Despite being a tender 19 years old, Julio Urias faced sky-high expectations when he toed the rubber at Citi Field on May 27 for his Major League debut. There were the expected struggles in the short outing, though Urias also showed flashes of his renowned talent.
He was optioned back to Triple-A Oklahoma City the next day, only to return shortly after with the Dodgers in need of a starter due to Alex Wood landing on the disabled list. Urias has since been a fixture in the Dodgers’ rotation.
On Wednesday he faced a first-place team in the Washington Nationals for the fourth time in six career starts. “Julio gave us what he had, it just got that pitch count up,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after his club’s wild walk-off victory.
“I thought he threw well, competed, and gave us a chance to win the game.” Urias held the Nationals to two runs on six hits and had six strikeouts as he labored through five innings of work; his 94 pitches set a career high.
Urias acknowledged he wasn’t as sharp as he was in his two previous outings but took solace in the Dodgers coming away with a win. He pointed to lack of command as reason for his struggles. “The curve and fastball just weren’t there,” Urias said.
“It wasn’t until the last inning where I felt more comfortable with them.” However, he noted the curveball was effective against Bryce Harper, who struck out swinging in each of his first two at-bats.
“I know he has a name for himself and the good thing is that the pitches worked and I was able to get the outs,” Urias said of facing the reigning National League MVP. Next for Urias is start on Tuesday against the same Milwaukee Brewers he faced on June 17 in what was arguably the best outing of his career.
He tossed five scoreless innings and set a career high with eight strikeouts on just 85 pitches. It initially was suggested Urias’ start against the Nationals was going to be his last as the Dodgers look to control his workload.
“I feel more confident now. Every time they let me know I’m in the rotation, I feel more confident and part of the rotation,” Urias said. “I’m going to continue working to keep it that way.”
Roberts pointed to Wednesday’s game as further example of Urias’ growth thus far. “He made pitches when he needed to. When he gets stressed he finds ways to limit damage,” Roberts said.
“There are a lot of things going on in Major League games that he’s familiarizing himself with. There’s really no panic in Julio.”
