The combination of a strong arm and a sick stomach were all the Dodgers needed in San Diego.
Chad Billingsley pitched six shutout innings, Andre Ethier hit a pinch-hit two-run single in the seventh, and the Dodgers beat the Padres, 2-0. The Dodgers have taken five of six from the Padres this season and are five back in the NL West.
With scoring at a premium (as has been the case in any Dodger game lately), the game once again came down to the pitching. And once again, the starters stepped up in a big way. Billingsley lasted six innings for three hits, no runs, two walks, and four strikeouts. Three starts ago his ERA stood at 4.61, now it's down to 4.00.
Billingsley had to work out of a couple of jams. In the second, Will Venable walked and stole second with two down. Tony Gwynn then drew a walk himself. Everth Cabrera struck out to end the inning.
The biggest threat came in the fourth when Billingsley really found himself in trouble, only to make big pitches to get out of it. It started when Adrian Gonzalez singled leading off. Chase Headley followed with another single, and Yorvit Torrealba legged out an infield single to load the bases.
Venable grounded one to Blake DeWitt at second, who then fired home a little wide of Russell Martin. Martin made a good adjustment by tagging Gonzalez out for one down. Gwynn then popped up to Rafael Furcal, and Cabrera struck out looking at a breaking ball.
Through six innings, the Dodgers managed only two measly hits. They finally got going in the seventh, and it happened all with two outs. DeWitt and Garret Anderson hit consecutive singles to get a rally going. Martin was given the intentional pass to load the bases with Billingsley due up.
Joe Torre had a decision to make at this point, as Billingsley only had thrown 84 pitches. Ethier was a late scratch from the lineup because of an upset stomach, but the chance to get one swing out of him was too much to pass up. In went Ethier, and he grounded a two-run single to center for the 2-0 lead.
Hong-Chih Kuo pitched the next two innings, and came out unscathed. Cabrera singled and Jerry Hairston, Jr. reached on an error by Casey Blake in the seventh, but Chris Denorfia struck out looking for the last out. Kuo worked around a single by Torrealba in the eighth to keep it a two-run game.
Jonathan Broxton pitched a perfect ninth, including a strikeout of Matt Stairs to end the game, for his first save since July 8. I love that guy! But seriously, it was good to see him regain some confidence with an easy ninth. With Kuo still doing his thing and the emergence of Kenley Jansen, having Broxton on his game makes for a nasty bullpen.
After a horrible stretch to start the second half, the Dodgers have now won five of six. Incredibly, they've only scored 11 runs during this span. The pitching staff deserves so much credit, especially the starters. They're as locked in as can be.
Being five games back certainly isn't insurmountable. When you take into account the Dodgers are a fantastic 25-8 against the rest of the West, there's plenty of reason for optimism. Still, the offense needs to meet the pitching halfway. It's hard to survive by scoring only a couple runs a game.
Hiroki Kuroda threw eight shutout innings his last start, and he'll be on the mound Wednesday night looking to get a game closer to first. Clayton Richards counters for the Padres.
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