When the Dodgers called up right-hander Carlos Frias from Triple-A Albuquerque on August 4, they did so to replenish their bullpen which had suddenly been decimated by injuries. First it was left-hander Paul Maholm who is lost for the season with a torn ACL in his right knee; then it was Chris Perez who landed on the disabled list with bone spurs in his right ankle; then it was Paco Rodriguez to the DL with a Teres Major strain. But the big blow came when the Dodgers lost their number three starter, Hyun-jin Ryu, to the DL with a strained glute muscle.

Fortunately, Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti had already acquired starting pitchers Roberto Hernandez and Kevin Correia after the non-waiver trade deadline. Hernandez was immediately inserted into the starting rotation to replace Josh Beckett, who is also (apparently) lost for the season due to a hip impingement. Two days later Correia, who Colletti had initially signed to replace Maholm as the long reliever/spot starter, was given a spot start to give the rest of the Dodgers rotation an extra day of rest during their just concluded 20-games in 20-days stretch.

Even though Frias spent the entire season at Albuquerque as a starter, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly made it very clear that the 24-year-old Nagua, Dominican Republic native had been brought up to pitch out of the bullpen. But is there still a chance that Frias could see some action as a starter in the remaining six weeks of the season?

“The fact that we’ve been starting him all year in Triple-A showed that the organization thinks there’s some upside for him starting,” said Mattingly. “He’s not just a two-pitch guy, he’s got three or four pitches that he can use. He seems to be able to hold his stuff, he’s got good sink, he’s got a good breaking ball. I think it’s a matter of him just kind of maturing and learning how to use it all. So is that this September? I’m not sure about that. But is there a future for him? I think we all think he’s got a really good arm and we like the way the ball comes out of his hand.”

Even though Carlos Frias was called up to the Dodgers to pitch out of the bullpen, he spent the entire season at Triple-A Albuquerque as a starter. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

So why, then, has Frias been taking batting practice with the other Dodger starting pitchers? Bullpen guys rarely take BP.

“Well, it’s because he has a chance to start,” retorted Mattingly. “And if he would start we like him to be able to handle the bat a little bit, make sure he gets his bunts down, things like that. We think that he could be one of our spot starters, and obviously if someone would go down at this point he would be the next starter, so that’s the reason [he’s taking BP].”

Wait… what? We just went from “So is that this September? I’m not sure about that” to “…he has a chance to start?” Could there actually be some truth to the rumors being floated around that Zack Greinke really is having elbow issues? Here’s what Mattingly had to say about Greinke before Tuesday night’s game:

“There’s always something with guys from the standpoint of a little this or a little that,” said Mattingly. “Obviously [Greinke] said he felt better [after his last start]. He was having some soreness and things like that, so I guess you have to say something’s come up medically, nothing that hit our radar. He’s not on my daily e-mails of anything, just kind of over time with his elbow, this, that or that. It’s nothing major at this time.”

There you have it – clear as mud.

And what did Mattingly have to say after Tuesday night’s game when asked if Greinke is still in line to pitch on Thursday?

“Nothing that we would talk about right now, but there’s a possibility,” answered Mattingly.

When asked if Frias would start in Greinke’s spot if he is unable to go, Mattingly did it again.

“We’ll let you know more tomorrow if we know.”

Okay, so what changed during Tuesday’s game? How did it go from “It’s nothing major at this time” to becoming a very strong inference that Greinke will not be making his scheduled start on Thursday? Chances are that nothing changed and even better that Mattingly (and Stan Conte and Ned Colletti) already knew that there was something more than “…this, that or that…” with Greinke’s elbow; but as he often does, the Dodger skipper was once again coy with the media. But it is what it is, and it all boils down to the fact that it is Mattingly’s prerogative to be forthcoming with the media or not. It’s not that he lied, he is simply withholding the truth.

With all of this being said, I’m going out on a limb with a prognostication here. Expect to see number 77 in the Dodgers line-up on Thursday night and not number 21. But with all due respect to Carlos Frias, Dodger fans need to hope and pray that Greinke’s “…this, that or that…”  isn’t serious and that he will be available to pitch in the postseason. If he is not, the Dodgers off-season could begin a lot sooner than Dodger fans had hoped.