Chad Billingsley lasted only four innings, Brad Penny shut down the offense, and the Dodgers laid a Sunday egg in San Francisco, 7-2. Still, even with the loss, the series can be considered a success since they took two of three.
Even better, the Rockies fell to the Padres today, 7-2. The Padres also took two of three, and were a Heath Bell blown save away on Friday from getting the sweep. In all, the Dodgers are up three games on the Rockies and 7 and 1/2 on the Giants in the NL West.
This game was never in doubt, not unlike the previous two games in which the Dodgers had their way. In the second, Pablo Sandoval led off with a single. With one down, Juan Uribe took a hanging breaking ball out to left for a two-run shot and a 2-0 lead.
Things would only get worse for Billingsley, which really isn't a big surprise considering he hasn't shown the ability lately to shake off any sort of trouble. Nate Schierholtz doubled to start the fourth, and Uribe singled for two on. Travis Ishikawa doubled to score another, making it 3-0.
That was all she wrote for Billingsley, who amazingly only gave up three runs, though probably deserved much more. In four innings, he gave up eight hits, three runs, no walks, and six strikeouts. He certainly wasn't pounded, but like I said before, he gets way too rattled by adversity.
Even more concerning is that he hasn't pitched over six innings since July 5, spanning 12 starts. For someone that should be a #1 or 2 pitcher, that's just not going to cut it. He's certainly much more capable than that, but just can't find a way to get more innings. I know Joe Torre loves to use his bullpen, but Bills is making that an easy decision.
Bottom line, if the Dodgers want to win in the postseason, they need Billingsley to step it up.
Jeff Weaver came on and pretty much got pounded, giving up four runs in 1 and 1/3 innings. His appearances have been sporadic, so it's hard to blame him if he's rusty. He's still a good long reliever to have, so I'm not worried.
The only highlight of the day for the Dodgers came in the seventh. Casey Blake singled to lead off, and Russell Martin hit a two-run homer to make it 7-2. That's now two days in a row with a homer, which is something I didn't think I'd be saying anytime soon. Dare I say he's starting to find a groove at the plate? I hope so.
As for Penny, he gave the Giants another big start. He lasted seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits. He was never seriously threatened all day. The Giants will need more of that if they want to make a run at the playoffs with limited time remaining.
Even with the rough loss today, the Dodgers have won four of their last six. After looking flat in losing a home series against the Padres last weekend, it's good to see them bounce back. Throw in Randy Wolf and Clayton Kershaw missing starts with injuries, and it's even more impressive.
Next up is a three-game set at home with the Pirates. The Pirates are, shall we say... really pathetic. They are only 2-9 this month as they play out another embarrassing season. Still, the Dodgers can't take anyone lightly with such a small lead in the West.
Jon Garland is first up on Monday. He'll be followed by the hopeful returns of Kershaw and Wolf after that. The Rockies and Giants will slug it out for three in San Francisco.
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