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Chan Ho Park was a fan favorite and a big part of the Dodger rotation from 1997 - 2001 until he left for Texas in ill advised move that did plenty for his pocketbook but little for his self esteem. In leaving the Ravine, Park was chasing the gold at the end of the rainbow. He found the gold, he left his health, skills, and reputation at Dodger Stadium.

Sure, many pundits felt Park would never be able to equal the success he had for the Dodgers, especially in Arlington, but few felt he would be so bad that his contract would be considered one of the worst free agent contracts of the last ten years..

Deservedly so. Over the last six years Park has been one of baseball’s worst pitchers, unable to post an Adjusted ERA over 93. (For those not Sabermetrically literate, by way of comparison, in his 18 win 2000 season, Park’s Adjusted ERA was 133.) Last year he only pitched four innings at the Major League level, and many figured his career was over. Still, Ned Colletti signed him this winter, in a move ridiculed by fans and bloggers across the Dodger Nation.

Many performance analysts like to cite VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) numbers, a measure utilized by Baseball Prospectus, when evaluating a pitcher, and even before Saturday’s solid effort against the Angels Park had the highest VORP of any Dodger pitcher. By that standard, it’s fair to say that Park (and Colletti, for that matter) is proving everyone wrong. But there are reasons to be worried. The case against Park starts with Fran Graphs FIP, a measure of all those things for which the pitcher is responsible, independent of how the guys around him field.

By that standard, Park is one of the worst pitchers on the team, and that his success is more a function of luck rather than superior performance, of excellent results with subpar skills. Eventually, as water seeks its own level, there should be a degradation in his performance.

It didn’t come on Saturday. I, like many fans of the Blue, wasn’t expecting much from Park, but hoped for four or five relatively decent innings. He provided that, and more. Three hits, two walks, and a lone earned run over four strong innings. He’d likely have been able to finish the fifth and put himself on track for the win had James Loney not let him down with a pair of defensive miscues in the fourth that forced Park to the upper reaches of his pitch limit.

Until he tried to drop kick Tim Belcher with his cleats on, I was a fan of Park. That day, I lost a lot of respect for him, but still, I hope he pitches well enough to help the Dodgers. I’d rather see Hong-Chih Kuo’s devastating left-handed stuff in the fifth starter slot, but (lest there be any confusion) it’s Joe Torre who pushes the buttons and pulls the levers, not me. Currently, Torre feels Kuo is too valuable out of the pen as a middle-innings eater to use as a starter.

The Dodgers don’t need a fifth starter this week, and with Jason Schmidt continuing his rehab work in the minors Park’s time in the rotation could be limited. Still, the Prodigal Son has returned, and for the time being is getting the job done.

Phil Gurnee, co-author of True Blue LA, takes a look at the current, past, and future of his Los Angeles Dodgers. Mixing a totally subjective viewpoint with statistical analysis, he looks at baseball from both sides of the mirror.

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