Kuroda to Start Monday

From Ken Gurnick at Dodgers.com:

Hiroki Kuroda will return to the Dodgers' starting rotation Monday night for the opener of a nine-game homestand, manager Joe Torre announced before Friday's game with the Cubs. [...]

Torre said he hasn't decided who will be removed from the rotation to make room for Kuroda, but it will be one of two left-handers -- Eric Stults or Eric Milton -- who are scheduled to start the Saturday and Sunday night games against the Cubs this weekend. [...]

Whichever one comes out of the rotation figures to go into the bullpen and replace Will Ohman as the second left-handed reliever after rookie Brent Leach.

Kuroda didn't impress in his rehab, but the Dodgers obviously liked what they saw from him. After all, we know this isn't a rush job, having waited nearly two months for Kuroda's return. The good news is Kuroda will be facing the struggling Diamondbacks, who are scheduled to start Billy Buckner against him. A solid performance by Kuroda would go a long way to alleviating the Dodgers' pitching pressures.