I was told this morning, by a source completely separate from the ones from which I got the earlier story, that Matt Kemp WAS involved in the aborted trade for Sabathia, Blake and Carroll, and that either Jon Meloan or James McDonald also was involved. My source wasn't sure which one. Can't imagine Sabathia would have been much better than Kuroda was last night. If Kuroda can keep this up -- he has now thrown 16 scoreless in two starts since coming off the DL -- that's a pretty big presence in the rotation.

In case you haven't seen it yet, this is the news of the day:

http://www.dailynews.com/dodgers/ci_9812507

or at least it WAS the news of the day, right up until Hiroki Kuroda went out and nearly pitched a perfect game. Turned out to be a one-hit shutout in which he retired 27 of 28 batters, giving up only a leadoff double to Mark Teixeira in the eighth inning. And with that, the Dodgers (44-45) move into a first-place tie with the idle Snakes. Dead even. No percentage-point separation. This is as tied as tied can be. It's a whole new ballgame, with 73 ballgames to go for each team.

Some Kuroda trivia
--it's the first one-hitter by a Dodgers pitcher since Derek Lowe on Aug. 31, 2005 at the Cubs
--it would have been the first perfect game by a Dodgers pitcher since Sandy Koufax, also against the Cubs, on Sept. 9, 1965
--it would have been the first no-hitter by a Dodgers pitcher since Hideo Nomo at Colorado on Sept. 17, 1996
--it was the third complete-game shutout by a Dodgers pitcher this year, something that hadn't happened even once during the past two seasons or since Lowe's aforementioned one-hitter. The previous shutouts this year were by Kuroda against the Cubs, a four-hitter on June 6, and Eric Stults against the White Sox, a four-hitter on June 25.
--Kuroda pitched seven shutout innings in his previous start on Wed. night at Houston and now has allowed six hits over 16 shutout innings since coming off the DL.

RF Kemp
LF Ethier
C Martin
2B Kent
1B Loney
CF Jones
SS Garciaparra
3B DeWitt
RH Kuroda

If you saw my game coverage in today's paper, it centered mostly on the fact the Dodgers seem to have taken on a radically different personality over the past week or so, a fact that manager Joe Torre and a couple of the players backed up after Sunday's game. Well, I ran across this quote while reading the San Francisco Chronicle on the flight home this morning. It came from Giants shortstop Emmanuel Burriss, and it seems to back up the notion that these Dodgers have a new feistiness about them:
``I don't know if the Dodgers were playing harder (than other opponents) because of the rivalry or because we're on their tail, but I definitely had that sense out there. There seems to be more intensity.''

This was a big win for the Dodgers. It turned on a couple of key moments. First, with the game tied in the bottom of the second, the first two Giants got on base, and Matt Cain, trying to bunt, then popped a bunt just to the left of home plate. Russell Martin tried and failed to make a diving catch, and the ball bounced into foul territory. The plate ump originally ruled that the ball had made contact with Martin's glove in fair territory, which would have meant a single for Cain and bases loaded, no outs. But the 3B ump, who had a better angle, said it never touched Martin's mitt -- and televised replays seemed to back that up -- and that made it just a foul ball. Cain wound up sacrificing, but Eric Stults then pitched out of the second-and-third, one-out jam by striking out Fred Lewis and Ray Durham, and the Dodgers immediately came back with two runs in the top of the third. The other key moment was in the bottom of the fifth, with the Dodgers leading 5-2. The first two Giants batters reached, putting runners on first and third with none out, and Torre pulled Stults two outs shy of qualifying for the victory. On came Brian Falkenborg, the goat on Saturday night's game. He immediately got Bengie Molina and Aaron Rowand to pop up, then struck out Jose Castillo, preserving the three-run lead. Falkenborg was done for the day at that point, but he wound up getting the win by scorer's discretion. It was his first big-league win since Mother's Day 2004, his last stint with the Dodgers, when Olmedo Saenz's three-run jack in the 14th inning gave the Dodgers the victory. ... Dodgers improve to 43-45 with their seventh win in their past 10 games, and they remain a half-game behind the Snakes, who beat the Pods.

He won't be the starter this year -- he finished way down the list in fan voting. But he will be going to Yankee Stadium for the first time in his life (and, as he pointed out, probably the last), something he says he is really excited about.
``I fortunate enough to have a chance to play there,'' Martin said. ``A lot of people in this game never have the opportunity to play there, so I'm fortunate, especially with this being the last season of Yankee Stadium. It's going to be awesome.''
Martin also said he thinks this year's All-Star Game will be a more relaxing experience for him. Last year was his first, and it can be a bit of a whirlwind for those who have never been.

The San Diego-Arizona score went up as a final in the top of the seventh inning, literally about five seconds before Andy LaRoche grounded sharply to second to end the inning and strand runners on second and third. LaRoche was hitting for Chan Ho Park, who had been dazzling over six innings, allowing a run on three hits with seven strikeouts. On came the bullpen, and out went the game. Giants scored four in the bottom half, and the Dodgers whiffed (11 times in the game) at a chance to take over the division lead. They fall to 42-45 and stay a half-game behind the slumping Snakes. Dodgers now have to go at least 6-2 the rest of the way to be .500 (48-47) by the All-Star break.

But Ethier, who is sizzling, is playing against the lefty Barry Zito

RF Kemp
LF Ethier
3B Martin
2B Kent
CF Jones
SS Garciaparra
1B Loney
C Ardoin
RH Park

Today's sim game didn't go well. He shut it down in the fourth inning after he ``felt a little something in the back of his shoulder,'' according to Joe Torre. He'll see the doctor on Monday. No one seems to think it's anything major, but Chan Ho Park will fill that spot in the rotation for the rest of the first half. If it goes longer than that, Kershaw will be recalled again. There doesn't seem to be any sense of urgency with this, and really, his two-time All-Star status notwithstanding, why should there be? Penny last pitched on June 13 at Detroit, and the Dodgers lost that day to fall to 31-37 and remain a season-worst 5 1/2 games behind the Snakes. Since they, they are 11-7, and there is a chance they could leapfrog the Snakes into first place tonight. Now, I'm not saying Penny's absence is the reason. I'm just saying that the team clearly hasn't been all that affected by his absence.

Probably not. Not at this point, anyway. But according to multiple industry sources, the Dodgers have more than a passing interest in acquiring the reigning A.L. Cy Young Award winner -- IF the price is right. From what I understand, right now, it isn't. Sabathia is a free agent at season's end, so acquiring him carries with it the chance that he will be nothing more than a two-month rental. Dodgers aren't going to give up a ton of prospects for that. ... The other rumor out there centers on Jack Wilson, the Pittsburgh shortstop, who would seem to me to be exactly what the Dodgers need and exactly what they're looking for. He is an everyday-caliber SS, a former All-Star who can hit, and he has a year left on his contract -- plus a clup option for 2010. ... Dodgers GM Ned Colletti declined to comment on either possibility. ``It's just rumor,'' he said. ... Sabathia's $9 million salary for this year automatically bumped to $11 million when he won last year's Cy. Wilson is getting $6.5 million this year and $7.25 million next year. The option is for $8.4 million with a $600k buyout.