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LOS ANGELES (AP) -The
Los Angeles Dodgers
kept their perfect home record intact despite another unsettling bout of wildness by rookie pitcher
James McDonald
.
Manny Ramirez
followed
Orlando Hudson
's two-run homer with a long ball of his own, and the Dodgers scored the go-ahead run in the seventh inning on catcher
Nick Hundley
's error to beat the
San Diego Padres
8-5 on Thursday night.
The Dodgers improved to 7-0 at Chavez Ravine in the opener of an 11-game homestand. It's their best start at home since 1947,
when the Brooklyn Dodgers started out 8-0 at Ebbets Field in
Jackie Robinson
's rookie year.
McDonald retired only four of his first 10 batters in his fourth major league start - allowing three runs, two hits and four
walks. Altogether, he has walked 14 batters in 14 1-3 innings.
''The only thing I can do is just remind him about the good stuff he's done here,'' said manager
Joe Torre
, who got six scoreless inning out of him after his September callup and another 5 1-3 shutout innings in the NLCS. ''We're
going to try to figure something out where James will be in a position where he can help us.''
With Los Angeles leading 1-0, McDonald walked three in a row in the second inning to force in the tying run after
Adrian Gonzalez
led off with a single that extended his hitting streak to 12 games. Another run scored on
Luis Rodriguez
's double-play grounder before
Josh Geer
's RBI single made it 3-1.
''There's no excuse. I should be throwing strikes,'' the 24-year-old rookie said. ''I should be giving my team a solid outing.
You have to put this one behind you and think about what you need to do to be successful and take this as a challenge.''
Jeff Weaver
made 59 pitches over four scoreless innings of relief, allowing four hits and striking out four in his return to the Dodgers
after a three-year absence. The right-hander left the game in the sixth with a 4-3 lead, but the Padres pulled ahead when
Adrian Gonzalez
hit an RBI double and scored on a fielder's choice grounder by
Kevin Kouzmanoff
.
''The adrenaline was pumping and it was nice to get my feet wet again,'' Weaver said. ''Once I got the first hitter out of
the way, I felt good. When I got here, they just said throw it in there and let the defense make plays. And they sure did
that tonight.''
Padres starter
Josh Geer
allowed four runs, seven hits and no walks over six innings and struck out four in his seventh big league start. He also had
two hits, including an RBI single, and left with a 5-4 lead before the Dodgers rallied with two runs in the seventh.
Luke Gregerson
(0-1) gave up singles to his first three batters, including
Mark Loretta
, whose tying RBI single gave him seven hits in 10 at-bats as a pinch-hitter this season.
''He knows how to hit, which is the most important thing - and it's not always pretty,'' Torre said. ''You don't know how
it's going to get done, but you sort of put him up there and trust his ability. He did it against me when he was with the
Red Sox
and was a regular player.''
One out later, Hudson singled and
Casey Blake
was held up at third base by coach
Larry Bowa
. But when the two-hop throw from right fielder
Brian Giles
skipped past Hundley - and Gregerson backing up the play - Blake came home with the go-ahead run.
Ronald Belisario
(1-2) earned his first major league victory with an inning of one-hit relief.
Jonathan Broxton
got his seventh save in eight attempts, striking out three after a leadoff walk.
Hudson tied it at 3 in the third with his third homer of the season after a double by
Rafael Furcal
. Three pitches later, Ramirez hit his fifth homer and 532nd of his career, two behind
Jimmie Foxx
for 16th place.
''Josh had a rough third inning when they got the two home runs, but he didn't back down,'' Padres manager
Bud Black
said. ''The guy keeps battling, throws strikes and pitches his game. And he had a chance to be the winning pitcher.''
Notes: The longest home winning streak by the Dodgers franchise to start a season is nine, set in 1946. ... The Dodgers' 9-4
loss to San Francisco's
Tim Lincecum
on Wednesday night made them 0-10 in 13 games against reigning NL Cy Young Award winners dating to Sept. 9, 2003.
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