Tony on the Dodgers: May 2007 Archives

Yhency Brazoban, who left after facing three batters and failing to retire any of them, will have an MRI tomorrow to determine the cause of pain in the back of his right shoulder. The good news is, it isn't his elbow. The bad news is, it still doesn't look good. And neither does the rest of the Dodgers' bullpen, which got hammered tonight. The interesting thing was that the only relievers who didn't get into the game were Takashi Saito, who would never be used in a game like this anyway, and Chad Billingsley. Could that mean Billingsley is the guy for the fifth spot? Quite possibly, because now, the Dodgers might need to add a 12th pitcher just to bolster the pen after tonight's game. That wouldn't be Hong-Chih Kuo, because he is starting at Las Vegas. Dodgers fall to 31-22. Arizona was off, so the D-back pull even. San Diego scored two in the ninth to tie the Pirates. If the Pods win, it will be a three-way tie for first.

It took Mark Hendrickson exactly three batters to become the first Dodgers starting pitcher to give up a run since, well, Mark Hendrickson on Saturday night against the Cubs. He gave up two of them , in fact, on a two-run homer by Ryan Zimmerman with one out, and Hendrickson was lucky he didn't give up more because the Nats left runners on the corners. Dodgers went quickly in the top of the inning against Micah Bowie. Nationals 2, Dodgers 0, top 2

Another slow news day. Here's what I came up with for tomorrow's paper

By Tony Jackson
Staff Writer
WASHINGTON -- It has gone virtually unnoticed in the shadow of the 15-game hitting streak that Rafael Furcal brought into Thursday night's game at Washington and the never-ending exploits of catcher Russell Martin, but Dodgers left fielder Luis Gonzalez has sizzled of late.
Sizzled to the tune of an eight-game hitting streak of his own, during which he was batting .414 (12 for 29).
``I made some minor adjustments,'' Gonzalez said. ``I worked a little bit with (hitting coach) Eddie (Murray), just trying to shorten some stuff up a little bit. It's just part of the game. You're always tinkering with things.''
The surge has raised Gonzalez's average almost 30 points to .286. In the first two games of the series here, he went 4 for 8 with a double and a three-run homer.
Gonzalez said his adjustment has been strictly mechanical and that he hasn't changed his approach at the plate at all. Instead, he and Murray worked to simplify Gonzalez's swing and reduce the amount of bodily movement it involved.
``We just generally played around with it until Eddie said, `Hey, let's try this,''' Gonzalez said. ``I'm seeing the ball good and just going from there. When you have played this game as long as I have, you know when you're in a zone and feeling good. But for the most part, you try not to get too high. You just ride it out and have good at-bats.
``Two weeks from now, I might be (adjusting) something else.''

Second thoughts: One day after he all but confirmed that left-hander Hong-Chih Kuo will be recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas to fill the vacant fifth spot in the Dodgers' starting rotation beginning on Saturday night, manager Grady Little seemed to backtrack slightly.
``The only thing I'm leaning toward right now is that I'm not going to make an announcement on the guy yet,'' Little said.
Little said his reticence comes from the fact another player -- probably a position player, but not necessarily -- will have to be sent to the minors to clear a roster spot if Kuo is called up. Kuo would give the Dodgers a 12-man staff if another pitcher isnt sent out, but Little said club officials haven't decided on that yet.

Also: Although reliever Chin-hui Tsao becomes eligible to return from the 15-day DL on Monday night at Pittsburgh, it doesn't appear that he will. Tsao played catch on Wednesday for the second time since going on the shelf with a right shoulder strain on May 23, and he continued to feel pain. He will throw again today.
``He is still a ways away,'' Little said. ``We won't let him throw off a mound until he is completely free of any kind of tightess or soreness.''

Escape clause: Veteran outfielder Larry Bigbie, who is hitting .349 at Las Vegas, has another escape clause in his minor-league contract, and that clause kicks in today.
Bigbie also tried to find a major-league job when his last ``out'' clause went into effect at the end of spring training, only to find no takers. But that came at a point when most clubs had largely set their rosters for opening day and before Bigbie had proven he was all the way back from the hernia that sidelined him most of last season.
Considering his numbers, there may be a lot of interest in him this time.

Furcal leads off again against Micah Bowie, a left-hander

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin
3B LaRoche
RF Ethier
LH Hendrickson

By the way, I asked Grady a couple of days ago about the determining factor for whether Ethier hits seventh or eighth. He basically said that he doesn't want a power hitter getting pitched around because he bats ahead of the pitcher, which is why Ethier hits seventh when Tony Abreu is at 3B. But, at least in theory, both LaRoche and Wilson Betemit have sufficient power that Grady doesn't want them hitting in front of the pitcher, either, and someone has to. So when one of them is in the lineup, that someone is Ethier. ... This is the Dodgers' last game ever at RFK (woohoo!!!!) -- and don't you DARE suggest that the Dodgers could still play the Nats in the playoffs, because they aren't gonna. What a colossal dump -- not to mention the fact it's in one of the worst areas of DC. And not to mention the fact it literally stinks. You can smell something rotting the minute you walk into the place. Good riddance, I say. Next time the Dodgers come here, they will be playing in a brand new, $600 million-plus park on the Anacostia River.

This is the first time the Dodgers have won two consecutive games by shutout since May 29-30 (the exact, same dates), 2004 against Arizona. Derek Lowe pitched tonight, giving up three hits over seven innings. The last two times through the rotation, Lowe, Brad Penny and Randy Wolf are a combined 4-0 with two no-decisions and an 0.69 ERA (that's 39 1/3 innings, three runs). Meanwhile, the Nats had won 12 of 17 before the Dodgers came to town, but that doesn't change the fact that they aren't very good. In the first two games of this series, not only have they not scored, but they have gotten just one runner as far as third base. That came in the eighth inning last night, when they already trailed 10-0. Another quality club put together by Jim Bowden. But they go well with the utter stench of their ballpark, which, thankfully, I never have to set foot in again after tomorrow night. Dodgers go to 31-21, their first time to 10 over this season, but Arizona (half-game back) and San Diego (one back) also won.

Here's the notebook top I just filed for tomorrow's paper on Schmidt's outing today No action so far in the game. Dodgers have gone four up, four down after scoring 10 runs on 16 hits last night. Dodgers 0, Nats 0, top 2

WASHINGTON -- Jason Schmidt blew away the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes for six innings on Wednesday, including rehabbing Angels outfielder Garret Anderson twice. Along the way, the right-hander blew away expectations in the first start of his own minor-league rehabilitation assignment with the Dodgers' Single-A Inland Empire affiliate, taking a giant leap toward returning to the big club.
The only question is whether he is ready to return now.
``I think there is some possibility, but it's too premature for us to say that strongly,'' said Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti, who was at the game in San Bernardino along with trainer Stan Conte. ``But I wouldn't rule it out, either.''
Schmidt pitched six shoutout innings, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out seven. But his velocity, which was noticeably down even before he went onto the disabled list April 17 with bursitis in his shoulder, still wasn't where it historically has been. His 71 pitches consistently fell between 88-91 mph and topped out at 92.
Not that anyone is terribly alarmed by that.
``You can pitch and be successful at 88-91,'' Colletti said. ``He can command four pitches. He might have to change the eye level and change the bat speed. But it's not like he has always been a power pitcher who lives and dies with one pitch.''
Schmidt will throw a side session on Friday, probably with the major-league team in Pittsburgh, after which there should be a much clearer picture of what happens next. He could make another start for Inland Empire, or he could make another start with a higher Dodgers affiliate, or he could return to the Dodgers' starting rotation sometime in the next week.
Manager Grady Little seemed to dismiss that notion.
``I think he'll have to build up to a certain point before he takes the rubber for us,'' Little said. ``That is just my personal opinion, but we'll talk about it.''

Except that Furcal, as Grady promised, is back in the leadoff spot against Nats lefty Mike Bacsik. Other than that, no reason to change after scoring 10 runs on 16 hits last night. That means Abreu is back in at third.

SS Furcal -- 14gm hitting streak
CF Pierre
1B Nomar -- hitting .442 w/RISP
2B Kent
LF Gonzo -- 7gm hitting streak, 10-25
C Martin -- hitting .426 w/RISP
RF Ethier
3B Abreu -- hitting .313 in six ML games
RH Lowe

Hotter than blazes here in the District. Throw in the humidity, and it's like a sauna every time you walk out of your hotel here -- although this wretched press box at RFK is like a meat locker. I always forget how much people who live in humid climates LOVE air conditioning. Several of the Dodgers players visited wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Medical Center today, and a group is going to tour the Pentagon tomorrow.

Juan Pierre went 4 for 5 with a triple and three doubles. If you're counting, that's nine total bases. It marked the first time in his career he has had four extra-base hits in a game. Penny pitched another masterpiece, 6 1/3 shutout innings, although the Dodgers' six-run seventh, in which Penny doubled and actually had to run the bases, appeared to gas him a little. He lasted just three hitters into the bottom of that inning. Furcal doubled in the eighth, his final at-bat, to extend his hitting streak to 14 games. Dodgers go to 30-21. The Pods lose, so the Dodgers are back in first place alone, a game ahead of San Diego. But Arizona is leading Philly by six in the ninth, so the Snakes will stay just a half-game back in second. ... A couple of us went to the upper deck and sat in a section that was almost empty -- which makes it all the more curious why a group of drunk, obnoxious and apparently underaged fans couldn't find anyplace better to sit than two rows directly behind us for about seven innings. Is this what the ticket-buying public normally deals with at the ballpark? We never complained (except to each other, under our breath), but security still visited them at least twice. Not sure why. Oh, well, they probably won't be there tomorrow (we hope).

This place is so bad that you can't even see the game from the second row of the press box. Thus, I always watch the games here from the sparsely populated upper deck, where I'm about to head at the end of the first inning, so I won't be posting in-game updates the way I usually do because my computer will be here at my seat in the press box, and I won't be. I'll try to post afer the game at some point. ... OK, here's one: Juan Pierre led off with a triple that barely missed bouncing over the wall for a groundrule double, and he might not have scored from second on Nomar Garciaparra's one-out single. But he was on third, so he did score. Nomar and Kent combined to make Jason Simontacchi throw two pitches. Kent followed Nomar's first-pitch single with a first-pitch GIDP to end the inning. Dodgers 1, Nationals 0, bottom 1

And Gonzo moves back to fifth, with Martin sixth.

CF Pierre -- .343 lifetime avg. vs. Nats
SS Furcal -- 14gm hit streak
1B Nomar
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin -- one of six ML catchers batting .300 or better
RF Ethier
3B Abreu
RH Penny

After dinner last night, Al Balderas, Diamond Leung and I went over to monuments along the mall. We did a LOT of walking. It's a long way from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial, especially on a humid night. But after that, we finally made it to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial shortly before midnight. The remnants of the Memorial Day ceremony held there only hours earlier were still there, hundreds of flowers and personal items left by surviving family members of those who gave their lives in the conflict. Someone had left a framed Western Union telegram from, I think it was 1966, informing a woman of her husband's death after his Howitzer backfired on him. What struck me most, though, was just how eerily quiet it was. There were about a dozen people there, doing the same thing we were, even at that late hour. But out of respect, no one said a word. I had seen it before, in the daytime, but there was something about seeing it in the final minutes of Memorial Day, in the darkness, with only a few footlights shining up on it, and the monuments, completely lit up, visible in the distance. Thanks to everyone in the military for their dedicated, unselfish service to country and mankind. And thanks to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Actually, at the moment, I SIT corrected. But tomorrow's Jason Schmidt rehab start at Single-A Inland Empire? It starts at 11 a.m., not noon as I wrote yesterday on this blog and for today's paper. If you show up at noon, you can still catch two-thirds of a minor-league ballgame, but you won't catch Schmidt -- he's likely to be gone by then. Once again, that's 11 AM. NOT NOON.

Right-hander Jason Schmidt, who signed a three-year, $47 million free-agent contract with the Dodgers in December and now has been on the 15-day disabled list for the past six weeks with bursitis in his right shoulder, will NOT throw a simulated game sometime on the Dodgers' current road trip to Washington, Pittsburgh and San Diego, Instead, the decision was made to fast-forward him straight to his minor-league rehabilitation assignment, which will begin on Wedesday at Single-A Inland Empire, which hosts Rancho Cucamonga at noon that day. There is no preset plan for how many innings or pitches Schmidt will throw, and there still is no timetable for his activation. The limit on minor-league rehabs for pitchers is 30 days, so it could still be a while. Trainer Stan Conte, who stayed back from the road trip, and general manager Ned Colletti will be there to watch Schmidt. If you're interested in attending, the 66ers play at Arrowhead Credit Union Park, which is at 280 South E Street in San Bernardino. For ticket info, call (909) 888-9922

Pierre brought the leather, robbing Mark DeRosa of a hit with a diving catch in the top of the 11th, then brought his left knee, which collided with a pitch from Carlos Marmol with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th, forcing in the winning run. There was some initial confusion when the play happened, and the only people who seemed to realize that the Dodgers had won the game were Ramon Martinez, who scored the winning run when the pitch caromed off Pierre's knee and into foul territory, and Russell Martin, the on-deck hitter who exchanged fist bumps with Martinez. Everyone else was confused by Pierre pleading with plate umpire Dana DeMuth for the hit batter call, an appeal by the Cubs to third-base umpire Doug Eddings who signaled that Pierre hadn't swung at the pitch and the fact Pierre was trotting up the first-base line. This one could stick in Piniella's craw for a long time, especially after Angel Guzman, who had been perfect in the ninth and 10th, walked the first two batters in the 11th. And the worst part is, the Cubs will have to wait until Labor Day to try to even the series at 1,007 games apiece. Dodgers go to 29-21 and stay tied with San Diego atop the division, with Arizona one game back. The D-backs play tomorrow, the Dodgers and Pods do not. ... Have a safe and happy Memorial Day, everyone.

Dodgers have had six different innings today in which they sent just three batters to the plate, including the bottom of the ninth, when neither Pierre, Martin nor Kent could reach against Angel Guzman. They also went down one-two-three (or was it two-three-four?), all on fly balls, in the eighth after Ethier led off the inning with his home run. Pierre is 0 for 4 with four flyball outs. Broxton is dealing though, and is now in his second inning. He just blew away Derrek Lee for the second out in the 10th. Cubs 1, Dodgers 1, top 10

Grady sent Ethier to hit for Andy LaRoche leading off the bottom of the eighth. Piniella countered with lefty Scott Eyre because Ethier hits left-handed. Ethier countered with a game-tying homer, the first pinch-hit jack this year by any Dodger not named Wilson Betemit. Also, Russell Martin made a spectacular catch of a foul pop by Matt Murton in the seventh, falling into the below-ground-level front row of the dugout-club seats and still holding onto the ball. Cubs 1, Dodgers 1, bottom 8

Aramis Ramirez, pinch-hitting for the interestingly named Angel Pagan (it's Puh-GONN, not PAY-gun), just flied to the track in right field with the bases loaded. Another two feet, and this one would have been way out of reach of the offensively challenged Dodgers. As it is, it ended the eighth inning, and the Cubs have now stranded nine. But they did get a run earlier in the inning on three straight singles off Rudy Seanez. Ethier now batting for LaRoche. Cubs 1, Dodgers 0, bottom 8

The Dodgers got out of the top of the third without even realizing it. Randy Wolf fielded a comebacker from Ryan Theriot and threw it to Jeff Kent for the force at second, the third out of the inning. But after stepping on the bag, Kent took a couple of steps toward Wolf as if the inning wasn't over, and Wolf and the other seven Dodgers on the field seemed to follow suit. Only after the umpires reminded them that it was the third out did they start jogging off the field. It APPEARS that Kent was the one who initially got confused and everyone else then got confused by his confusion. Have to wait until after the game to find out what really happened, though. This is a pitcher's duel extraordinaire between Wolf and Rich Hill, with some great defense (especially by former Gold Glove 1B Derrek Lee) thrown in. Cubs 0, Dodgers 0, end 4

Furcal is back after missing yesterday with a tight right knee. And Martin is hitting third for the second time this season.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
C Martin
2B Kent
1B Saenz
LF Gonzo
3B LaRoche
RF Clark
LH Wolf

Today is the rubber match of the series. THE ALL-TIME SERIES. In the more than a century that the Dodgers and Cubs have been playing each other, they are dead even, with each team having beaten the other 1,006 times

Dodgers tried to rally in the eighth and then again in the ninth. But Jeff Kent, pich hitting for Gonzo, took a called third strike with the bases loaded to end the eighth, and Olmedo Saenz GIDP's with two on and one out to end the game. Dodgers went 1 for 9 with RISP and lost by two runs. But the good news was that not only did Billingsley have a good outing, he also threw 40 pitches and ate three innings behind the shaky Hendrickson. That could put Billingsley in a position to start next Saturday at Pittsburgh, which is the next time the Dodgers need a fifth starter, or even sooner if Grady decides to push Hendrickson into the fifth spot (or replace him in the rotation with Kuo). Should be an interesting week. Dodgers fall to 28-21, and the Pods will tie them for first place if they beat the Brewers tonight. ... One more night in my own bed. This 17-day stretch at home (two six-game homestands bookended around a three-gamer in Anaheim) has been OUTSTANDING. Most importantly, for me. But it has been good for the Dodgers, as well. They are 8-6 on that stretch, with one more game to go tomorrow, and with Randy Wolf going, they have a semi-favorable pitching matchup even though Rich Hill has pitched well for the Cubs. And don't forget, this 10-game road trip starts with three in DC and four in Pittsburgh, where the Nats and Buccos are a combined 16 games under .500. And then, a three-game showdown with the Pods at Petco.

The Dodgers did mount a mini-threat in the fourth, when Pierre and Abreu began the inning with back-to-back hits, but nothing came of it. Just a foul pop, a ground ball that advanced the runners and a called third strike to Gonzo, who is now hitting .233 w/RISP. Hendrickson was gone after five innings. They already took Tomko out of the rotation, so I'm not sure what they're going to do with this guy, but it appears the Dodgers have gotten about all they're going to get out of him. Cubs 4, Dodgers 0, top 7

This is as good as I have ever seen him. He has faced the minimum through three, with four Ks. Gonzo got him for a one-out single in the second, but that was quickly erased on Wilson Betemit's GIDP. Aramis Ramirez and Mark DeRosa got Hendrickson for back-to-back homers in the second, first time the Cubs have done that this year. But Gonzo might have saved another run later in that inning. With Matt Murton on second and one out, Cesar Izturis hit a blooper to left that Gonzo couldn't get to, but Gonzo faked having a bead on it, even sticking his glove up to catch it just before it landed about five feet in front of him. Murton was deked just long enough that he held up slightly between second and third, which prevented him from scoring, and Hendrickson then got out of the inning without further damage. But Henry Blanco just singled to drive in Murton, padding the Cubs' lead. Cubs 3, Dodgers 0, top 4

Rafael Furcal is out with right knee stiffness. Doesn't sound serious. Here is the new lineup

CF Pierre
2B Abreu
1B Nomar
C Martin
LF Gonzo
3B Betemit
RF Ethier
SS Martinez
LH Hendrickson

Russell Martin is batting cleanup, and Tony Abreu is playing second base, where he played most of the time at Las Vegas. Probably has something to do with the fact Kent is 6 for 27, with 11 strikeouts, against Carlos Zambrano. Meanwhile, even though it's a day game after a night game, Mike Lieberthal continues to gather dust.

SS Furcal -- 12gm hitting streak and 25 hits in last 50 ABs
CF Pierre -- 3-19 (.158) against Zambrano
1B Nomar -- 20-47 with RISP
C Martin -- hitting .422 with RISP
LF Gonzo -- 4gm hit streak (6-14)
3B Betemit
RF Ethier
2B Abreu
LH Hendrickson -- facing Cubs for first time in his career

Easily the best game of the year. Dodgers came back with four in the bottom of the eighth on a shaky Cubs pen. Rafael Furcal drove in the tying run with his first hit of the night, running his hitting streak to 12 games, and Juan Pierre, choosing not to try to bunt for a hit for just the second time in five at-bats tonight, drove in the winner with a sac fly. Dodgers began the inning with three straight hits off Bob Howry, then Olmedo Saenz singled in the first run off Will Ohman (Oh man, they brough HIM in? Bad joke, sorry). The rest of the damage was done against Angel Guzman, who immediately threw a wild pitch and let three inherited runners score. The loss went to Ohman (Oh man, HE took the loss? Sorry, couldn't resist). Anyway, the Dodgers go to 28-20 on the year and stay one game ahead of the Padres (do they EVER lose?) . Good night, everyone

The Dodgers have suffered their biggest blown lead (five runs) of the season. Cubs got one in the sixth. So far in the seventh, they have six more. Grady made the decision in the bottom of the sixth to pinch hit for Lowe, who had thrown just 83 pitches and limited the Cubs to four hits. But in the seventh, Yhency Brazoban couldn't get anybody out, and neither could Jonathan Broxton, who faced five batters and gave up five hits but did manage to pick Derrek Lee off second base. Five batters and one pitching change later, the Dodgers still haven't managed to get that last out. This was a game they needed to win with Carlos Zambrano waiting to face them tomorrow. Cubs 7, Dodgers 5, (still) top 7

He has a two-run homer and a two-run double, with the double knocking Ted Lilly out of the game with one out in the fifth. Furcal's hitting streak is in jeopardy, as he's 0 for 3. Derek Lowe has allowedjust two hits through the first five innings. Dodgers 5, Cubs 0, bottom 5

Sorry no bloggy yesterday. I needed a day away from anything baseball-related. But now, I am completely refreshed and ready for action -- even though Billy Witz is covering the game for us tonight. But anyway, Wilson Valdez cleared waivers and was outrighted to Las Vegas -- probably a big blow to him, but a big coup for the team because they get to keep him in the organizatio, and they really like this guy. Here's tonight's lineup for this series opener against the Cubbies.

SS Furcal -- 11gm hit streak
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
C Martin
LF Gonzo
3B Abreu
RF Ethier
RH Lowe -- 200th career start

Also, a hearty congrats to the legendary Stu Nahan, who got his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame today. Ran into Stu getting on the elevator at Angel Stadium last weekend, and it was great to hear that he is healthy and feeling good. I'll never forget one night during the 2004 season, when he was still traveling with the Dodgers, and Gary Miereanu and Tom Boman and I sat up until, like, 4 in the morning in the bar at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in Atlanta (the bar had long since closed) listening to Stu tell stories. This guy is one of the greatest storytellers who ever lived, and I have seldom laughed so hard in my life. Good times.

Tony Orlando is here. He was sitting in Frank McCourt's box for a few innings, and they showed him on the big board, arm in arm with Tommy Lasorda. The Dodgers didn't knock three times on the ceiling, but they did score four times in the first. Three of those runs came on a bases-clearing double by Russell Martin, and Gonzo picked Martin up with a single to left. Chris Capuano was lifted after four innings. Penny is sailing along, working on a three hit shutout -- with an assist from that notorious low wall down in the leftfield corner. Rickie Weeks' two-out double in the fifth bounced into the front row down there, forcing Corey Hart to hold at third when he might have scored from first. Tony Gwynn then popped up to end the inning, stranding both runners. Dodgers 4, Brewers 0, bottom 5

Chin-hui Tsao went on the 15-day DL today with a right shoulder strain that I'm guessing is related to the rotator cuff surgery that caused him to miss almost all of the past two seasons. To fill his roster spot, the club recalled Yhency Brazoban from Triple-A Las Vegas. Meanwhile, after Juan Pierre went 0 for 8 in two games batting leadoff, Grady has returned Rafael Furcal back to the top spot.

SS Furcal -- 6-13, 1 HR vs. Chris Capuano
CF Pierre -- 7-12 vs. Capuano
1B Nomar
2B Kent
C Martin -- 6-9 vs. Capuano
LF Gonzo
3B LaRoche
RF Ethier
RH Penny

A few odds and ends ... Furcal extended his hitting streak to 10 games, although he cooled off a bit by going just 1 for 4. ... Juan Pierre just can't catch a break. The poor guy drops a perfect bunt in the first inning that he would have beaten out, but when Brewers third baseman Tony Graffanino threw wide of first and Prince Fielder then made a motion to go for the ball, Pierre must have figured based on Fielder's movement that the ball was coming straight for the back of his head. So Pierre threw up his arms as he crossed the bag, and Fielder appeared to accidentally clothesline Pierre, resulting in Pierre falling to the turf on the other side of the bag. The call? Interference on Pierre, of course, negating the whole play and resulting in an out. Pierre went 0 for 4 for the second night in a row since moving into the leadoff spot. ... Another crazy deadline story tonight, just the opposite of the one I laid out in this blog a couple of weeks ago. Our deadline for first edition is 10 p.m. or the end of the game, whichever comes first, with the second-edition story due at 11:15. Well, tonight's game went so fast that I didn't have time to get the first edition story done by the time the game ended at 9:25 p.m. So, just before the game ended, I called the sports desk and proposed that I not file the story until 10 p.m., after going to the clubhouse for quotes, and thus they wouldn't have to worry about a second story at all. Thankfully, they obliged, making my life easier because I didn't have to stay in the press box frantically finishing my first story while I should have been in the clubhouse getting interviews, and making the desk's life easier too because they only had to edit, and write a headline for, one story instead of the usual two. ... I was the guest on Rick Monday's pregame show tonight, and the topic was this blog and the changing nature of the print media. Some of you might have heard it. I mentioned to him that I wanted no part of this blog in the beginning, but that I now enjoy it more than anything else I do. That is in large part a testament to you, the readers, and especially those of you who post your comments on occasion. This blog wouldn't serve much of a purpose if it were just me pontificating. So thanks to all of you for your responses, and please keep them coming. ... Good night, all.

Russell Martin's third homer of the year, a two-run shot off Ben Sheets after Jeff Kent's double, just gave the Dodgers the lead in the fourth. Tony Abreu made a throwing error on the first play of his first game in the majors and momentarily bobbled another grounder in the second. But he settled in from there and now has four assists, including starting an inning-ending double play with runners on first and third in the third. Randy Wolf has settled in, also, retiring the side in order in the fourth after getting out of that third-inning jam. Furcal extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a single in the third. The Dodgers already have twice as many runs (two) and hits (four) as they got off Sheets on opening day. Dodgers 3, Brewers 1, bottom 4

Didn't get this in tomorrow's notebook because of space, but Jason Schmidt threw a side session today and, if he has no lingering ill effects from that tomorrow, will throw a simulated game before Friday night's game with the Cubs. He'll likely need at least two or three simulated games before he is ready for a rehab assignment. ``He definitely has to build up his stamina more than he has now,'' Grady said.

Grady wasted no time getting Tony Abreu into the lineup. He also wasted no time hinting that Abreu could move into the leadoff spot if Juan Pierre doesn't start producing, although he didn't mention Pierre by name. ``None of us around here should be assuming anything about our batting order at this point in time,'' Little said. Sounds like more changes could be coming. But they aren''t coming tonight.

CF Pierre -- 8-24 lifetime against Ben Sheets
SS Furcal -- 9-gm hitting streak (21-38)
1B Nomar -- 6-gm hitting streak, but just 6-23
2B Kent
C Martin
LF Gonzo -- strikes out once every 18.6 PAs, second best in NL
RF Ethier
3B Abreu -- major-league debut
LH Wolf -- 10.5 Ks/9 innings, second best in NL

The Dodgers have purchased the contract of hot-hitting, multi-faceted infielder Tony Abreu from Triple-A Las Vegas, sliding him into the vacant 40-man spot that has existed since Wilson Valdez was designated for assignment last week. Abreu, who was hitting .347 with a .397 OBP at Vegas, is in tonight's lineup at 3B and batting eighth. He will be making his major-league debut, and because he still has all of his options, he affords the Dodgers a bit of roster flexibility if they decide to go back to 12 pitchers. Abreu won the Jim and Dearie Mulvey Award during big-league spring training as the top rookie in camp.

How long can the club keep riding Brett Tomko? That was the question, exact wording, that I asked Grady Little after the game. The answer was short, vague and in no way a ringing endorsement. ``We'll see,'' he said. I kept waiting for the elaboration. but there wasn't any. Tomko clearly is in trouble, and well he should be at 1-5 with a 6.28 ERA. And while it's clear that Chad Billingsley isn't ready to take Tomko's spot -- he gave up hits to four of the six batters he faced, allowed two of Tomko's runners to score and gave up a run of his own -- don't forget about D.J. Houlton. This guy isn't the same, inconsistent, not-ready-for-prime-time rookie the Dodgers suffered through as a Rule 5 pick in 2005. He overhauled his mechanics in spring training, taking a side mound almost every morning while pitching coach Rick Honeycutt, bullpen coach Dan Warthen and a varied host of minor-league pitching coaches like Ken Howell, Marty Reed, Danny Darwin, Charlie Hough all watched intently. It had to be somewhat embarrassing for the kid, having all those coaches standing around him every morning. But it worked. Houlton is 5-2 with a 3.28 ERA at Las Vegas, and the Dodgers are in desperate need of another reliable starter. ... Funny thing about Furcal's Pals, this program Rafael Furcal has started this season where he brings kids out to the ballpark. The correct pronunciation of Furcal's last name, from what I have been told, is Fur-CAHL. That doesn't rhyme with ``pals.'' But when the program was referenced by the Dodger Stadium PA guy tonight, it was pronounced Fur-CAL's pals. Conveniently, that does rhyme. ... Kudos to Dodgers clubhouse manager Mitch Poole, who a couple of days ago changed the ring tone on his cell phone. The new one is Journey's Don't Stop Believin'. If, like Mitch and myself, you were a teenager during the 1980s, I don't have to tell you why that is simply OUTSTANDING.

Rafael Furcal extended his hitting streak to nine games with a gift single in the first inning when a ground ball got stuck in Brewers 2B Rickie Weeks' glove. Furcal also walked in the third inning. Other than that, the Dodgers look like the same team that sputtered all weekend. This team has NO OFFENSE. Meanwhlie, Tomko is getting knocked around. He has given up two BOMBS in four innings to Prince Fielder and Johnny Estrada. Brewers 3, Dodgers 0, top 4

LaRoche is batting seventh, ahead of Ethier. And Tomko, not Wolf, is pitching tonight. My bad on both accounts. Sorry

Grady finally shook up the lineup, although it isn't the change a lot of you have been clamoring for. He flipped Furcal and Pierre, and then he flipped Gonzo and Martin. This is the result

CF Pierre
SS Furcal
1B Nomar
2B Kent
C Martin
LF Gonzo
RF Ethier
3B LaRoche
LH Wolf

Personally, I thought Furcal should have been dropped to third because it's an RBI spot, with Martin moving up to second and Nomar going to fifth. But as Grady is so fond of pointing out, he is the manager, and he gets to fill out the lineup card.

Four Brewers players -- pitchers Jeff Suppan and Chris Capuano, infielder J.J. Hardy and outfielder Bill Hall -- will tape a segment tomorrow for an episode of Young & the Restless scheduled to air on June 20. For those of you who watch regularly, they are playing themselves, Brewers players appearing at a political rally for Jack Abbott. (My mom is a HUGE fan of the show). The show is set in the fictional town of Genoa City, which I guess is supposed to be in Wisconsin, which is why Brewers players would be attending a political rally there. Yet for some reason, no one on the show speaks with a Wisconsin accent. If you have ever been to Milwaukee (or Green Bay, or Madison, or Kenosha), you know exactly what I am talking about. ... Horrendous day today, cloudier and more overcast even than yesterday, and it's already cold at 3 o'clock. Brewers should feel right at home. Then again, they have a domed stadium.

Dodgers were never in this game and never in this series. They got outscored 19-4. Today, they never even got a runner past second base until the ninth inning. I can hear the postgame comments emanating from the Dodgers clubhouse now: ``Give Kelvim Escobar credit, he pitched a great ballgame." True enough, but it would be nice if the Dodgers could have at least made him work for it. Dodgers fall to 25-19, and their lead will shrink to at least 1 1/2 games (AZ), one game if San Diego holds onto its 2-1 lead at Seattle.

The fifth inning was just like the first, except the damage was a lot worse. Once again, a ball was hit to Wilson Betemit that should have ended the inning. But as he cocked to throw to first, Betemit hesitated for a split second, then uncorked a one-hop throw that Orlando Cabrera easily beat out to load the bases. Vladimir Guerrero followed with a seeing-eye, infield single, driving in one run, and Rafael Furcal made an ill-advised throw to first that skipped past Nomar, letting in another run. Gary Matthews then singled in another off a frustrated Lowe, who grabbed a handful of dirt from the mound and heaved it in disgust. Not that any of that really mattered, though. This one was over from the moment the Angels scored their first run. Dodgers, who are 0 for 4 with RISP and 2 for 20 in the series, will go to 1-20 in interleague road games since the start of 2005. Angels 4, Dodgers 0, top 7

Dodgers haven't had a hit since Kent's GIDP ruined their first-inning rally. Kelvim Escobar is having his way with them. Juan Pierre, who as I stated earlier HAS to hit the ball on the ground to be successful, has now popped up twice in two at-bats, each one after Rafael Furcal reached. The only run of the game so far was unearned, the result of the Dodgers' 35th error of the season, a botched ground ball by Wilson Betemit at third that would have gotten them out of the first inning. Instead, the play left the Angels with runners on the corners and two outs, after which Casey Kotchman hit Derek Lowe's next pitch into right field for an RBI single. Not quite sure why Betemit is in the lineup, especially with Andy LaRoche on the bench and Betemit having gone 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and a groundout last night. Angels have now scored in the first inning of all three games of this series. Hate to say it, but the tight score notwithstanding, this one appears to be over -- before it started, actually. Angels 1, Dodgers 0, top 4

That was Grady's only explanation for why Gonzo is out. But given the production he has gotten out of Nomar, Kent and Gonzo in this series (4 for 22), he had to try something. Sorry this is late. Schmidt's side session (60 pitches, split into 15-pitch sets) took forever, and we couldn't get Grady until it was over.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
DH Saenz
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B Betemit
LF Clark

RH Lowe

Schmidt still isn't close to a rehab, but the session went well. He threw all his pitches, although he wasn't airing out his fastball. ... Kent just GIDP'd with runners on first and second and one out to end the first. Pierre, who HAS to hit the ball on the ground to be successful, popped up in between singles by Furcal and Nomar. So the aforementioned trio is now 5 for 24 in the series. Dodgers 0, Angels 0, middle 1

Not only is it totally overcast down here, it's chilly. I see where the highs the next two days are only going to be 69. This is my fourth spring in SoCal, and I can't remember it ever staying this cool this deep into the spring. Every night at the ballpark, I'm bundled up in layers trying to keep warm. Drive down was a breeze, though, I actually came on the 5 today and didn't run into a single incident of gridlock. ... Dodgers are a middling 10-9 against teams that have winning records going into today. So while it's true that all wins count the same in the standings (even though in real terms, wins against teams in your own division are really equal to TWO wins against other clubs), if the Dodgers do manage to make the playoffs, every team they face in the postseason is going to be quality. Right now, this team isn't eqipped to get past the first round. But a lot can happen between now and October. Maybe Colletti will make a big move. Maybe some (overly) aggressive hitters will become patient hitters.

Filed this little nugget as the top to tomorrow's notebook. Thanks to Josh42big for tipping me off to it in a note he posted on this blog. Sounds like this was a momentary little minor thing that got quickly resolved, and life goes on, especially since these guys are such close friends. But hey, it's newsworthy.

ANAHEIM -- Dodgers outfield prospects Matt Kemp and Delwyn Young, who are close friends and roommates at Triple-A Las Vegas, got into a minor shoving match during batting practice before Thursday night's game at Portland. Multiple sources within the organization confirmed the incident Saturday, but apparently no punches were thrown and the matter was quickly resolved.
Although no one would comment on any disciplinary action, it appears the two were suspended for one game each. Neither played in that night's game, a 6-1 victory, but both returned to the lineup on Friday night, when the 51s again beat Portland 6-1.
The incident reportedly happened before the ballpark gates opened and thus didn't take place in view of fans. No one would comment on what the disagreement might have been about.
Kemp, 22, who was in the majors from opening day until he went on the disabled list after bruising his right shoulder running into a scoreboard in the rightfield wall on April 9 at Dodger Stadium, is one of the club's most prized prospects. He was optioned to Las Vegas when he came off the DL on April 27. Young, 24, made his major-league debut with a callup last September, when he appeared in eight games and went hitless in five at-bats.
Both players are on the Dodgers' 40-man roster. By all accounts, they remain friends and roommates even after the incident.

Filed this little nugget as the top to tomorrow's notebook. Thanks to Josh42big for tipping me off to it in a note he posted on this blog. Sounds like this was a momentary little minor thing that got quickly resolved, and life goes on, especially since these guys are such close friends. But hey, it's newsworthy.

ANAHEIM -- Dodgers outfield prospects Matt Kemp and Delwyn Young, who are close friends and roommates at Triple-A Las Vegas, got into a minor shoving match during batting practice before Thursday night's game at Portland. Multiple sources within the organization confirmed the incident Saturday, but apparently no punches were thrown and the matter was quickly resolved.
Although no one would comment on any disciplinary action, it appears the two were suspended for one game each. Neither played in that night's game, a 6-1 victory, but both returned to the lineup on Friday night, when the 51s again beat Portland 6-1.
The incident reportedly happened before the ballpark gates opened and thus didn't take place in view of fans. No one would comment on what the disagreement might have been about.
Kemp, 22, who was in the majors from opening day until he went on the disabled list after bruising his right shoulder running into a scoreboard in the rightfield wall on April 9 at Dodger Stadium, is one of the club's most prized prospects. He was optioned to Las Vegas when he came off the DL on April 27. Young, 24, made his major-league debut with a callup last September, when he appeared in eight games and went hitless in five at-bats.
Both players are on the Dodgers' 40-man roster. By all accounts, they remain friends and roommates even after the incident.

Not much else to say about this one, except that until they prove otherwise, the Dodgers can't win in American League parks and they can't take advantage of opportunities. They went 1 for 8 with RISP tonight after going 1 for 7 last night. The Dodgers might have the better record -- or at least they did until tonight -- but the Angels are clearly the better team. Dodgers fall to 25-18.

The Angels put the game out of reach on a weakly hit pop fly from Robb Quinlan that landed in short left field, where no one could quite get to it until Quinlan had legged out a double. Two runs scored on the play, giving the Angels a three-run lead that quickly became four when Shea Hillenbrand's single drove in Quinlan. Mike Lieberthal's two-out double in the seventh just chased Jered Weaver, but with apologies to JoJo (can you tell I have a teenaged daughter?) it's just Too Little, Too Late. Furcal just flied to left off Scot Shields. Dodgers will go to a wretched 1-19 in interleague road games since the start of the 2005 season. Angels 6, Dodgers 2, middle 7

Jeff Kent tied the game by shooting a 2-0 pitch from Jered Weaver onto the tarp in left-center field, his sixth home run of the season. But with another chance to tie it in the third, Kent came to the plate with runners on first and third and two outs and took a terrible at-bat, flying out to center on the first pitch. Weaver has had Dodgers batters swinging and missing the whole game, but he hasn't been unhittable. Meanwhile, Mark Hendrickson has been up and down, giving up a hit an inning, one of which was Mike Napoli's tiebreaking homer in the second. Weaver just walked Gonzo to start the fourth. Angels 2, Dodgers 1, top 4

Betemit is in there, too.

SS Furcal -- 17 hits in past 24 ABs (.708)
CF Pierre
1B Nomar -- .462 avg w/RISP, tied for 2nd in NL
2B Kent -- hitless past 10 ABs
LF Gonzo
DH Martin -- 5-10 past three games
3B Betemit -- 4-8 in his past three games
RF Ethier -- batting .396 lifetime in interleague play
C Lieberthal

LH Hendrickson -- club is 4-1 when he starts

Good afternoon (that's English for good afternoon). Haven't seen tonight's lineup yet, but expect the Dodgers to go heavily left-handed. Right-handed batters are hitting .211 off Jered Weaver, while lefties are hitting .356 against him. Probably means Wilson Betemit at DH, but other than that, there aren't a lot of options. With Marlon Anderson on the DL, there isn't a pure left-handed hitter on the Dodgers' bench. Sounds to me like a reason to bring up James Loney. Wouldn't be that hard to find a spot for him. ... Another beautiful day in the O.C. (I'm told no one down here EVER referred to it as the O.C. until that ridiculous TV show came out). No clouds, very little smog. Randy Wolf is out doing his running, in the same navy blue T-shirt and gray shorts he runs in EVERY SINGLE DAY. Maicer Izturis, Ervin Santana and either Shea Hillenbrand or Tommy Murphy (I don't know the Angels that well) are all running, as well, in tandem. The grounds crew is getting the field ready for BP. ... Today's drive down was a breeze, not too much traffic. I took the secondary route again, although I might give the 5 a shot tomorrow because I can't imagine it will be jammed on a Sunday morning. ... I can tell I'm getting old now because I can remember a time when I would have loved tonight's 6:05 start because it would mean more time to go out afterward. Now, I love it because it means I can get to bed earlier.

Since 2005, the Dodgers are now 1-18 in interleague road games. That doesn't happen by accident. I continue to become more and more convinced that there is a built-in advantage for American League teams against National League teams, especially in A.L. parks., and although I can't quite put a finger on what it is, I am certain it has something to do with the DH. ... I agree with everything Jeff Kent said -- and says every year -- after the game about the evils of interleague play. I don't like it one bit, either. I think it is effectively a speed bump in the schedule that interrupts the flow of division races. But the difference between me and Kent (other than about $11 million in annual salary) is that I don't think it does a bit of good to complain because it's NEVER GOING AWAY. It's a little like all those hoops you have to jump through at the airport now, all the colossal indignities to which all those TSA agents so gleefully subject us. You can complain about it, you can get righteously indignant about it, but it isn't going away. Not now, not next year, not ever. ... Sitting here late at night in a now empty, dark Angel Stadium, I'm suddenly reminded of one of my favorite childhood memories. In 1978, my famiily came out from Arkansas for a couple of weeks to visit some relatives who lived in Diamond Bar. Dodgers were out of town, and I wanted to see a game, so my dad and my uncle brought me out here to see the Angels play the Yankees (I was 11). The ballpark sure looked a lot different then. we saw a Sunday day game, and the Angels beat the defending World Series champs 9-6. Roy White and Graig Nettles homered for the Yankees. I bought a program that I kept for years. Don Baylor was on the cover. Years later, when I was covering the Rockies, I dug it up on a visit to my parents' house and took it back to Denver with me to show him (he was managing the Rox at the time). Going to a big-league ballgame was an event for me in those days, growing up in a small town more than 250 miles from the nearest big-league park. Funny how I can remember every detail of games I went to then, but now, seeing a game almost every day, I forget what happened after a couple of hours. ... Good night.

Brad Penny can't keep Reggie Willits off the bases, and it has cost him plenty so far. A first -inning leadoff walk to Willits led to the Angels' first run, on a double to the wall in left-center by Orlando Cabrera. Willits' leadoff single in the third led to another run, but it wouldn't have happened if Willits hadn't stolen second. He then advanced to third and home on consecutive groundball outs. The Dodgers, meanwhile, have done nothing against Ervin Santana. The only thing close to a threat came in the third, when a walk to Juan Pierre put runners on first and second with one out. But the Dodgers ran themselves out of that when Furcal was caught on the front end of a double-steal attempt as Nomar was striking out. Gonzo just doubled with two outs in the fourth, bringing up Martin. Angels 2, Dodgers 0, top 4

Lefty Tim Hamulack, who had a 6.35 ERA in 33 relief appearances for the Dodgers last season but didn't make the team out of camp this year, had Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery on Friday and is done for the year. He had a 4.00 ERA in seven appearances at Triple-A Las Vegas this season, striking out 13 batters and walking just one in nine innings. ... Dodgers went quietly against Ervin Santana in the top of the first, managing only Garciaparra's harmless, two-out single. Jeff Kent smoked a line drive right into the glove of Orlando Cabrera to end the inning. Dodgers 0, Angels 0, middle 1

As promised, Olmedo Saenz is the DH. He'll bat fifth, pushing everyone from Gonzo on down one spot lower in the order. Everything else is the same.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
DH Saenz
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B LaRoche

RH Penny

And, I checked on the Matt Kemp question that Marcel asked about on another thread. Neither Stan Conte nor Kim Ng is aware of any physical issue involving Kemp. Could just be the fact that there are so many outfielders down there that Bundy is trying to weave them all in and out of the lineup. Sounds like nothing, but I'll keep checking.

Not great, mind you, but good. Just got off the phone with Lo Bundy, the Vegas manager, who said Miller's scoreless, two-inning relief stint at Portland last night was definitely a step forward in Miller's effort to control a sudden bout with wildness that was beginning to look suspiciously like Steve Blass disease. Miller walked one batter, hit another and threw a wild pitch. But he also overcame those hiccups to pitch two scoreless innings, using a pair of doubleplay grounders to bail himself out. He came on in relief of Miguel Pinango to start the seventh inning, a role Bundy said Miller will stay in indefinitely until the problem is completely conquered. ``I would say we'll stay with this for a little bit,'' Bundy said. ``You are only as good as your last outing, and we need to make sure is feeling comfortable when he gets back on the bump. But just judging from the look on his face after he completed those two innings, I think that took a lot of weight off his shoulders.'' Miller, you may recall, used to be the Dodgers' top left-handed pitching prospect until what was supposed to be a minor surgical procedure in the spring of 2004 derailed him for all of that season and a good chunk of the next one. But this is very good news for a very good guy. ... Not wanting to brave the 5 on a Friday afternoon, I took my usual secondary route to Angel Stadium (110 South to 105 East to 605 South to 91 East to 5 South to State College Blvd), and it still took an hour. What I have figured out is that just one car driving slower than the flow of traffic on a freeway, no matter what lane that car might be traveling in, can slow traffic behind that car for a mile or more. At least three times on the drive down here, I weaved my way out of a slow-moving cluster and found a big opening at the front, with a quarter mile or so of open road in front of two or three cars just puttering along in the left and middle lanes. But hey, it's a beautiful afternoon, I live in the greatest place in the world, and I cover baseball for a living. So it ain't that bad.

It's my day off, but I'm blogging anyway (once). ... In the week and a half since Andy LaRoche was called up to the majors, the rookie third baseman has put together one of the strangest statistical lines in recent memory. He is hitting an ordinary .261, but he has an incredible on-base percentage of .514. For the mathematically challenged, that means his OBP is almost TWICE his batting average. How does a thing like this happen? Well, it has a lot to do with the fact he is batting eighth. Andy is naturally a patient hitter who is always going to walk a lot. He walked three times in four plate appearances on Tuesday night against the Cardinals. But the fact he has walked 12 times in 37 plate appearances is slightly misleading. Four of those walks have been intentional, and that isn't because is so dangerous that teams don't want to face him. It's because he bats ahead of the pitcher, and with two outs and first base open, it's often easier for other teams to simply put him on and take their chances with whatever Dodgers pitcher is hitting behind him. But that shouldn't take away from the fact this guy has a great batting eye, and he has been disciplined enough not to chase too many pitches out of the strike zone when he clearly isn't going to get a lot of good pitches to hit because of where he bats in the order. He has struck out just three times in those 37 PAs (23 ABs), which might be his most amazing stat of all. What I would like to see MLB do is alter the way OBP is calculated to compensate for intentional walks. Those walks, and an equal number of plate appearances, should simply be removed from the formula, which is presently the following: (hits + walks + hit by pitch) divided by (at-bats + walks + hit by pitches + sac flies). If you go by my proposed formula, removing the intentional walks (four) and an equal number of plate appearances (four), LaRoche would still have a solid OBP of .485 that still very much reflects the type of hitter he is.

The Cardinals are being patted and wanded by six TSA agents AS THEY BOARD THE TEAM BUSES in center field at Dodger Stadium. I'm sure it's so they don't have to go through it at the airport (they're catching a chartered redeye to Detroit). This could be a fairly common occurrence, but this is the only ballpark in baseball where visiting teams board buses in full view of the press box after games. As someone who travels OFTEN, I can tell you that going through the security checkpoints at airports -- and dealing with the TSA -- has become one of the great frustrations of my life. I remember the good old days, before 9/11, when the laptop stayed in the case, the shoes stayed on the feet, the jacket stayed on your body and there was NEVER a line. You just threw your stuff up there, walked through and picked it up on the other side, and if you forgot to take your keys or your cell phone out of your pocket, it usually didn't make the machine beep anyway. Guess it'll never be that way again.

As usual, the Cardinals fought teeth-and-nails to the end. But Saito got Scott Spiezio to pop up with the tying run on in the top of the ninth, and the Dodgers won a series from the Redbirds for the first time in three years. Betemit's homer provided the winning blow, but for my money, the definitive moment of this game came in the ninth. After Juan Encarnacion led off the inning with an infield single, bringing the always-dangerous Albert Pujols to the plate as the potential tying run, Saito froze Pujols on a perfect called third strike, and Pujols knew it instantly -- he was walking across home plate toward the dugout before umpire Mike Winters even called him out. For the series, Pujols went a fairly benign 3 for 14 with two singles, a double and two RBI. Saito ran his consecutive saves streak to 23 with his 13th of the season. Dodgers reach the quarter pole at 25-16, four games better than last year's 21-20, and maintain their three-game lead over San Diego in the NL West. Off-day tomorrow, then the Angels on Friday night. Buenos noches (that's Spanish for good night).

Wilson Betemit might have finally found his niche with this pinch-hitting thing. He slammed yet another pinch-hit home run, this time a three-run shot to the deepest part of the ballpark, off Kip Wells with two outs in the bottom of the fifth. That turned a one-run deficit into a three-run lead. It was Betemit's fourth home run of the season and third in a pinch. Both starting pitchers are long gone, although Randy Wolf was lifted more because Grady wanted Betemit to hit for him (he had thrown just 89 pitches), whereas Wells threw a staggering 125 pitches in five innings. The Dodgers have done an excellent all night of working counts. Dodgers 5, Cardinals 3, top 7

With the bases loaded and two outs in the third, Randy Wolf bounced one to the plate and past Russell Martin for a wild pitch. As Aaron Miles stormed home with the tiebreaking run, Wolf ran to the plate and Martin ran down the loose ball. With no chance to get Miles, Martin nevertheless fired the ball to Wolf, and it skipped past him and into the Dodgers dugout, allowing another run to score. Meanwhile, Furcal led off the first with a double to go to 15 for 17, but he struck out in the second. Dodgers are 1 for 6 with RISP. Cardinals 3, Dodgers 1, top 4

The usual bunch in the usual order -- and definitely the right call by Grady.

SS Furcal -- 16 for his past 18
CF Pierre -- 6 for 13 lifetime vs. Kip Wells
1B Nomar -- 3 for 7, 1 HR vs. Wells
2B Kent -- 1 for 16, 1 HR vs. Wells
LF Gonzo -- 6 for 13, 2 HR, 4 RBI vs. Wells
C Martin -- 5 for 15 on homestand
RF Ethier -- 5 for 13 past 3 games
3B LaRoche -- .545 OBP since callup from minors
LH Wolf -- 10.3 Ks per nine innings

Fernando is on the field with about 34 youngsters from Washington Middle School in Pasadena as part of Amigos de Fernando, which is now in its fifth season. ... Cardinals are taking BP in their red caps. Just a personal preference, but I wish they would go back to wearing those during road games, instead of the navy ones they have used on the road for the past dozen or so seasons.

Buenos tardes (that's Spanish for good afternoon). ... There is more Furcal fallout on the front page of today's official Dodgers game notes. He is just the fifth player in the past 55 years to have three consecutive four-hits games, the others being Marcus Giles (2003), Brett Butler (1995), Mike Benjamin (1995) and Tim Salmon (1994). Furcal also is the first player to have 14 hits in a stretch of 16 at-bats since Derek Bell in April 2000 (that must have preceeded Operation Shutdown). But in a footnote in Dodgers history, the Dodgers' Jimmy Johnston went 23 for 28 from June 24-30, 1923. ... Dodgers Hall of Fame broadcaster Jaime Jarrin (aka, mi Tio Jaime) will be the keynote speaker tomorrow night at the 31st Annual Distinguished Journalists Awards Banquet at the Dodger Stadium Dugout Club. ... Even though the Cardinals are a sub-mediocre 16-21, a win tonight by the Dodgers would still be huge. They haven't won a series from the Redbirds since September 2004, when the rebounded from getting swept on Labor Day weekend at old Busch and came back the following weekend to take the Friday and Saturday night games (that Sat. night game was an epic, seesaw battle that I remember well) before the Cardinals salvaged the Sunday game.

The boys held on. Broxton got out of Kuo's jam with two strikeouts and combined with Saito to retire the final eight Cardinals batters in order. Furcal went 4 for 5, becoming the first major leaguer since Marcus Giles in 2003 to have three consecutive four-hit games, and Furcal now has 14 hits in his past 16 at-bats. Lowe got the win, and Saito got the save, his 12th. Furcal also drove in three runs. Martin and Ethier drove in two each. And the Dodgers snapped a 10-game losing streak to the Cardinals dating to 2005, the longest active streak by any team in baseball against any other. It was the second-longest streak either way in the history of the series, as the Brooklyn Dodgers won 14 in a row from the Cardinals, all in 1951 (the schedule format was a bit different then). The Dodgers now lead the almost-even all-time series 988-983. Dodgers go to 24-16 and move three games ahead of the Pods and the Snakes in the NL West.

In his welcome-back-to-the-big-leagues moment came when he faced six batters to start the seventh, and five of them reached, putting a serious dent in what had seemed to be a comfortable lead. This game is a long, long way from being over. The Cardinals just don't go quietly. Ever. Dodgers 9, Cardinals 7, top 7. Redbirds have runners on first and third with one out.

Raul Mondesi is here. They showed him on the big board before the bottom of the third. The Dodgers then went out and hung a six on the Redbirds, chasing Adam Wainwright. The big blow was a three-run triple by Rafael Furcal, making him an unbelievable 13 for his past 14. This is his fourth consecutive game with at least three hits. Meanwhile, Derek Lowe hit a rough patch in the top of the third, turning a 3-0 lead briefly into a 4-3 deficit. But now that he has a five-run lead, he seems to have found himself again. Dodgers 9, Cardinals 4, middle 4

Tomko's all-too-short outing last night finally forced the club to call up a 12th pitcher. And truthfully, you always knew Valdez would eventually be designated. For the uninitiated, a player who is designated for assignment is automatically removed from the 40-man roster, and the club has 10 days to trade him, release him or outright him to the minors. But before he can be released or outrighted, he has to clear waivers (that means he is on the waiver wire for three full business days without being claimed by another club). With this type of waivers, if another club claims him, the Dodgers lose him and don't have the option of pulling him back. The Dodgers did NOT need to clear a 40-man spot for Kuo, who was already on it. The reason Valdez had to be DFA's is because he was out of minor-league options. ... Right-hander Joe Mays, a veteran major leaguer who didn't make the club out of spring training and was 1-2 with a 4.91 ERA in seven starts at Triple-A Las Vegas, exercised the escape clause in his contract today and became a free agent. ... To answer the Scott Elbert question that was posted on another thread, the club's top pitching prospect has been sent to extended spring training in Vero Beach to rehab what essentially is tendinitis in the front of his left shoulder. The injury is an annoyance, and Elbert reportedly is champing at the bit to pitch again, but it isn't serious. He underwent an MRI a couple of weeks ago that showed no structural damage to either the rotator cuff or the labrum, so for now, it's basically a waiting game. He'll rejoin Double-A Jacksonville, where he made three starts earlier this season, as soon as he is deemed physically ready to resume pitching. ... After issuing consecutive, two-out walks to Kent and Gonzo to load the bases, the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright just plunked Russell Martin on the right shoulder with a 3-2 pitch, forcing in a run. Dodgers 1, Cardinals 0, bottom 1

Grady Little has a great idea before the game. Instead of going by home team rules in interleague play, they should go by visiting team rules. That means the DH would be used in NL parks, and pitchers would hit in AL parks. His rationale: to give fans a taste of a game they never see. ``It would be an opportunity for a lot of fans of the game to see what it looks like,'' Little said. For instance, the Cardinals kick off their interleague schedule on Friday night, when they return to Detroit for the first time since last year's World Series. And really, who in Motown wouldn't want to see Brad Thompson hit himself with a bunted ball outside the batter's box in one at-bat and bunt three pitches foul for a strikeout in another, the way he did in Monday night's win over the Dodgers?

Of course he is. After all, Betemit homered last night.

SS Furcal -- 10-13 past 3 games
CF Pierre -- 312th consecutive game
1B Nomar -- batting .457 with RISP
2B Kent -- homestand: 5-15, 2 HR
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B LaRoche
RH Lowe -- 0-3, 6.19 in 3 career GS against Cards

Konnichiwa (that's Japanese for good afternoon). ... Chad Billingsley hasn't allowed a run in his past 9 2/3 innings, the result of a mechanical tweak he worked on with bullpen coach Dan Warthen three weeks ago. Given that he is a natural starter, and given that club officials have always said he eventually will go back to starting, Billingsley might be a good candidate to replace Brett Tomko in the next couple of weeks if Tomko continues to suffer from the same inconsistency that has plagued him all season. On the other hand, as good as this bullpen is, it would be tough to take someone as reliable as Billingsley out of it right now. My guess is this is on Grady Little's mind, but he isn't ready to pull the trigger on it just yet. Give Tomko a little more rope, and it might become a no-brainer decision that wouldn't ruffle any feathers. Do it now, when there is at least some room for disagreement, and it's a controversial move.

As bad as Tomko was tonight, Furcal was good. He got hits in his first two at-bats, giving him hits in eight consecutive at-bats dating to Saturday night and leaving him one shy of Ron Cey's Los Angeles Dodgers record of nine set in 1977. Furcal struck out in the fifth, ending that streak, then got two more hits, giving him his second consecutive four-hit game. But this one was over before it started. Dodgers fall to 23-16 and now lead San Diego by two in the NL West.

He gave up eight runs, all earned, on nine hits and was yanked with one out in the third inning, by which time he already had been booed loudly several times. The catcalls were surprisingly tepid when he finally jogged off to the dugout. Meanwhile, the immortal Brad Thompson is having his way with the Dodgers. Rafael Furcal is 2 for 2, Andre Ethier is 1 for 1, and everybody else has added up to one big zero. This one is over. Dodgers will go to 5-20 against the Cardinals (playoffs included) since I started covering them. I don't know what it is, but no team I have ever covered (Rockies '95-'99, Reds '00-'03 and Dodgers '04-present) has EVER been able to beat this team. Jeff Kent just homered, for the second game in a row, setting the crowd into a frenzy over the fact the Dodgers have cut the deficit to seven runs. Cardinals 8, Dodgers 1, bottom 4

This is the notebook lead I filed for tomorrow's paper. Tough times for a really good guy, and here's hoping he can find a way out of this.

Dodgers minor-league left-hander Greg Miller spent all of 2004 and most of 2005 reviving a once-promising career that had begun to appear dead after he didn't immediately bounce back from a shoulder operation that was supposed to sideline him for only a few weeks in '04. The result was a feel-good story in perseverance that by this spring had landed Miller back on the organizational radar, with a good chance of being in the big leagues sometime this year.
But now, Miller might have run smack into another career-threatening issue.
``He has been wild, and he just has to try to harness that wildness,'' Dodgers player development director DeJon Watson said.
But Miller, still just 22, might need something stronger than a harness. In eight appearances (seven starts) at Triple-A Las Vegas this season, he has walked 32 batters in 23 2/3 innings. Twenty of those walks have come in his past four starts, none of which saw him last longer than four innings or walk fewer than four batters.
It all came to a head last Friday against Oklahoma, when Miller lasted just one-third of an inning, hit the first batter, committed a balk, threw a wild pitch, gave up a sacrifice fly, then walked the next four batters in succession -- with a second wild pitch mixed in -- before manager Lorenzo Bundy mercifully came to get him.
At times, Miller has been ``effectively wild.'' He has 27 strikeouts, and while his 6.46 ERA is bad, it isn't as bad as it could be considering he was charged with five runs in that one-third of an inning his last time out -- B.J. LaMura, the man who relieved Miller, immediately gave up a grand slam to Texas prospect Nate Gold.
Watson stopped short of saying Miller's wildness has become a mental issue.
``I wouldn't go there yet,'' Watson said.
Miller's next scheduled outing is Thursday at Portland, but Hong-Chih Kuo will start that game with Miller coming in behind him.

Going into tonight, left-handed batters are hitting .333 against Cardinals starter Brad Thompson. Right-handed batters are hitting just .241 against him. That's why Grady went with Betemit, who, let's face it, is basically a left-handed hitter, over Andy LaRoche, who bats right-handed. ... Tara Lipinski, the 1998 Olympic gold medal figure skater and now an actress, stood roughly 30 feet from home plate and still managed to bounce the ceremonial first pitch to Mike Lieberthal. .. Cardinals have picked up right where they left off against the Dodgers. They already have one run in and runners on second and third with one out against Tomko, who went 2-0 to two of the first three batters. Cardinals 1, Dodges 0, top 1.

Same crew as yesterday, including Betemit, whose average is all the way up to .164. I mean, why play LaRoche when his on-base percentage is still well south of .600 (it's .536). when he is hitting .333 in the bigs, when he already has eight walks in 28 plate appearances? But in all fairness, the Dodgers did score 10 runs on 18 hits with this lineup yesterday -- although six of those runs and eight of those hits came after LaRoche was doubleswitched in for Betemit.

SS Furcal -- leads all active players with .344 avg vs. Stl (min. 150 PAs)
CF Pierre -- 8 for 16 past four Gs
1B Nomar-- 8 for 13 in Cincy series
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin
3B Betemit
RF Ethier
RH Tomko

The Dodgers' starting rotation now leads all National League starting rotations with a 3.32 ERA, second in the majors only to Oakland's 2.74. The Dodgers have gotten a quality start (six innings or more, three runs or less) in eight of their past 12 games. ... Dodgers are getting ready to take early BP on a gorgeous day, although there is still enough of something in the air that you can't see the San Gabriels at all. Big series opener tonight with the world champs, who beat the Dodgers seven out of seven last year and have beaten them nine times in a row dating to 2005. In fact, in the three previous seasons that I covered the Dodgers, they have gone 5-19 against the Redbirds, including that 2004 Division Series when the Cardinals won three of four. ... If there are any firefighters reading this, I have a question. If the stairwell at the top of Dodger Stadium was still padlocked from the outside when I arrived at 3 p.m. today (I got tired of waiting on the elevator to come and pick me up, so I tried to take the stairs down the press box, but the chain and padlock were still on the door so I couldn't access the stairwell), at a time when there are many, many ballpark employees, media representatives, baseball players, coaches and front-office personnel INSIDE the park, is this a fire-code violation? I should probably add the fact that as far as I could tell, it WASN'T padlocked on any other level. (I walked outside the stadium, down an exterior stairway to level 7, back into the stadium and accessed the stairwell there). Just curious. But if you're out there, I'm interested in your feedback.

That tiebreaking, eighth-inning rally turned into a five-run outburst, including back-to-back walks by Mike Stanton and a two-run single by Ethier. Dodgers now have beaten the Reds nine straight, including all six last year. Dodgers go to 23-15 for the year and move a season-high three games ahead of the pack (San Diego leapfrogs AZ into second place) in the NL West.

The reputation of the Reds bullpen, which preceded it into town, has held true. Todd Coffey gave up an unearned run in the sixth, tying the game at 5-5, and the first four batters here in the eighth all hit safely off Kirk Saarloos, breaking the tie. Rafael Furcal has four hits, his 13th career four-hit game and first of the year. He also has two doubles and two steals, so it looks like he is finally hitting his stride. Dodgers 7, Reds 5, bottom 8

Junior just went deep, capping (the Dodgers hope) a four-run fourth for the Redlegs. They now lead the Dodgers 5-3, still top 4. It was his 570th career jack

Three innings, and the Dodgers already have three runs and seven hits. The suddenly sizzling Nomar already has two hits. Furcal had a leadoff double in the first inning, leading to a run. Wilson Betemit had a leadoff double in the second, leading to two more runs, And although Hendrickson is far from dominating, he is getting the job done -- even though he just gave up a two-out, RBI single to Ryan Freel, cutting the lead to one. Dodgers 3, Reds 2, top 4

``Betemit is still an important part of our ballclub,'' Grady said. So he's in there, batting seventh, ahead of Ethier.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre -- 19 for 59 with 5 SB in past 14 G
1B Nomar -- .373 at home in '07
2B Kent -- batting .415 in Dodgers' past 18 games with Reds
LF Gonzo -- needs 10 hits to crack top 100 all-time
C Martin -- hitting .394 vs. lefties
3B Betemit -- 1 error in 26 games at 3B
RF Ethier -- hitless past 10 ABs
LH Hendrickson -- 1.95 ERA sixth-best in NL

Remember in the late 1980s, when they first came out with Cherry 7-UP and they had those great commercials that were black and white except for these splotches of pink? I was reminded of those commercials this morning when I walked into the Dodgers clubhouse. The whole room was, as usual, blue and white, except there were these splotches of pink everywhere: pink bats, pink wristbands, etc. Several players from both teams will use the pink bats and wear the pink wristbands in today's game, an effort to raise awareness for breast cancer research through the Susan G. Komen ``For the Cure'' Foundation. ... Feliz Dias de las Madres, everyone.

There is a visible layer of it over Chavez Ravine this morning, but other than that, it's a beautiful sunny day. The Dodgers are trying to beat the Reds today for the ninth consecutive time since July 28, 2005, when the Reds won the last game of a four-game series to salvage a split at Dodger Stadium. Last year, the Dodgers ran the table in six games against them, including a 16-inning marathon at Dodger Stadium that ended on a home run by Ramon Martinez. ... By the way, Juan Pierre made a spectacular, diving catch in center field last night, robbing Josh Hamilton of a hit. Pierre also has 19 hits in his past 59 at-bats (that's a .322 average). So can we at least temporarily suspend all the bashing of the guy? I'm not sure he was worth five years and $55 mill, but this guy has had a solid career and IS A GOOD PLAYER, for Pete's sake. Sure, his arm is a little suspect, and he could draw more walks and have a higher OBP. But for right now, he's hot, and he's playing a good center field, too. ... To repeat what I said last night, Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there who are reading this blog.

Penny dominated as usual, retiring 17 in a row after a rough first inning. The Dodgers finally got untracked offensively, scoring five runs with two outs in the fourth to put the game on ice early. And the Dodgers now have beaten the Reds eight consecutive times, including all six last year and the first two in 2007. Dodgers go to 22-15 and open up their biggest lead of the season (2 1/2 games) in the NL West. ... Happy Mother's Day, everyone. I'll check in early tomorrow.

Brad Penny had a rough start and gave up a first-inning run, but got Adam Dunn to pop up with runners on first and third to end the inning. Since then, Penny has retired 11 in a row. He also just drew a five-pitch, bases-loaded walk from Kyle Lohse to force in a run, putting the Dodgers in front after Lohse had intentionally walked Andy LaRoche to load the bases with two outs. That began an extended, two-out rally that has now netted five runs, including Nomar's second hit of the night, a perfectly executed hit-and-run through the right side with Juan Pierre breaking off first. Kent now at the plate with runners on the corners and two outs. Dodgers 6, Reds 1, bottom 4

Still no changes. This despite the fact this club has scored in one of its past 17 offensive innings

SS Furcal -- 1 hit in past 13 abs
CF Pierre -- 17-54 in past 13 games
1B Nomar -- 5-11, 1 HR against Kyle Lohse
2B Kent
LF Gonzo -- hitless in past 13 ABs
C Martin
RF Ethier -- hitless past 8 ABs
3B LaRoche
RH Penny -- 0 R allowed, past 2 GS

... and it isn't the Dodgers, who despite winning 2-0 last night have now scored in exactly one of their past 17 offensive innings, with both runs coming off a single swing of the bat, a two-run single by Russ Martin in last night's first inning. And yet, apparently, still no roster moves and still no lineup changes. With the pitching this team is getting, both from its starters and its bullpen, the Dodgers should be much better than 21-15 and should have much more than a 1 1/2-game lead on the rest of the division. ... A handful of Reds are on the field, including reigning MLB media relations director of the year (they give that award at the winter meetings) Rob Butcher, who is shagging fly balls is khaki pants and dress shoes. ... Trying to come up with something else to pad out this entry with, but I'll be honest with you, I'm tapped out. I'm heading downstairs in a few, so I'll check back in a couple of hours from now.

Russell Martin's one swing back in the first inning was all the offense these two clubs could muster between them. The Reds threatened in the ninth, when Saito seemed tentative and battled control problems, but he ultimately struck out Juan Castro with runners on first and third to end it. Dodgers go to 21-15 and stay 1 1/2 games in front of second-place Arizona in the NL West. I'm outta here, going to get out of the parking lot before the fireworks show ends.

Not only did he get through the first inning unscathed (he had a 10.29 first-inning ERA coming in), but he already has pitched seven innings and struck out 11 batters, both season highs. The way he is pitching, this two-run lead just might hold up. Arroyo somehow got through six innings despite throwing those 42 first-inning pitches, and the Dodgers didn't score again. Nomar, who came in on a 1 for 17 slide, is 3 for 3 with a walk, a run scored and a double. Dodgers 2, Reds 0, bottom 7

Bronson Arroyo has already thrown 80 pitches through three innings -- AGAINST THE DODGERS. The freeswinging, go-up-there-hacking, never-work-the-count-for-any-reason Dodgers. They worked him for three first-inning walks, an inning when he threw a staggering 42 pitches. And even though the Dodgers left the bases loaded that inning -- Arroyo issued his third walk just after Russell Martin's two-out, bases-loaded single -- it was still a hugely productive inning, especially since it might lead to an early exit for Arroyo and the Reds' bullpen is, to put it as politely as I possibly can, a tad shaky. ... Caught up with Juan Castro before the game, another of the game's true class acts and a guy for whom the Dodgers just never seemed to have an opening for when he was in their organization. By the time the Reds got him in 2000, he had shuttled back and forth between Los Angeles and Albuquerque so many times that he was already eligible for arbitration despite having only 432 career at-bats. He is the only infielder I have ever known who was fun to watch when he simply fielded a routine grounder hit right at him and threw it to first base. This guy absolutely has hands of silk. Too bad he has never hit well enough to be an everyday guy. ... Dodgers 2, Reds 0, bottom 4

Twenty-four hours after saying something had to change, Grady Little went with more of the same for tonight's tilt with the Redlegs. Pierre still isn't hitting first, Furcal still isn't hitting third, and Nomar still isn't hitting anywhere other than third.

SS Furcal -- 6 for 15 against Arroyo
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B LaRoche -- 4 for 10 as a big leaguer
LH Wolf -- 10.29 ERA first inning, 3.44 after that

Jill Painter is covering the game for us tonight, I'm freelancing, but I'll be blogging periodically so keep checking in

I filed this for tomorrow's notebook, but it might get cut (I sent about three inches over the normal length), so here it is, just in case, because I know a lot of you are wondering why Willingham wasn' t intentionally walked. In case you're wondering, Aaron Boone, the on-deck hitter, was 1 for 3 lifetime against Lowe -- too small a sample size to impact the decision-making process

Trying to cover for pitcher Derek Lowe, Little claimed responsibility for the decision not to intentionally walk Josh Willingham to load the bases with one out in the bottom of the ninth -- a fairly common tactic in such situations because it creates a potential force at all three bases and home plate.
But after giving up a walkoff, three-run homer on his first pitch to Willingham, Lowe let it be known that he had told Little he wanted to pitch to the Marlins left fielder.
``I don't like (loading the bases),'' Lowe said. ``It brings wild pitches into play, and it forces you to throw a strike, pretty much.''

See y'all back home

Walks will haunt, and so will errors, D-Lowe walked Hanley Ramirez to start the ninth, and Wilson Betemit botched Dan Uggla's DP grounder, failing to get even one out. The runners moved up on Miguel Cabrera's swinging bunt. Josh Willingham homered to end it. Dodgers fall to 20-15.

In front of countless thousands of local (screaming) youngsters enjoying a field trip and a day off from school, Sergio Mitre has shut out the Dodgers on three hits, two of them by Juan Pierre. Pierre made it to third with one out in the sixth, breaking off first to avoid a double play as Russell Martin was grounding out, then stealing third on the next pitch. But with Mitre behind 2-0 to Garciaparra, Nomar popped the next pitch up, ruining a prime scoring chance and running his personal streak of futility to 1 for 16. After Gonzo walked, Ethier grounded out, ending the inning. Lowe, meanwhile, is matching Mitre zero for zero and hit for hit (each team has three). This game is so boring that I just spent the past 10 minutes ordering a pair of noise-canceling headphones with my American Express rewards points. Dodgers 0, Marlins 0 middle 7

Twice in the first three innings today, D-Lowe has walked the leadoff man on four pitches. Each time, that guy was subsequently erased, the first on a doubleplay grounder and the second on a caught stealing on the very next pitch. The result is that Lowe has faced the minimum through three hitless innings. For the Dodgers, Juan Pierre, batting leadoff today because Furcal is out, has reached base twice on a bunt single and a walk. Beyond that, the Dodgers have made nothing but outs against Sergio Mitre. ... Meanwhile, I'm guessing Justin Timberlake must be here, because every so often, all these school groups break into random, mass screaming. ... Hey, Nomar just got a leadoff single, snapping his hitless streak at 14 at-bats. Hey, Gonzo just negated that by grounding into a double play. ... Dodgers 0, Marlins 0, top 4

It's a typical lineup for a quick turnaround -- no Furcal, no Kent, no LaRoche, and Gonzo at cleanup for just the second time this year

CF Pierre -- 5 for 26 on the trip
C Martin -- hitting .409 on trip
1B Nomar -- hitless past 13 ABs
LF Gonzo -- .321 avg in day games
RF Ethier -- 8gm hit streak snapped last night
3B Betemit -- 3 for last 4 with 2HR and 1 2B, all as PH
SS Valdez -- 7 for 17 in day games.
2B Martinez
RH Lowe

Yhency Brazoban was more efficient last night, pitching two innings and throwing just 25 pitches for Triple-A Las Vegas in its win over Oklahoma. Meanwhile Marlon Arias pitched the high Single-A California League's first no-hitter in four years for Inland Empire, a 2-0 win over Bakersfield in which Arias struck out 10 batters. And Chin-lung Hu continues to roll at Double-A Jacksonville. He went 3 for 5 in a 4-1 win over Birmingham to raise his average to .380, tops in the Southern League.

It's 10:15 here, I haven't finished my first cup of Starbucks house brew, and there is some dude on the field with a microphone getting a bunch of school kids fired up. But it's not as bad as those Disney people were on getaway day at Dodger Stadium last week. ... A win for the Dodgers today would be fairly big, at least from a psychological standpoint. It would give them a winning road trip and allow them to come home with at least a two-game lead in the NL West. After they get home touch down at LAX around 8 tonight, the boys won't have to get on another airplane for 17 days. They have one six-game homestand, followed by a three-game ``trip'' to Anaheim, then another six-game homestand. This is a key stretch for the Dodgers, who, if they can figure out a way to improve on their middling home record (8-7) and take advantage of all these upcoming home games, could make a real move in the standings. It's what is commonly referred to in this game as a golden opportunity. We'll see how they handle it. ... Mark your calendars for May 21-23, which is when the Brewers come to town. It's a chance to see one of the most exciting young clubs in the league. The Crew enters today with the best record in all of baseball (24-10) and a 6 1/2 game lead in the Central. Will it last? Maybe, maybe not. But this is a club that's going to be good for a while.

As much as people love to bash Tomko (and I have been as guilty as anyone), he really is a good dude, and it was great to see him finally get his first win tonight. I know he has been frustrated at times. I don't know this for a fact, but he strikes me as the kind of guy who probably beats himself up about every bad game he pitches, who probably tends to overthink things and who, when he is struggling, probably drives himself crazy trying to figure out why. Then again, I could be wrong about all that. But I can usually read people pretty well. At any rate, congrats to him for a well-pitched (and well-executed with the bat) game. ... Got a chance before the game to catch up with Aaron Boone, quite possibly my favorite player I have ever covered (had him for 3 1/2 years in Cincinnati, before he was traded to the Yankees and eventually hit a fairly significant home run for them that Grady might remember). This guy has always been one of the game's true class acts, and he is handling being in a mostly reserve role for the first time in his career with grace and dignity. I'll never forget the press conference at Great American Ball Park the day he was traded, just before the non-waiver deadline in 2003. His dad had been fired as the Reds' manager only days earlier, along with GM Jim Bowden, and what was left of the front office had been ordered to cut as much salary as they could. Aaron started to take questions, but quickly broke down, to the point he had to leave the room. Eventually, he came back and answered everything, then actually hugged all the beat writers on his way out the door. Actual bear hugs, too, not that awkward man hug where two guys bump one side of their chests and pound each other on the back with the ends of their fists. ... I also saw Billy the Marlin taking batting practice before the game, apparently for some promotion, because he was being filmed. After that, someone on the production crew goes, "Hey Billy, you want to put on your glove and take some ground balls?'' He obliged by donning a fielder's glove roughly the size of Rhode Island and scooped up every ball thrown to him, lobbing them back at the camera. Compared to most other fish mascots I have witnessed, he was fundamentally sound.

The pen got it done again. Tomko gave up a pinch-hit, two-run shot to the struggling Mike Jacobs, closing the gap to 4-3, but Jonathan Broxton got four outs, stranding the tying run on second in the seventh, and Takashi Saito pitched the ninth, preserving the win. Wilson Valdez, getting a rare start on all-righty day against Willis, went 2 for 5 with two bunt singles, one of which drove in a desperately needed insurance run in the ninth, and also scored on Tomko's suicide squeeze in the fourth. Andy LaRoche drew three walks. Juan Pierre, the fastest guy on the Dodgers' roster, went 0 for 5 with five flyball outs. Dodgers go to 20-14

How well does Grady Little know Brett Tomko? Well enough to know that after the speedy Hanley Ramirez beat out an infield single with one out in the sixth, breaking up Tomko's no-hit bid, he needed to jog out to the mound to talk to Tomko. The memory of that April 28 game at San Diego, when Tomko retired the first 11 batters, then promptly gave up four consecutive hits with two outs in the fourth to drive in all three Pods runs in a game the Dodgers lost 3-2, apparently was still fresh in Grady's mind. Not that the momentary mound chat did much good, because Tomko, predictably, didn't immediately rebound. The next two batters got hits, including an RBI single by Miguel Cabrera to break up the shutout bid. But Tomko came back with back-to-back strikeouts of Josh Willingham and Aaron Boone to prevent further damage. By the way, Olmedo Saenz homered in the fifth. Dodgers 4, Marlins 1, top 7 ... and don't forget, 4-1 was the score Sunday in Atlanta and again last night, and the Dodgers blew both of those leads.

Wilson Valdez and Brett Tomko just pulled off a perfect suicide squeeze, with Tomko bunting up the first-base line. By the time Tomko's bat made contact with the ball, Valdez already was three-fourths of the way down the line from third. That keyed a two-run inning, but the big inning for the Dodgers was the first, when they scored only once. After Rafael Furcal and Juan Pierre made two quick outs on a total of four pitches, the Dodgers -- yes, the same Dodgers you have watched all season -- suddenly started working Dontrelle Willis. Russell Martin eventually singled, and Willis walked the next three batters in a row to force in a run. By the time the inning finally ended, he had thrown 32 pitches. He has now thrown 75 through four. But Tomko, who retired the first eight batters he faced, has since walked Willis, gone to a 2-0 count on Hanley Ramirez before getting him to ground out to end the inning, and walked Dan Uggla to start the fourth. Miguel Cabrera answered the walk to Uggla by flying out on the first pitch. Dodgers 3, Marlins 0, bottom 4

Grady went almost ALL right-handed against Dontrelle Willis, but Pierre is still in there. Nomar, meanwhile, is out after going hitless in his past 13 at-bats. Grady hinted that Nomar might not be in there tomorrow, either. Grady DID say that he plans on Martin catching yet again tomorrow, a noon game after a night game in what is expected to be a near-90-degree day in the most humid city in America.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
C Martin -- leads all ML catchers in runs, hits, steals
2B Kent
1B Saenz
3B LaRoche -- has hit safely in all three of his ML games
LF Valdez
RF Clark
RH Tomko -- 6 walks in 4 2/3 innings Fri night at ATL

I endured a major disappointment last night. Steely Dan (yes, they're still alive), one of my all-time favorite bands, played at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino last night, just across the Florida Turnpike (and a few miles north) from Dolphin Stadium. Would have loved to have seen them, but baseball got in the way. Baseball gets in a the way of a lot of things in my life, which is probably why I'm still single and unattached (ladies?), but this is the profession I have chosen, and this is the profession I love. ... There is still a slight smoky haze all over the place around here, probably similar to what is being emitted from the Griffith Park fire. Apparently, there are dozens of fires all around Florida right now because of the drought they are having. The one in Naples, which is straight across the state from here on the Gulf Coast, is the biggest, and the smoke is getting caught up in the wind and carried over here. Gonzo had the best line last night, saying it was like playing in a barbecue. ... I'm heading downstairs. I'll check back soon.

OK, thanks to Daily News blog czars Josh Kleinbaum and Armando Hernandez, who were able to accommodate my request almost immediately, your comments will now be posted as soon as you send them in, without my having to approve and post them. (That's the good/great news). This should allow for a lot more good old-fashioned baseball arguments between you, the loyal readers -- although I'm not abandoning you, and as I said earlier, I WILL respond most of the time when you ask me a direct question. The catch is, you will have to create a log-in, and use it every time, in order to make this happen (that's the bad-but-not-that-bad news). It's just an extra step, and Josh tells me it's VERY self-explanatory. ... I know you all probably get tired of me beating this horse, but that fourth inning by the Marlins against Hendrickson tonight was a perfect illustration of the value of patient hitters working counts. No, the Marlins didn't score. No, they didn't get a single hit. Yes, they left the bases loaded. But they made Hendrickson, who had thrown just 46 pitches through the first three innings, throw 36 in THAT INNING ALONE. And they drew three walks. As a result, Hendrickson was basically done by the fifth, when the Marlins exploded for four runs. More importantly, it forced Grady to go to his pen with two outs in the fifth, and he had to use four different relievers at a time when the Dodgers were still nine days away from their next off-day. No wonder he keeps predicting they'll need a 12th pitcher sometime between now and then. Granted, that inning was more about Hendrickson not throwing his curveball and the Marlins laying off his cutter. And the fact the Fish are on pace to break the 2002 Brewers' all-time strikeout record suggests they are anything but savvy, work-the-count kind of hitters. But even if they made Hendrickson throw all those pitches by accident, it STILL underscores my point. Feel free to disagree, and feel free to post those disagreements -- but you'll have to log in to do it. ... That perfectly sunny day gave way to what looked like fog that settled into the stadium and stayed there the whole game. Turns out it was smoke, from a forest fire in the nearby Everglades. ``It was kind of weird, because you couldn't see looking in from the outfield,'' Gonzo said. ``It looked like a San Francisco fog kind of day, or one of those early mornings like we have in California.'' ... Good night, all.

Dodgers got ONE man on base after the fell behind 5-4 in the fifth, and that was when Aaron Boone threw away the ball after making a diving stop on a smash by Ethier. Ethier eventually scored the tying run on a wild pitch by Renyel Pinto. But Jonathan Broxton retired just one of four batters in the bottom of the ninth, and Miguel Cabrera got him with a bloop single to center that scored Eric Reed from second. Dodgers fall to 19-14 and stay one ahead of the Pods, but the Giants could move within a half-game if they beat the Mets later tonight.

The Dodgers, as they have a tendency to do after they blow a lead, are going quietly. Since the Fish answered the Dodgers' two-run top of the fifth with a four-run bottom of the fifth to go in front by a run, the Dodgers have gone six-up, six-down. Looks pretty hopeless, folks. Marlins 5, Dodgers 4, bottom 7, and if Miguel Olivo could slide, it would be worse. ... OK, so I just checked out Alyssa Milano's blog for the first time. I was tipped off to its existence this morning by a good friend of mine (thanks, Tony). If you haven't already, you can link to it on dodgers.com. I admit, I went into it with a LOT of preconceived notions, the biggest being that she is just some flighty Hollywood type who couldn't possibly know anything about the game. Took me about two seconds to figure out I was wrong. She clearly does know the game, and she knows this team really well. ... assuming, of course, that she is the one writing this thing, and that it isn't being ghost-written in the manner of Jeff Kent's ``web chat'' earlier today, which I referenced on a previous post. I'm guessing she probably comes by all this baseball knowledge by virtue of the fact that her dad is former Cardinals second baseman Tony Miceli, who ... oh, wait, never mind, that was just a TV show. ... Billingsley just struck out all three batters he faced in the seventh. Marlins 5, Dodgers 4, top 8

Hendrickson was sailing along through three innings. But in the fourth, he walked three batters and threw (gasp!!!) 36 pitches. THIRTY-SIX PITCHES. That includes 11 to Joe Borchard alone, who actually hit a pop foul on the fourth pitch that Nomar should have been able to catch, but a security guard on a stool in front of the Marlins dugout couldn't get out of his way in time. The Dodgers just scored two more in the top of the fifth to pad their lead to a more comfortable three, but that fourth was the kind of inning that can really wear on a pitcher and later on make him run out of gas at 90-95 pitches instead of 110-120. We'll see how it affects him. By the way, Russell Martin has two doubles, including one that scored Jeff Kent from first on a play when he should have been out at the plate, but the relay throw skipped away from catcher Miguel Olivo. Dodgers 4, Marlins 1, middle 5

This is an item I just filed for my notebook in tomorrow's paper.

Former Dodgers catcher Steve Yeager, now the hitting coach for the club's high Single-A Inland Empire affiliate in San Bernardino, received close to 300 stitches in his right arm, neck and ear following a two-vehicle accident on the 134 Freeway as he was returning home from Saturday's game with Rancho Cucamonga.
According to various sources, Yeager swerved at the last moment to avoid being crushed by another vehicle, which had struck the median on the opposite side of the freeway, had gone airborne and was about to come down on top of Yeager's vehicle. Yeager has been released from the hospital and is expected to be sidelined for at least another week or two.
``I talked to him, and he is in great spirits,'' Dodgers player development director DeJon Watson said. ``He is going to go back and see a plastic surgeon about the scarring on his arm. He is still very sore, and every day, he feels different aches and pains.''

The MRI on Marlon Anderson's right elbow revealed more bone chips and the need for a second arthroscopic surgery to remove them. That procedure will take place on Friday in Los Angeles, after which he is expected to miss at least two months.
Anderson had the same surgery last Oct. 10 and felt discomfort in the elbow within days of the start of spring training, leading to the rather obvious question of whether he came back too quickly. But in this case, ``too quickly'' was a full four months after what was a relatively minor procedure, so if he did in fact come back too quickly, it's tough to blame him or anybody else.
The Dodgers will procede for now with Wilson Betemit, an alleged switch hitter who nevertheless is 1 for 15 this season from the right side, as the only left-handed bat on their bench.
Not to worry, manager Grady Little said.
``There are a lot of times when having a left-handed hitter against a right-handed pitcher may not be as good as maybe having another right-handed hitter against a right-handed pitcher,'' Little said. ``It's not etched in stone, even if you have that (left-handed hitter) available. Everybody knows what Olmedo Saenz (a right-handed hitter) is capable of doing, and it doesn't matter how a guy is throwing.''
That's a nice thought on Little's part, but Saenz is hitting .429 (3 for 7) this season against lefties and .143 (2 for 14) against righties.
The Dodgers do have veteran, lefty-hitting outfielder Larry Bigbie hitting .373 (albeit with only one home run) at Triple-A Las Vegas, and Bigbie can become a free agent if he isn't promoted to the majors before June 1. But it would be tough to create a roster spot for him because the Dodgers have only two position players -- third baseman Andy LaRoche and right fielder Andre Ether -- who have minor-league options. Both are playing well in an everyday role.
Ethier isn't going down to make room for Bigbie, and the club might need to keep LaRoche's spot flexible because Little thinks the club might need a 12th pitcher sometime between now and the next off-day on May 17.

SS Furcal -- 6 for 17 on the trip
CF Pierre
1B Nomar -- 0 for his past 11
2B Kent -- 6 for 14 against Obermueller
LF Gonzo -- 5 for 14 on the trip
C Martin -- 5 for 13 on the trip
RF Ethier -- 7gm hit streak (9-21)
3B LaRoche
LH Hendrickson -- has not given up more than 1R in any of his 3 starts

Not to rain on Brad Penny's parade last night, but it's worth mentioning that the Marlins lead the majors in strikeouts, are on pace to break the all-time single-season team record set by the 2002 Brewers (remember Richie Sexson and Jose Hernandez in the same lineup?) and had struck out 41 times in their four previous games. None of which changes the fact that Penny had by far his best outing of the season and arguably his best outing since he came to the Dodgers in that infamous 2004 trade. ... Josh Rawitch, the Dodgers' PR guy, is sitting a few seats away from me talking Jeff Kent on the phone for Kent's alleged "web chat" with fans. Josh is reading the questions on his laptop to Jeff, who is answering the questions verbally while Josh types them in. I'm still dreaming of the day when I actually see a big-league ballplayer do something self-sufficient. ... Perfect South Florida day today, no clouds, and much warmer than yesterday. Good pitching matchup tonight between Hendrickson and Wes Obermueller. I'm off to the clubhouse.

Let me first say that this is NOT intended as a slam against anybody. I am a HUGE Ned Colletti fan, and I think he has done a masterful job not only of rebuilding this team into a legitimate World Series contender on the field, but of completely remaking the image of this organization that when he got here was an industry-wide laughing stock. Now, getting my point ... Remember the way everyone used to hammer poor Paul DePodesta for that six-man trade with the Marlins? The one when DePo unloaded the ever-popular Paul Lo Duca, along with lights-out setup man Guillermo Mota and middling right fielder Juan Encarnacion, to the Marlins for Brad Penny, the hopeless Hee-Seop Choi and a minor-leaguer named Bill Murphy who was subsequently flipped to Arizona in the Steve Finley deal? Remember how Penny went down like he had been shot in the first inning of his second start with the Dodgers, and slowly word began to leak out that DePo didn't check with enough of his own scouts before making the deal, and that at least one or two of those scouts knew Penny's velocity was down and that he might be injured? Remember all that? Well, it is worth mentioning that neither Lo Duca, Mota nor Encarnacion is still with the Marlins. Choi obviously never panned out. So that leaves Penny as sort of the last man standing from that trade, at least for either of the teams involved. Last year, he went 16-9 for the Dodgers and started the All-Star Game. This year, he is 4-0 with a 1.39 ERA, including the performance of a lifetime tonight against his old team, when he struck out a career-high 14 batters in seven shutout innings. Almost three years later, I think we all have to admit that from the Dodgers' standpoint, that was an OUTSTANDING trade. And kudos to Paul not only for having had the guts to pull the trigger on it, but for then taking the heat for it for the next 15 months until he was fired. Colletti and manager Grady Little also deserve kudos for bringing out the best in Penny, who at times in the past seemed to be more focused on his horse racing ventures and his habitual dating of B-list actresses than he was on baseball. Well, he still owns horses, and he is still with Eliza Dushku (if you don't know her, go to imdb.com). But he clearly is on a mission whenever he takes the mound, and it is a refreshing thing to see. And more importantly, he hasn't thrown any visible, on-field temper tantrums this season. Although it would have been nice if someone would have told him before he went out for the first inning tonight that his fly was unzipped (it was clearly visible in a still photo that by the end of the game had already been developed, framed and hung on the clubhouse wall, with a red circle around the area in question.)

Penny finished with 14 Ks, making him the ninth Dodgers pitcher to reach that figure, and this was the 27th time it happened. He left for a pinch hitter in the top of the eighth. It was Wilson Betemit. Believe it or not, he struck out on three pitches. They played a song by Styx (I used to LOVE them) to fire up the Marlins going into the bottom of the ninth, but incredibly, it didn't work. Dodgers go to 19-13 and keep at least a one-game lead in the NL West. The Pods lead the Braves 4-2 in the seventh, and the Jints play later tonight.

Brad Penny has 12 strikeouts, becoming the first Dodgers pitcher to do that since 2003, when it was done by, yes, the $55 million man himself, Darren Dreifort. But Penny might be getting a bit winded. He hasn't struck out anybody since the fifth inning, and since Miguel Cabrera broke up his perfecto with an infield single in the fourth, Penny has given up a hit each inning. The Dodgers batted around in the fourth, scoring four times and probably putting the game away. The big blow that inning was a triple by Russell Martin, but LaRoche also drove in a run with a hit, and Penny himself had a two-run single. Dodgers 6, Marlins 0, top 7

Brady Penny has faced nine batters. Seven of them have struck out. Of the two that didn't, one tried to bunt his way aboard. The other grounded to third. Meanwhile, Jeff Kent hit his third home run leading off the second, and the Dodgers scratched out another later in the inning on a couple of hits by Martin and Ethier and a sac fly by LaRoche, his first ML RBI. Dodgers 2, Marlins 0, top 4

This is the basic template with LaRoche up. Grady says he'll go with this for the next two or three days and ``see where it takes us.''

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B LaRoche
RH Penny

Dolphin Stadium is undergoing an extensive remodeling for football purposes, but it appears that it's all exterior, probably having something to do with the luxury suites. There is no indication that the appearance of the stadium on the inside, where the games are played, will change in any way. When I pulled into the parking lot and saw all the scaffolding and construction work going on, I thought "Oh, no, this is going to be a nightmare trying to work here the next four days." Surprisingly, though, once I parked and walked in, I found nothing out of the ordinary. Smooth sailing, so far. ... By the way, upon further review, it appears Chin-hui Tsao was a victim of some rotten luck during that fateful seventh inning yesterday (some borderline pitches called balls, some seeing-eye singles). So in hindsight, maybe I shouldn't have been so hard on Grady in today's paper for leaving Tsao in there as long as he did. It's easy to make snap judgements from the safety of the press box. But snap judgements from the corner of the dugout can get a manager fired. Like the players, I whiff once in a while. This was one of those times.

Lost amid all the chaos that happened after he left the game was the fact that Randy Wolf failed for the seventh time in seven starts as a Dodger to retire one batter beyond the sixth inning. This time, he was gone with one out in the sixth after throwing 107 pitches, a fact that could be directly attributed to his once again struggling in the first inning. Wolf has a 10.29 ERA in the first inning this year, compared to 3.44 in all other innings. According to Wolf, pitching coach Rick Honeycutt joked with him after this game that maybe a couple of hitter should stand in for his pregame warmups from now on to simulate the first couple of innings. But Wolf also admitted after the game that it might be a mental block and that he has occasionally battled this problem in past years with Philadelphia. It's an issue that bears monitoring as the season progresses. ... On to the Sunshine State.

Chin-hui Tsao was bound to give up a run sometime. Today, he gave up five of them, in two-thirds of an innings, which was way longer than he should have been out there because Grady stuck with him WAY too long. And when he finally did come to get him, he brought in Chad Billingsley, who gave up hits on two of the first three pitches he threw to drive in the final two runs charged to Tsao. This is one Grady will think about for a long, long time, as well he should. Dodgers fall to 18-13.

Earlier today manager Grady Little announced that Wilson Betemit, his big pinch-hit home run last night notwithstanding, is now in essence a utility infielder because Andy LaRoche will be getting most of the starts at 3B. Well, Betemit just hit for Rudy Seanez in the seventh inning, and guess what -- he drove a two-run shot just inside the foul pole in right field, tripling the Dodgers' lead to three runs just after Seanez escaped Randy Wolf's bases-loaded, one-out jam by getting Chris Woodward to ground into a double play. Before last night, Betemit was hitting .125 with zero homers for the year. He now has two homers in his past two at-bats, both in a completely unfamiliar pinch-hitting role. Dodgers 4, Braves 1, bottom 7

Randy Wolf and the allegedly subpar Kyle Davies have combined for 13 strikeouts already. True to form, Wolf had another first rough first inning, walking two batters, and he was lucky to get out of it with only one run scoring because the Braves left the bases loaded. The Braves are wearing their red pajama-top jerseys today. Thank goodness the Dodgers are one of the only teams left in baseball not to have adopted those hideous things. Even the ``A'' team has them this year. MLB should institute a policy that all clubs have TWO uniforms, an all-white ensemble for home games and an all-gray for the road. Of course, the pj tops are another merchandising tool by which clubs can make a boatload of cash, and that's what it's all about. Braves 1, Dodgers 0, bottom 4

Marlon Anderson went on the DL with right elbow inflammation, and LaRoche was called up from Las Vegas. He is in the lineup today at 3B, for his major-league debut.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
3B LaRoche
RF Ethier
C Lieberthal
LH Wolf

As the Dodgers scrambled to shower, dress and get out of the clubhouse as quickly as they could so they could catch the Floyd Mayweather-Oscar De La Hoya fight, they celebrated their victory by cranking the volume on some horrendous hiphop song that seemed to be titled, "I'm in Love with a Stripper." I'm sure some of you are familiar with it, but I'm proud to say I was not, at least until tonight. But if you know much about big-league ballplayers, the song was perfectly appropriate for the clubhouse. ... This is not the annual "family trip," but because Atlanta has such geographic proximity to the homes of several members of the coaching staffs, a good number of family members have been hanging around before the games. Grady Little's son and two grandsons, ages 3 and 7, were here, and Grady egged on his grandsons this morning as they pored a cup of ice on their grandmother to wake her up. Dave Jauss has his three sons. And Rick Honeycutt's son and son-in-law are here. Reminds you that as much as people tend to idolize the personalities in Major League Baseball, these guys are human, with families and lives just like the rest of us. ... Grady has this favorite line that uses about having grandchildren, and I hope he doesn't mind my sharing it with you. He'll rave for several minutes about how great it is having grandkids, how you can spoil them and then send them home when they get rambunctious, all the usual grandparent stuff. And then he'll say this: "You know there is only one bad thing about having grandkids. Every night, you have to go to bed with somebody's grandma."

The bats finally broke out in the ninth inning, when the Dodgers scored three runs off Tyler Yates to put it away. Derek Lowe pitched seven innings of three-hit ball, retiring the final nine batters he faced, and Jonathan Broxton pitched out of a jam in the eighth by throwing nothing but smoke, striking out Chipper Jones and getting Andruw Jones to ground into a force play. But the biggest development of the evening for the Dodgers came in the top of the eighth, when Wilson Betemit -- yes, I said Wilson Betemit -- was sent to pinch hit for Lowe and hit his first home run of the season, a no-doubter beyond the out-of-town scoreboard in right field. Jeff Francoeur simply turned and watched it leave the yard. Dodgers go to 18-12 and stay 1 1/2 in front of Los Gigantes. ... By the way, before the game, Yhency Brazoban was activated from the DL and officially optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas, completing his comeback from Tommy John surgery last May.

By rule, an official scorer can't charge an error to a fielder who commits a miscue on the back end of a ground ball double play (unless the first baseman drops a perfect relay throw). But those plays often are just as costly as an error. In the top of the fourth, the Dodgers had runners on first and third with one out when Luis Gonzalez hit a tailormade DP ball up the middle. Braves SS Edgar Renteria went behind the bag to snag it, then backhanded the ball to 2B Kelly Johnson standing on the bag for the force. But Johnson dropped the ball while trying to transfer it from his glove to his throwing hand and thus never was able to make the throw to first. That allowed Juan Pierre to score the go-ahead run from third. So far, that play is the difference in the game. The Dodgers are holding on for dear life to a one-run lead, but it is worth noting they are 14-0 this season when leading after six innings. Dodgers 2, Braves 1, middle 7

The good news is, the Dodgers haven't failed even once tonight to come through with runners in scoring position. The bad news is, they haven't HAD a runner in scoring position. Tim Hudson is taking them to school so far, facing the minimum through three (he picked off Juan Pierre after a first-inning single). Braves scratched out an unearned run in the third when Jeff Kent bobbled a Chipper Jones grounder that would have been the final out of the inning. Other than that, Derek Lowe has cruised, allowing a hit and what turned out to be a costly walk. Furcal just led off the fourth by beating out a slow roller. Braves 1, Dodgers 0, top 4

Sorry to disappoint, but nothing has happened today -- other than the fact that Wilson Betemit, predictably, is sitting. Ramon Martinez is playing 3B. Grady wouldn't commit to whether Betemit's absence is a one-night thing or a sign of things to come. ``It's a day-to-day thing with that part of the lineup,'' he said. ``We're looking for anything we can do to get this guy going. We have tried giving him a mental day (out of the lineup) before. We're searching, and he is searching. Hopefully, he'll find some key to get himself going.''

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B Martinez
RH Lowe

Well, unseasonably cool, anyway. But the weather isn't nearly as cold as those Dodgers' bats, and they don't figure to warm up much tonight against Tim Hudson. Those changes Grady alluded to after the game last night have yet to materialize, at least that we know of. Had lunch at a churrascaria (did I spell that correctly?) across from the Westin today, and Wilson Betemit was in there having lunch and appeared to be in his usual good mood. He really is a good dude, and I feel really badly for him. But I can't imagine they're going to stick with him much longer. I fully expect some significant news of some sort in the next hour or so, so keep checking back.

Tired of watching his team -- and especially Wilson Betemit -- leave runner after runner on the bases, Grady Little finally admitted after the game tonight that the club's inability to score is becoming a burr in his saddle. Little offered this rather cryptic quote after the game: ``We're going to have to make some changes, either with the batting order or the personnel or something." Later, when asked about Betemit specifically, Little said, ``I think he has pretty much hit rock bottom right now." If the Dodgers were ever going to try to sneak Betemit through waivers with the goal of sending him to the minors, they have as good a chance right now as they're ever going to. And even if another team takes him, at this point, who cares? But the problem is, they don't have a viable alternative. Andy LaRoche isn't playing especially well in Triple-A right now. But one possibility is playing Wilson Valdez at 3B on an everyday basis, even though he has come back to earth a bit offensively of late. My guess is something could happen with Betemit as soon as tomorrow, so we'll see.

The boys were never really in this one. Tomko was awful, walking six and throwing 96 pitches in 4 2/3, but the offense was even worse. Dodgers have now scored six runs in 47 innings. Granted, they ran into John Smoltz tonight. But they also went 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on base, six of them in scoring position. Dodgers have stranded 62 runners in their past six games. They got lucky when San Diego blew a late-inning lead at Florida tonight, but their lead is still probably going to shrink to a game, because odds are the D-backs and Giants aren't both going to lose. Dodgers fall to 17-12 for the year.

After the Dodgers fail to score in this seventh innings -- and they will -- they will have scored six runs in their past 45 innings. Brace yourself, because this will no doubt come as an utter shock: Wilson Betemit struck out three times, each one with one out and at least two runners on base. Juan Pierre tried unsuccessfully to make a diving catch that would have ended the fifth with the bases loaded. That play resulted instead in a two-run double by Jeff Francoeur, which, considering the way the Dodgers are scoring runs, probably put the game away. After that play, a frustrated Tomko stood for several seconds with his hands on his knees and his head down. But he had nobody to blame but himself -- the only reason the bases were loaded was because he had walked three batters earlier in the inning, two of them on four pitches each. The play didn't end the inning, but it did end Tomko's misery, because Grady immediately came to get him. ... There is a reason why I don't like to go to the restroom between innings. It's because i'm always paranoid that I won't get back before play resumes, and my computer will get nailed by a foul ball when I'm not there to yank it to safety. Well, as I was returning to my seat in the bottom of the sixth, the Braves' Willie Harris hit one right at my seat. It hit the front of the press box, about 18 inches from my laptop, caromed straight up, hit the ceiling, caromed straight back down, hit the table a second time, again about 18 inches from my laptop, and disappeared into the crowd below. Meanwhile, I could only watch helplessly from about 15 feet away, as my heart skipped a beat. I was lucky this time. Next time, I'll just hold it in. ... Hey, what do you know, I was right. The Dodgers didn't score in the seventh. Braves 4, Dodgers 0, bottom 7

Dodgers have the bases loaded with none out on three consecutive singles by Nomar, Gonzo and Martin. Somehow, the boys are only trailing by two, despite a typically Tomko-esque performance by Brett. He already has thrown 61 pitches in three innings while issuing three walks. He also has benefitting from a couple of questionable calls, one when Sam Holbrook called Kelly Johnson out on a stolen-base attempt at second and anther when Bob Davidson called Edgar Renteria out on a close play at first. Otherwise, the damage might have been worse. Ethier just popped up for the first out. With Betemit and Martinez to follow, that probably blew the whole inning. Braves 2, Dodgers 0, top 4

Jeff Kent is out tonight for a rest, something Grady had been planning for several days. Ramon Martinez will start at 2B, and Gonzo will bat cleanup. Mike Lieberthal batted cleanup in the only other game Kent didn't start, a 7-2 loss at Colorado on April 18.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Nomar
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B Betemit
2B Martinez
RH Tomko

Also, Jason Schmidt enjoyed his first baseball activity since going on the DL more than two weeks ago. The right-hander played catch, making 40 hard throws at a distance of 50-60 feet. Trainer Stan Conte cautioned against reading too much into the development, saying it was just one step in a long process.

Despite the fact he had pitched extremely well on his rehab assignment at Las Vegas, Hong-Chih Kuo was sent officially to the 51s when he was activated off the DL last night. His story was similar to that of outfielder Matt Kemp, who also played really well on rehab but also got optioned a week ago. Fact is, for the moment, the Dodgers just didn't have room for either one of them on their active roster. My guess is you'll see one or both of them in the majors within a few weeks. Meanwhile, although Yhency Brazoban pitched on back-to-back days Wed. and Thurs. as part of his own rehab assignment, nothing has happened with him yet. ... Being in Atlanta, I feel it's appropriate to offer my heartfelt congrats to Delta Air Lines, which I have flown almost exclusively over the past eight years (Not to brag, but I'm a Platinum Medallion). They officially emerged from bankruptcy two days ago and returned to the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. On the flight here from LAX yesterday, they offered a glass of champagne to every single passenger to celebrate the news. I'm not so arrogant as to believe I'm one of the reasons they're not solvent. But I DO think the fact that so many of their loyal customers stuck with them through the hard times played a huge role. Here's to what I hope are many, many years of that same loyalty from me.

Greetings from Atlanta, a city that has come a long, long way since General Sherman burned it to the ground. I'm on the 51st floor of the Westin Peachtree Plaza, one of my favorite hotels in the U.S., and have my usual sweeping view of downtown. There is a thick layer of smog today over the city today, giving it kind of a Los Angeles feel, but other than that, it's a nice day, and I'm going to enjoy the rare evening of idle relaxation tonight by having a nice dinner somewhere before we get back to the business of baseball tomorrow night at Turner Field. ... The Braves yesterday called up catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia -- who, for obvious reasons, is known around the clubhouse as Salty. He has the distinction of having the longest surname (14 letters) in the history of major-league baseball, surpassing the unforgettable William Van Landingham (remember how painful it was watching him try to get a bunt down?) by one letter. ... That's all for today. I'll post tomorrow when I arrive at the Ted.

Same score as last night. Dodgers take two of three in the series despite scoring a grand total of five runs. This might have been the typical laidback atmosphere of a weekday matinee, but this was actually a fairly big win for the boys. They opened up a 1 1/2-game lead on the rest of the division, giving them at least some breathing room as the hit the road for seven days starting Friday. No game tomorrow. I'll try to post tomorrow afternoon when I get to Hot-lanta (temps are expected to hover around 90 all weekend, with thundershowers to make it nice and humid). Have a pleasant evening.

An impossibly tall left-hander pitched six-plus dominating innings in a Dodgers-Diamondbacks game today, and it WASN'T Randy Johnson. It was Mark Hendrickson. He struck out seven and gave up just three hits, including a seventh-inning leadoff single by Orlando Hudson, the last batter he faced. Chin-hui Tsao got out of that mini-jam with a Chin-hui Tsao-like perfect inning and now has given up no runs and one hit in 10 2/3 since his April 18 callup. In games like these, it's usually a fielding miscue that makes the difference. So far, that's the case. Chris Young dropped Rafael Furcal's fly ball in the eighth, and Furcal came home from second on Pierre's single. Dodgers 1, Snakes 0, top 8

Wilson Betemit got a hit. BATTING RIGHT-HANDED. It came off Doug Davis in the second inning. It was Betemit's first RH hit in 13 RH at-bats this season. Other than that, it has been an uneventful afternoon so far, a pitchers' duel between two guys with sub-three ERAs. Most exciting thing that has happened so far is during one inning break, they play one of the greatest songs ever from one of the greatest movies ever. It was Kids in America, the opening song from the movie Clueless. Other than that, Nancy Bea has been playing a lot of Disney songs on the organ in honor of that stuff I complained about on the earlier post. Check with ya later.

Jeff Kent must have made a more compelling case to Grady than Luis Gonzalez did. Russ Martin moves up to fifth, Wilson Betemit moves up to sixth (are you kidding me?), Andre Ethier stays put and Brady Clark bats eighth.

SS Furcal
CF Pierre -- 8 for 19 against Doug Davis
1B Nomar
2B Kent
C Martin
3B Betemit
RF Ethier -- hitting .316 his past 17 games
LF Clark
LH Hendrickson -- 1.66 ERA tops all ML lefties

Apparently, it's Youth Day at Dodger Stadium, as part of Disney Youth Education Series, and a bunch of Disney employees are on the field attempting to entertain a bunch of kids seated in the rightfield pavilion. These apparently teenaged Disney reps are trying to educate the kids on the rules/history/nuances of baseball, and they are doing so in typically Disney fashion -- at 10:25 in the morning. I think Disney might have a rule that all employees must consume a minimum of 12 cups of coffee before being allowed to go ``on stage.'' Today, the rightfield pavilion isn't All You Can Eat. It's How Much Can You Stand? Can you tell I didn't get a lot of sleep last night? ... Randy Johnson is on the field right now playing catch. Sure hope he doesn't accidentally hit one of those Disney employees (sarcasm).

Sure, the boys stranded a dozen baserunners, but two of those were Olmedo Saenz and Jeff Kent, who were left standing after Saenz's two-out single off Brandon Lyon in the ninth let Rafael Furcal jog home from third with the winning run. Predictably, that 1-0 lead didn't hold up after the Dodgers blew so many chances to increase it. But all's well that ends well. Chin-hui Tsao was unhittable once again, pitching a perfect seventh, and Takashi Saito turned in a perfect ninth. Tsao has now retired the past 21 batters he has faced, Saito the past 10 batters he has faced. Dodgers go to 16-11 and move a half-game in front of the Snakes atop the division. ... Early wakeup call tomorrow, as we start at 10 past noon. See ya then.

If this were Gilligan's Island, they would have to add three more cast members have enough stranded castaways. Dodgers have now left 10 men on base, seven of them in scoring position, in six innings. To their credit, they DID show a lot more patience at the plate tonight than in recent days. They made Livan Hernandez throw 124 pitches in six innings (he was just lifted for a PH) and drew six walks. A lot of good it did them. Penny is gone, too. He shut out the Snakes on three hits over six innings, but also walked four. Tony Pena on for the Snakes now. Dodgers 1, D-backs 0, middle 7

Going back to the final three innings of last night's debacle, the Dodgers have now stranded 11 runners in their past six innings, including the bases loaded twice and a total of six runners in scoring position. None of that really matters in a 9-1 loss to Brandon Webb. But tonight, when the Dodgers are clinging to a one-run lead over the only team ahead of them in the standings, it could come back to bite them in the glutes. On the other side, while Penny has shut out the Snakes through four, he has had runners on in every inning and already has three walks, including back-to-back freebies with two outs in the fourth. The Dodgers could use an easy, cakewalk victory. It doesn't appear they're going to get it tonight. Dodgers 1, D-backs 0, bottom 4

Not sure what this means, but Wilson Betemit just took early batting practice -- by himself -- with Grady pitching to him. Eddie Murray was nowhere in sight. This is the same Eddie Murray who went to the Hall of Fame following his career as a switch-hitting power guy. This is the same Wilson Betemit whom club officials believe can be a switch-hitting power guy. ... Oh, and tonight's lineup is already out. Marlon Anderson is starting in place of Nomar -- not sure why, but it might have something to do with Nomar being 0 for 11 lifetime against Livan Hernandez. Marlon has 27 career games at 1B

SS Furcal
CF Pierre
1B Anderson
2B Kent
LF Gonzo
C Martin
RF Ethier
3B Betemit
RH Penny