Andre Ethier may have just gotten that one big hit to break his funk.
A huge error by Pedro Feliz in the ninth gave Ethier the opportunity to be a hero with the bases loaded and two outs. He wasted no time, as a double down the right field line scored two, and the Dodgers got a big comeback win over the Phillies, 4-3.
With the Dodgers struggling to put men on, much like the night before against Cole Hamels, the Phillies had a slight edge for most of the night. Raul Ibanez got an RBI groundout in the third to make it 1-0, and Chase Utley scored two with a double in the fourth to make it 3-0.
Juan Pierre lead off the bottom of the fourth and was beaned by Jamie Moyer. That must be like getting hit by a wiffle ball. Anyway, he then stole second with nobody out. Rafael Furcal got him to third on a groundout, and Orlando Hudson's groundout scored him to cut it to 3-1.
Fast forward to the seventh, where Raffy started things with a double, which seems like his first hit in forever. And it may have been considering his average has dropped way down to .239. Two groundouts put the inning in doubt, but James Loney was just able to drop a fly ball in front of a sliding Eric Bruntlett to make it 3-2.
Brad Lidge came on to close it out, and immediately got the first two out. But like he's has been this season, he couldn't seal the deal. Casey Blake singled and Loney drew a walk.
Russell Martin hit an easy grounder to Feliz at third, but he bobbled it for whatever reason, giving the Dodgers new life. Ethier lined the next pitch to right to end it with a walk-off win. Good for Ethier, as he hit a miserable .211 in May, so maybe this will get him going again.
Eric Milton was the starter, and he only lasted four and 2/3 innings. He gave up three runs, but an error by Hudson made only one of those runs earned. Still, it would have been nice if he could have gone a little longer, but he kept the Dodgers in the game, so I guess it's mission accomplished.
The bullpen was fantastic, pitching the rest of the way and not allowing a run. Guillermo Mota, Brent Leach, and Ramon Troncoso were great. Jonathan Broxton struck out the side in the top of the ninth, so he got the win with the walk-off, improving his record to 6-0.
With the one-run win, the Dodgers are now 10-1 in such games. Like Joe Torre said after the game, as long as there's 27 outs, the Dodgers will play every one of them and search for a win. That's why they have the best record in baseball right now, and are making a mockery of the rest of the NL West.
Today is an afternoon game on FOX, as Hiroki Kuroda gets his second start back from the Disabled List to take on Joe Blanton. My prediction? Another close game. Hey, why not?
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