Dodgers’ offense continues to shrink by the game, as they fall to Padres, 6-1
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Some day, the Dodgers will score more than a couple of runs in a game. Not Wednesday though. Not much at all, lately.
The Dodgers had been winning in spite of an anemic offense, but this time their woeful lack of production was too much to overcome. That despite another solid starting effort by Hiroki Kuroda.
Wednesday it resulted in a 6-1 loss to the Padres, the Dodgers falling to six back of San Diego in the National League West.
The Dodgers went so meekly that after Jamey Carroll singled in their only run in the third inning, they never got another hit. They never got another baserunner. The last 19 Dodgers were retired in order.
The Dodgers have averaged only 2.15 runs in their 13 games since the All-Star break. They’ve scored more than two runs just once in their last seven games, and in the one exception they scored only three.
The Dodgers picked up their run in the third off Padres left-hander Clayton Richard after Blake DeWitt singled with one out.
After Kuroda struck out, Rafael Furcal walked. Carroll, perhaps starting in left for the last time in a while after the Dodgers acquired outfielder Scott Podsednik, gave the Dodgers a 1-0 lead by lining a single to center.
For a long time, it appeared 1-0 might hold up. At least the way the Dodgers’ rotation had been going.
Coming in, the Dodgers’ starters had a 1.09 ERA in their last 10 games. Kuroda shut the Padres out the first five innings Wednesday, extending the staff’s overall scoreless streak to 30 innings and his own scoreless streak to 15.
But in the sixth it came undone for Kuroda, or at least undone enough. Tony Gwynn Jr. pinch-hit for Richard, singled and stole second. Chris Denorfia walked and Adrian Gonzalez looped a hit in front of Matt Kemp in center to score Gywnn with the tying run.
Chase Headley walked to load the bases and Nick Hundley’s fly to right was deep enough to bring Denorfia in with the go-ahead run.
The Dodgers trailed 2-1, and with the combination of the way their offense and the Padres’ bullpen has been going, a one-run lead looked fairly imposing.
Just to play it safe, the Padres added two more in the seventh on an RBI double by Jerry Hairston Jr. and RBI single by Denorfia.
On a roll now, the Padres added two more in the eighth on a Hairston single off Travis Schlichting.
Kuroda (8-9) went six-plus innings, giving up three runs, four hits and two walks. He struck out five.
The Padres’ vaunted bullpen performed as advertised, four relievers shutting the Dodgers down over the last three innings. It’s not like that has been some mean trick of late.
The Dodgers finished with four hits.
-- Steve Dilbeck