Playing in a day game after a 13 inning game the night before, the Dodgers put on the field what can be considered their "B" lineup. Gone were Russell Martin, Orlando Hudson, Rafael Furcal, Casey Blake, and Manny Ramirez. In were Brad Ausmus, Ronnie Belliard, Juan Castro, Blake DeWitt, and Juan Pierre.
In case you forgot, they were still playing the Pirates, who pretty much put a "C" or "D" lineup out there every night.
No shock, the Dodgers still won, 3-1.
If you're a Pirate fan and are reading this, I really feel for ya. I really do. The Dodgers were pretty much saying, "We're resting a bunch of our good players, but it won't matter." And that's exactly what happened.
The one thing the Pirates did do right was get the first run across. In the second, Brandon Moss doubled to lead off against Hiroki Kuroda. After getting sacrificed to third, Jason Jaramillo hit an RBI single to go up, 1-0.
With a makeshift lineup, Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp were pretty much the only legit threats left. That meant at least one of them would have to get a big hit. It took until the sixth inning, but it happened.
Ronnie Belliard doubled to start. Ethier struck out on a good breaking ball for one down. With an 0-2 count, Kevin Hart grooved one down the middle that Kemp clocked to center for a two-run shot and a 2-1 lead. It was smooth sailing from there.
Belliard continued his hot day by leading off the eighth and hitting one out to center, making it 3-1. He was 3-for-3 on the day with a double and homer. He certainly wasn't a high-profile pickup, but he's been very solid. His versatility in playing third or second has helped get him plenty of playing time.
The pitching was one again top-notch, again benefited from playing against a last-place team. Kuroda got the win, going six innings for six hits, one run, no walks, and seven strikeouts. That's two fantastic starts in a row, a great sign for October.
The end-game formula of Hong-Chih Kuo and George Sherrill pitched the seventh and eighth, respectively, allowing no baserunners. Jonathan Broxton got his 35th save, adding a strikeout in the ninth.
While the Dodgers largely had their way in this three-game sweep, it's back to reality after an off day Thursday. The Giants come to town, and they've been whipping up the Rockies this week. The Dodgers took two of three from them in San Francisco last weekend, but that was without seeing Tim Lincecum. That won't be the case this time around.
At last check the rotation for the three games hasn't been set in stone. But, it looks like it'll be Vicente Padilla, Chad Billingsley, and Jon Garland in that order. Who would have thought that from that group, Billingsley is the one we'd worry about the most? He really needs a solid start, and beating Brad Penny on Saturday would be a nice boost for his confidence.
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