September 2009 Archives

The Dodgers beat the Pirates 5-4 in 13 innings tonight at Dodger Stadium. For a full box and recap click here.

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* Once again, Andre Ethier was the hero, hitting a dramatic, game-winning two-run home run in the bottom of the 13th to win it or the Dodgers. Ethier now has a major-league leading six walk-off hits and four walk-off homers this season...Ethier also leads the majors with nine walk-off hits since the start of the 2008 season...It was the Dodgers' 12th walk-off win of the season.

* Ethier became the first Dodger with a 30-homer season since Adrian Beltre slugged 48 in 2004. And for good measure, with his ninth-inning double, Ethier became the first Dodger to hit 40 doubles in a season since Shawn Green's 49 in 2003...His 40 doubles tie for sixth with Raul Mondesi (1996) and Eric Karros (1999) on the Dodgers single season doubles list.

* Jonathan Broxton has not allowed an earned run since August 15, going a perfect nine-for-nine in save opportunities and striking out 28 in 17.0 innings over 16 appearances in that span.

ETC...ETC:

* The Dodgers lead the Rockies by 5.0 games in the NL West and the Cardinals by 2.0 games for the Senior Circuit's top record...Los Angeles' magic number to clinch a postseason berth is 10, meaning any combination of Dodgers wins and Giants losses totaling 10 would send the club to the playoffs for the third time in four years.

* The Dodgers are a season-high 28 games above the .500 mark.

* The Dodgers improved to 27-19 in one-run games, 20-7 at home...Los Angeles in 6-4 in its last 10 one-run contests.

ON DECK:

* In the finale of the three-game series today 1t 12:30 p.m., the Dodgers send RHP Hiroki Kuroda (6-6, 4.00) against RHP Kevin Hart (1-5, 6.46)

The Giants beat the Dodgers 7-2 today in the final game of a weekend series in San Francisco. For a full recap and boxscore click here.

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* True to form, former Dodger Brad Penny turned out to be a Dodger killer in this one, going seven strong innings and limiting LA to just two runs. He struck out only two and uncharacteristically relied on the fly out.

* Chad Billingsley was ineffective. His ERA is nearing 4 after another mediocre start -- in this one, he lasted just four innings and allowed three runs. He didn't walk anybody but was knocked around to the tune of eight hits.

* Offensively, the Dodgers had only five hits and were scoreless until the seventh. Their only runs came on a two-run shot by Russell Martin.

ETC...ETC:

* Jeff Weaver was simply a hit-inducing machine. In just 1 1/3 innings, he allowed five hits and was charged with four runs.

* Manny Ramirez had the day off, but the Dodgers outfield still had three of the team's five hits. Juan Pierre replaced Manny in left and went 1-for-4.

* Charlie Haeger pitched the eighth in his first appearance for the Dodgers since September 2 and shut the Giants down 1-2-3.

* The Blue did turn a truly impressive double play in the fifth. On a Pablo Sandoval grounder to first with men on third and first, James Loney threw to Rafael Furcal covering second to get the first out and Furcal threw home, where Martin tagged out Freddy Sanchez.
ON DECK:

* Jon Garland (9-11, 4.23) faces Daniel McCutchen (0-1, 4.85) in the first game of a three-game set with the Pirates.

Today's lineups:

Dodgers
Furcal, SS
Pierre, LF
Ethier, RF
Kemp, CF
Loney, 1B
Blake, 3B
Belliard, 2B
Martin, C
Billingsley, P

Giants
Torres, CF
Sanchez, 2B
Winn, LF
Sandoval, 3B
Schierholtz, RF
Uribe, SS
Ishikawa, 1B
Whiteside, C
Penny, P

The Dodgers beat the Giants 9-1 at AT&T Park tonight. For a full recap and boxscore click here.

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* Vicente Padilla continued to shine with the Dodgers, pitching six strong innings. He hasn't lost a start with LA yet.

* Russell Martin and James Loney drove in a combined five runs, as Martin had a three-run homer and Loney went 2-for-4 with a two-run jack.

* Jonathan Sanchez, of no-hitter fame, was knocked around by the Dodgers. He lasted just 4 1/3 innings, allowing five hits, three walks, and four earned.

ETC...ETC:

* As I write this, the Rockies and Padres are tied at 2-2 in the top of the 10th inning. A Colorado loss would give the Dodgers a three-game lead in the NL West.

* Padilla has made four starts with the Dodgers, posting an ERA of 2.02. A valuable addition, to say the least.

* The LA bullpen was lights out, with just one baserunner allowed by Hong-Chih Kuo, Ronald Belisario, and James McDonald. They struck out four Giants.

ON DECK:

* The Dodgers try to sweep the Giants tomorrow at 1:05 p.m., sending out Chad Billingsley (12-9, 3.93) to face Brad Penny (9-8, 5.15).

Tonight's lineups:

Dodgers
Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Ramirez, LF
Kemp, RF
Blake, 3B
Loney, 1B
Martin, C
Hudson, 2B
Padilla, P

Giants
Velez, 2B
Renteria, SS
Sandoval, 1B
Molina, C
Uribe, 3B
Bowker, LF
Winn, RF
Rowand, CF
Sanchez, P

The Dodgers fell to the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-3 tonight in Arizona. For a full box click here.

* Arizona rallied for the winning run in the bottom of the ninth, taking advantage of a throwing error by Dodgers reliever Ramon Troncoso that allowed Gerardo Parra to reach second base to begin the inning. Parra moved to third on a sacrifice bunt, and Troncoso put the next two runners on with intentional walks, setting up a match-up against Mark Reynolds with the bases loaded. Reynolds worked the count to 3-2, fouled off a couple of pitches, then drew a game-winning walk.

* The Dodgers lead in the National League West is down to 2 1/2 games over Colorado, which rallied for two runs in the ninth inning to beat the Reds.

* Manny Ramirez had two hits - including his 18th home run of the year - and an RBI.

* Jon Garland gave up three runs over six pretty solid innings.

On Deck:

The Dodgers open a three-game series in San Francisco beginning Friday.

Ken Gurnick at MLB.com reports that Randy Wolf will miss his next start due to stiffness in the back of his left elbow. .According to Gurnick But Wolf was getting a bullpen session in before Tuesday night's game in Arizona when he felt stiffness and tried to compensate by changing his mechanics, at which point the decision was made to send him to Los Angeles for an exam.

Dr. Neal ElAttrache administered a cortisone injection Wednesday to calm "irritation," according to trainer Stan Conte. The discomfort is not in the area of the Tommy John operation Wolf underwent in 2005.

The Dodgers came back in dramatic fashion to defeat the Diamondbacks 5-4 tonight in Arizona. For a full box and recap..

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* In a must-have win with the Rockies breathing down their necks, the Dodgers cameback from a 4-1 deficit with four runs in the eighth inning to defeat the Diamondback.

* James Loney tied the game 4-4 with a single, and Ronnie Belliard followed with a 50-foot infield single to drive in the winning run.

* Jonathan Broxton pitched the ninth for his 34th save.

* Loney, Orlando Hudson and Adre Ethier each had two hits. Ethier drove in a pair of runs.

* With the win, the Dodgers maintained their 3 1/2 game lead over Colorado.

ON DECK:

* In the final game of the three-game series the Dodgers send RHP Jon Garland (9-11) against RHP Dan Haren (13-8)

Tonight's lineups:

Padres:

Cabrera SS
Eckstein 2B
Gonzalez 1B
Kouzmanoff 3B
Headley LF
Salazar RF
Venable CF
Hundley C
LeBlanc P

DODGERS:

Furcal SS
Ethier RF
Ramirez LF
Kemp CF
Blake 3B
Belliard 2B
Loney 1B
Ausmus C
Kershaw P

The Dodgers defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-2 tonight at Dodger Stadium. For a full recap and boxscore click here

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* Jon Garland, making his first start with the Dodgers since being traded to L.A. from Arizona on Monda, allowed two runs in 7.0 innings, retiring the last 14 batters he faced...he is now 3-0 with a 2.70 ERA (6 ER/20.0 IP) in his last three starts.

* Casey Blake went 3-for-4 with a double, leaving him just five hits shy of 1,000 in his career (995).

* Manny Ramirez hit a lead-off home run in the fourth inning to ties the game 2-2, his 16th home run of the year.

* Ronnie Belliard went 2-for-3 with three RBI and is batting .333 (4-for-12) with one homer and four RBI in four games as a Dodger.

ETC...ETC:

* After sharing the NL's top record with the Cardinals for one day, Los Angeles claimed back the Senior Circuit's top spot and now leads Philadelphia and St. Louis by 1.0 game.

* Garland became the 12th different Dodgers starting pitcher, one more than last year's total of 11 and one shy of the Los Angeles Dodgers record of 13 set in 1964... he became the first Dodger starter to earn a victory in the last seven games.

* Jonathan Broxton picked up his 31st save, which ranks 10th on the all-time Dodger single season saves list, trailing Todd Worrell's 32 in 1995 by one for the ninth spot...Eric Gagne has the Dodger record with 77 saves in both 2002 and 2003.

ON DECK:

* The Dodgers open a three-game home series against the San Diego Padres Friday by sending LHP Clayton Kershaw (8-7, 2.94) against LHP Wade LeBlanc (0-1, 9.58).

Tonight's lineups:

DIAMONDBACKS

Roberts 2B
Drew SS
Upton RF
Montero C
Reynolds. 3B
Allen 1B
Parra LF
Young CF
Buckner P

DODGERS

Furcal SS
Kemp CF
Ethier RF
Ramirez LF
Blake 3B
Loney 1B
Belliard 2B
Martin C
Garland P

The Dodgers beat the Diamondbacks 4-3 tonight at Dodger Stadium. For a full recap and boxscore click here.

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* Andre Ethier was the hero in this one, as he drew a bases-loaded walk to drive in the eventual winning run in the seventh and then made a spectacular play on a Brandon Allen drive to right-center. Ethier caught the ball at the top of the wall while on a dead run.

* Matt Kemp homered once again -- making it four straight games with a four-bagger for the 24-year-old centerfielder. After a 2-for-3 day, he's now OPSing an even .900 on the season.

* Dodgers starter Vicente Padilla was effective for his second consecutive start with the team, going 5.1 four-hit innings. He was charged with only one run but got the no-decision.

ETC...ETC:

* Scott Elbert, just called up earlier in the day from Triple-A as rosters expanded, was nearly the goat in this one. Elbert, who was 2-0 with a 4.80 ERA in three previous stints with the Dodgers, gave up two runs in the sixth after picking up for Padilla.

* Also called up were catcher A.J. Ellis and outfielder Jason Repko. It's Repko's first time with the big club since last September.

* Jim Thome, acquired from the White Sox on Monday, will debut with the Dodgers tomorrow. Jon Garland, acquired from Arizona, will start against the Diamondbacks Thursday, taking the spot of Charlie Haeger in the rotation.

ON DECK:
* In game three of the four-game set, the Dodgers' Chad Billingsley (12-8, 3.83) faces Arizona's Max Scherzer (8-8, 4.26)

The Diamondbacks defeated the Dodgers 4-1 at Dodger Stadium tonight. For a full box and recap click here

THE BARE ESSENTIALS:

* The Dodgers had no answer for Arizona starter Max Scherze, whor tossed a career-high 7.2 innings for the second time, matching his effort from June 11 vs. San Francisco. The only Dodger to have success was Andre Ethier, who went 3-for-4 and is now batting .367 (29-for-79) with 15 RBI in his last 20 games with an at bat. Manny Ramirez had an RBI single.

* Chad Billingsley was perfect through four innings, but gave up four runs in the fifth inning to take the loss.

* Matt Kemp's career-long home run streak ended at four games.

* Doug Mientkiewicz stroked a pinch-hit single in the sixth inning in his first game since April 16, when his dislocated his shoulder sliding into second base.

ETC...ETC:

* Dodgers failed to hit a long ball after a season-long eight consecutive games with a home

* The Dodgers and the Cardinals share the National League's best record with identical 79-55 marks....The two clubs had matching 17-8 records on May 2, and Los Angeles had been in sole possession of the Senior Circuit's top mark for 92 consecutive days.

* Charlie Haeger made his first relief appearance in a Dodger uniform, tossing a scoreless ninth...Each of his last three relief appearances have come at Dodger Stadium, the previous two (Sept. 23-24, 2008) coming as a member of the San Diego Padres.

ON DECK:

* In the finale of the four-game series Thursday, the Dodgers send newcomer RHP Jon Garland (8-11, 4.29) against his former teammates at RHP Billy Buckner (2-5, 8.63).

Tonight's lineups:

DIAMONDBACKS

Drew SS
Parra LF
Upton RF
Reynolds 3B
Montero C
Allen 1B
Romero CF
Ojeda 2B
Scherzer P

DODGERS

Furcal SS
Ethier RF
Ramirez LF
Kemp CF
Loney 1B
Belliard 3B
Martin C
Hudson 2B
Billingsley P

Tonight's lineups:

DIAMONDBACKS

Drew SS
Roberts 2B
Upton RF
Reynolds 3B
Montero C
Parra LF
Young CF
Tracy 1B
Petit P

DODGERS

Furcal SS
Kemp RF
Ethier CF
Ramirez LF
Blake 3B
Hudson 2B
Martin C
Loney 1B
Padilla P