Traber emerges from pack

MIAMI — Washington Nationals left-hander Billy Traber began the season in the minors. Now he’s manager Frank Robinson’s most reliable starter.

Robinson likes to use veterans Tony Armas Jr., Ramon Ortiz and Pedro Astacio to save his bullpen and pitch deep into games, giving the team a chance for victory. But on this nine-game road trip, those pitchers haven’t been able to work past the third inning.

Traber, on the other hand, has turned in three straight solid performances, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed.

“Traber gives you the best starting turn in the rotation,” Robinson said. “Those are supposed to be bonuses when [Traber and right-hander Jason Bergmann] do it. They’re the ones that have come through on this road trip so far and given us a chance to win ballgames.”

When the Nationals called Traber up on Aug. 6 from Class AAA New Orleans, the 6-foot-5 left-hander filled Livan Hernandez’s spot in the rotation the day after the staff ace was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Traber, a first-round draft pick of the New York Mets in 2000, has quietly gone from the back end of the Nationals rotation to arguably the staff’s most reliable starter in about three weeks.

In his last start on Monday against the Florida Marlins, Traber (3-2, 5.13 ERA) deserved a better fate. He had pitched six shutout innings and struck out a career-high seven batters, but took the loss when he allowed three runs in the seventh and the Nationals had just four hits.

Traber has come back after Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery in September 2003, which caused him to sit out the 2004 season. Traber spent all of last season pitching in the Cleveland Indians’ system before the Nationals signed him as a free agent in the offseason.

Traber went 1-1 in two starts with the Nationals in April before returning to New Orleans. In Traber’s first two starts after being recalled, he outpitched a pair of future Hall of Famers.

“We’ve been following his career. You always watch those young guys that have surgeries and injuries because a lot of them do come back,” Nationals general manager Jim Bowden said. “Any time you can beat [Tom] Glavine and [John] Smoltz back-to-back, not many pitchers have done that in baseball, and he pitched another great game in Florida, so he’s had three real good outings in a row.”

Still just 26, Traber said retirement never entered his mind after elbow surgery.

“You don’t work that hard at something to hang them up,” he said. “When you go through a surgery like that where it’s going to be a year at least, you’re coming back and you’re coming back at full force. You don’t want to come back just to pitch again. It’s too hard. That’s what you strive for, to get healthy, make the pain go away, and try and be effective. You don’t try and be something you’re not.”

Scouting reports say Traber doesn’t throw nearly as hard since the surgery. Traber says he never has been a hard thrower and would rather entice hitters to try to hit his array of off-speed pitches. Traber went 7-7 with a 4.05 ERA in 21 starts this season with New Orleans.

“I was always a high-80s, maybe a 90 guy, maybe a 91 in there, if I’m lucky,” said Traber, who is routinely clocked in the mid-80s. “I don’t think too much about the whole velocity thing.”

Traber had not pitched at the big-league level since 2003, when he was 6-9 with a 5.24 ERA in 18 starts with the Indians.

Early in that season, he pitched a one-hit shutout against the Mets on July 8, becoming the first Cleveland rookie to throw a one-hitter since Herb Score in 1955. But he blew out his elbow late in the season.

“He’s learned to control all his pitches, to command everything and to be able to throw it all in the strike zone when he needs to,” Nationals pitching coach Randy St. Claire said. “His attitude is to induce early contact and that’s what he’s been doing since he’s been here. He’s trying to get quick outs and make guys hit the ball and put it in play. He has a fastball, curveball, slider, changeup and a [split-finger fastball].”

The Nationals just hope he can keep delivering those quality starts in the final month of the season.

“I think his velocity has actually touched 89 to 90 miles per hour a couple times here,” said backup catcher Brandon Harper, who caught Traber for most of the season at New Orleans. “He’s got a different delivery in how he kind of throws his glove at the hitter a little bit — good deception that way. He’s deceptive because he’s big and long, and with that glove coming at you that deceives a hitter.”