The Los Angeles Dodgers are calling up top pitching prospect Julio Urias, and he is expected to make his MLB debut Friday against the New York Mets, the team announced Thursday.
Per Jon Weisman of Dodger Insider, Urias, “at 19 years, 289 days old will be the youngest Major League pitcher since Felix Hernandez’s 2005 season with Seattle, the youngest Dodger pitcher since Fernando Valenzuela made his debut as a reliever in 1980 and the youngest Dodger starting pitcher since Dick Calmus on August 23, 1963.”
Urias—the top left-handed pitching prospect in all of baseball and No. 2 overall prospect, according to MLBPipeline.com—will start in place of Alex Wood, who has been scratched from his scheduled start Friday due to soreness in his triceps.
In eight games at Triple-A Oklahoma City this year, he’s 4-1 with a 1.10 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 41 innings. He has tossed 27-straight scoreless innings.
Urias has never pitched more than 87 2/3 innings in his three previous seasons. Though he will start on Friday, of MLB.com believes the Dodgers will likely use Urias out of the bullpen this season, “allowing management to limit his innings.”
Moving Urias along slowly is the right course of action. Giving him too much work too soon could ruin his development.
