickly made some friends.

It was his first and last relief appearance of the season. He earned a place in the starting rotation and the respect of his teammates.

Delahoya said he rarely calls home any more and spends his free time going to the movies with teammates. He has also has developed a close friendship with pitching coach and former Dodger great Johnny Podres.

“I can talk to him about anything,” Delahoya said. “He has helped me with my change-up and taught me how to keep hitters off balance. I can hit the corners any time I want with either my fastball or change-up.”

Delahoya ranks second in the Gulf Coast League with an earned-run average of 1.46 and third in strikeouts with 70. He has compiled a 4-3 record after losing two one-run games because of errors.

The Dodgers (30-29) beat the Red Sox on Thursday to clinch at least a tie with the Plant City Reds in the Northern Division. Playoffs begin Monday and Delahoya is expected to pitch the second game of the best-of-three series.

Waiting for a chance: The New York Mets eliminated three relievers from their roster with two trades in July, but they still haven’t found a place for former Saugus High standout Shawn Barton.

Though left-handed stoppers are rare commodities in the major leagues, the Mets already have one of the best in Randy Myers.

Besides, Barton is having a mediocre year pitching for Tidewater (Fla.), the Mets’ triple-A affiliate. In 38 appearances, he is 0-3 with five saves and a 4.28 ERA.

The Mets created openings in their bullpens when they dealt Rick Aguilera and David West to the Minnesota Twins, and reliever Roger McDowell to the Philadelphia Phillies in separate multi-player deals.

New York, however, filled its opening for a left-handed long reliever by acquiring former Ventura Gull Jeff Musselman from the Toronto Blue Jays.

Still, Barton has a chance to be promoted when major league rosters expand to 40 players, according to a Tidewater official.

Looking for a job: Former Olympic pitcher Sid Akins appears to have run out of places to make a comeback after being cut by the Atlanta Braves’ double-A affiliate in Greenville, N. C.

Akins, who has been plagued by control problems, pitched only seven innings before being released by Greenville in June. He had a 1-0 record and a 7.71 ERA.

Akins, a right-handed pitcher who played at Cleveland High and USC, was a member of the 1984 U. S. Olympic baseball team that won the silver medal as a demonstration sport in Los Angeles. That team also included Mark McGwire, Will Clark, Cory Snyder, Barry Larkin, B. J. Surhoff and Oddibe McDowell.

While his teammates found immediate success in the majors, Akins floundered after being drafted in the third round by the Texas Rangers in 1984.

He spent two seasons each in the Rangers and Braves organizations before being released.

CSUN alum on the rise: Former Cal State Northridge standout Robert Wheatcroft has found success despite pitching in hitters’ parks and consistently giving up an average of four or more runs a game.

Wheatcroft earned a promotion in August after posting a 4-3 record and 5.29 ERA with the Baltimore Orioles’ rookie team in Bluefield, W. Va. The right-hander currently has a 2-2 record and 4.18 ERA with the Orioles’ Class-A affiliate in Erie, Pa.

Before he was drafted, Wheatcroft led the Matadors in wins (11) and was second in strikeouts (82) despite an ERA of 4.11.

Struggling for hits: The Montreal Expos organization thought a change of scenery would help catcher Tim Laker.

The former Simi Valley High standout was transferred from one Class-A team to another, going from Rockford, Ill., to Jamestown, W. Va., because he wasn’t getting enough at-bats.

In 58 games, he has a .222 batting average with two home runs and 24 RBIs for Jamestown.

Impressive start: St. Louis Cardinals catcher Todd Zeile is batting .333 after being called up to the majors for the first time last week. The former Hart High and UCLA standout has one home run.