It took only one at-bat for Manny Ramirez to hit his first home run since suspension, putting the Dodgers up 1-0. Randy Wolf pitched six strong innings, surrendering only one run, and left in line for the win with Dodgers up 2-1.
Then the normally lights-out bullpen were instead lit up, the defense went AWOL, and the Padres got the win, 7-4.
What does that mean? Yes indeed, Randy "No-Decision" Wolf lives on.
The first six innings saw a pitcher's duel between Wolf and Josh Geer, who were knotted at one each. In the seventh, Casey Blake and James Loney each singled with one down, chasing Geer. With Greg Burke in the game, he unleashed a wild pitch that scored Blake for the 2-1 lead.
Even with the slim margin, it sure looked like the Dodgers were well on their way to a W when Ronald Belisario came in the bottom of the seventh. Instead, his wildness got the better of him.
Eliezer Alfonzo walked to lead off, followed by a single from Tony Gwynn. Kyle Blanks was then beaned, and the bases were juiced. Everth Cabrera changed that, as he hit a two-run single to give the Padres the 3-2 lead. Adrian Gonzalez (big shock) hit an RBI single to increase it to 4-2.
The Dodgers did get a run back to make it interesting in the eighth. Rafael Furcal walked and Russell Martin singled to open the inning. Juan Pierre, in for Manny, sacrificed them over. Andre Ethier hit an RBI groundout to score Furcal, and it was 4-3.
That was as close as the Dodgers would get, as their own defense would let them down big time. In the bottom of the eighth, Juan Castro's fielding error was the start, and Blake had a throwing error. In all, three runs were scored. Ramon Troncoso was the victim, but all of his runs were unearned.
With Heath Bell in, the Dodgers started off the ninth pretty well. James Loney walked and went to second on fielder's indifference. Matt Kemp hit an RBI single to make it 7-4. Then Bell struck out the side of Castro, the pinch-hitting Orlando Hudson, and Furcal.
The story of this game will be the Dodgers' defense and bullpen faltering late. A quick check of the stats shows the Dodgers fourth in the majors with a .988 fielding percentage, so getting three errors in a game is highly unusual. But, it happens. I don't think we'll be seeing the bullpen giving up six runs in two innings much anymore.
Chad Billingsley will try for the fourth time to get his 10th win of the season. The Dodgers have lost his last three starts, so they'll look to change that today. He's opposed by Josh Banks.
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