May 27th, 2013 at 6:00 am 
by Harold Uhlman Hmm… a young lefty out of Mexico. You don’t suppose…
I must admit I didn’t see this start coming but apparently there was considerable anticipation among the Dodger scouting and managerial staff. Julio Urias made his professional debut with the Great Lakes Loons on Sunday. It turned out to be a memorable one with Urias striking out six hitters, walking one and allowing only two hits in three innings. He gave up no runs and began his career by striking out the side in the first inning.
Juliomania – It has a nice ring to it, wouldn’t you say? (Photo courtesy of MiLB.com)
Urias is a 5’11” left hander who was expected to be one of the Dodgers best international signings after the international scouting department was revamped by the new ownership in 2012. He was signed in Mexico on August 23, 2012 and may be ranked only behind Yasiel Puig and Hyun-Jin Ryu on the Dodgers international scale which means he is ranked above Onelki Garcia.
Urias has spent the 2013 season to date at extended spring training in Arizona and has progressed far enough that his coaches thought that it was time for him to test the waters of minor league competition; but because the Dodgers short season Rookie League affiliate Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer League do not begin play until June 20, they decided allow Urias to make his professional debut with their Low-A affiliate Great Lakes Loons of the Midwest League instead. Urias will most likely be reassigned to the Raptors once their season officially begins.
Although it is very premature to make such a comparison, Jared Massey suggests Urias might have the upside of Rubby De La Rosa. “I generally don’t rank young prospects this high, but the Dodgers haven’t had an international prospect with this much upside since Rubby De La Rosa. I’m not saying he’ll be the next Rubby, though the potential is there. However, it’s probably at least 4-5 years away.”
Urias was a bit of a surprise starter on Sunday as he was added to the Loons roster only 90 minutes prior to game time. The 160 pound lefty displays a fast ball in the high eighties and touched as high as 92 on Sunday. One report suggested his heater had reached as high as 94. He has good command of his fastball and his change up is a strong number two pitch while his breaking pitch gives him a three pitch arsenal at this stage of his career.
Urias speaks no English. His catcher Dashenko Ricardo – who speaks four languages – including Spanish, is credited with helping to settle Julio Urias down if it appeared he might need some calming. In a brief interview following the game Urias admitted he was a bit nervous, “With the first couple guys, I was feeling kind of nervous. After that, I was really happy because I was making my debut and things ended up going well for me. I just wanted to do what (Bill Simas) told me. I just wanted to throw strikes and keep the ball down. If you do that, you can pitch in any league.”
Loons manager Razor Shines added: “(Julio) was extremely effective. He pitched three innings (and) attacked hitters. He looked a lot older than he is. We were very excited to see that from him.”
Oh, I forget to mention – Julio Urias is sixteen years old.
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@Think_BlueLA wow throwing in the 90’s at 16. Very cool.
16 ?? Is this even legal ?? The kid should be in school not the minor leagues !! Just my opinion but its these type of situations when the kid acts like a kid, but with money and a big head, that problems develop. Just look at Puig at 22 and $42 mil, and the Dodgers have to manage his maturity. I just wonder, are we doing this kid any good ? I truly hope the Dodgers are doing right by this kid behind the scenes.
It seemed to work out ok for a guy named Bob Feller.
I’m sure that a lot of thought and consideration went into this (not to mention parental consent).
You are the first person I have heard disapprove of this, Gary. It is the lead story on every blog site out there. This kid is clearly gifted and special, and I commend the Dodger scouting staff for finding him.
We are witnessing history in the making. I am going to embrace this, not challenge it.
Ron, I think what the Dodgers found is fantastic, for the Dodgers!! And I think the kid has every opportunity for greatness, but I also think he has a lot of risk growing up too soon in an adult world. I’ve traveled the world and I’ve seen first hand families in 3rd world economies selling their kids into labor camps for the money. I’ve seen young ball players develop before their time and fall victim to drugs and problems beyond our comprehension. All because they didn’t know how to deal with the price of fame and money at such a young age. IE Michael Jackson, Steve Howe, Lindsay Lohan, Todd Marinovich, and so many other child stars. IMO, a kid deserves to be a kid, before he has to live as an adult!!
I wish this kid the very best!!
You can’t be the world’s father, Gary. Perhaps you should trust this kid’s parents. Most kids I’ve seen in third world countries are far more mature than many of the spoiled brats here in our own country.
Everything that I have read and heard about this kid is that he is pretty special and very well grounded, and there are far more success stories of youngsters than those that you used as examples.
By the way – Clayton Kershaw was 18 years old when he pitched his first professional game and he seems to have turned out ok, wouldn’t you say?
18 isn’t 16 Ron and an 18yr old High School graduate from a middle class family from Texas is a far cry from 16 out of a 3rd world economy never seen a big USA city before. But what do I know. I’m sure he’ll be just fine with it all.
It sounds pretty exciting, and he is only 16 years old. He still has a lot of growing to do. One thing I wonder about these kids from foreign countries is how accurate are their birth certificates? I know some fudging has gone on with these kids ages.
Gary, you do make a good point. I hope this kid’s parents are looking out for his welfare and not just thinking about the money.
From a marketing standpoint, here’s hoping he has success in the bigs sometime soon. The Dodgers need a legit Mexican star as they haven’t had one since Fernando. 16 is young and he has a small build at 5 11 but he looks to be quite crafty in his pitch repertoire. I don’t see him as a Rubby De La Rosa. He doesn’t seem to have that much velocity on his fastball and has a much more developed series of off-speed pitches.