Perez Claims the Final Spot in Rotation

VERO BEACH, Fla. — Granted, it was only the Florida Marlins, but Carlos Perez showed enough Sunday to secure a spot in and finalize the Dodger pitching rotation.

The enigmatic lefty went five innings, gave up an unearned run and four hits, struck out four and walked three in the Dodgers’ 5-3 win at Holman Stadium.

Manager Davey Johnson all but officially anointed Perez as his fifth starter, behind Kevin Brown, Chan Ho Park, Darren Dreifort and Orel Hershiser.

“Pretty much. [Perez] came back from a shaky start and threw well today,” Johnson said.

“He threw well on three-days rest and made pitches when he had to make them. His mechanics were good.”

After a brutal 2-10 campaign with a 7.43 earned-run average last year, Perez was worse in the early days of spring training. He began Grapefruit League play 0-2 with a 10.00 ERA. Throw in his arrest for suspicion of driving under the influence and the starting job seemed to be promising rookie Eric Gagne’s for the taking.

But while Gagne struggled against major league hitters, Perez has settled down in his last two starts.

“I’ve always felt confident about being a starting pitcher, even with last year,” Perez said after lowering his spring ERA to 5.68. “They know I’m a starting pitcher. I’m not the kind of guy who has to find a spark. I’m the kind of guy who, if I have a bad spot, I don’t let my head hang down. I think about it, but it’s gone by the next day.”

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General Manager Kevin Malone was thumbing threw the latest news clips Sunday when he saw the note about the San Diego Padres taking a shot at him.

Malone laughed.

The cover of the Padres’ 2000 media guide features owner John Moores, President Larry Lucchino, General Manager Kevin Towers and Manager Bruce Bochy in Western wear under a sign that reads “Sheriff.”

After the Dodgers hired Malone in September of 1998, he proclaimed himself the new sheriff in town.

“It’s all in good fun,” Malone said. “When I made that statement I was on the Jim Rome show and the [purpose] of his show is to jest and joke and tease.

“To me, I think it’s funny. I really do.

“It’s good for baseball when you can have fun with each other. Any time I can help someone design the cover of their media guide, I think that’s a positive thing.”

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Hurt hand, what hurt hand?

In his first game back since being spiked high on his left pinky finger on March 17, Gary Sheffield hit two home runs.

Sheffield’s timing looked a bit off in his first at-bat, when he grounded out weakly to third.

But he caught up with Marlin starter Vladimir Nunez in his second appearance, driving one over the center-field fence for a solo shot in the fourth inning.

In the sixth, Sheffield drove a three-run shot that cleared the left-center fence by 15 feet and landed past the knoll which served as a boundary for the field before fences were installed.

“I just felt like if I saw a couple more pitches, then I’d be all right,” said Sheffield, who used super glue to close up the pinky wound after the stitches popped out this week.

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For the first time this spring, the Dodgers started their probable opening-day lineup.

With the lineup, however, the Dodgers committed three errors, all up the middle--catcher Todd Hundley, shortstop Kevin Elster and second baseman Mark Grudzielanek.