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Dodgers fall deeper into the abyss with 3-2 loss to Rockies in 10 innings

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And down they go, sinking lower by the day. Pretty soon the Dodgers will be so small, you’ll need a magnifying glass to find them. They’ll probably talk with little squeaky voices.

A flat, listless-looking Dodgers squad lost again on a hot Wednesday night, falling, 3-2, in 10 innings to the Rockies.

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The loss dropped them still deeper in the standings, a season-high 12 games behind the Padres in the National League West and eight games behind the Phillies for the wild card.

This time, it was reliever Octavio Dotel’s turn to blow a game.

Dotel provided the Rockies’ winning run on three walks (one intentional) and three wild pitches in the 10th. Just to show you what kind of year it’s been for the Dodgers, Dotel had thrown two previous wild pitches all year.

The Dodgers had a chance to tie the score in the bottom of the 10th when Reed Johnson singled and tried to score on a hit by Scott Podsednik, but he was thrown out at the plate to end the game. Somehow, a fitting ending.

The Dodgers had opened the scoring with a run in the first.

Podsednik, who has hit safely in 32 of his last 35 games, started the Dodgers’ half of the inning with a single to left.

As Manager Joe Torre continues to go more to small ball to try to generate badly needed offense, Ryan Theriot then bunted Podsednik to second.

Right-hander Jason Hammel, who had thrown seven wild pitches in his previous 130 1/3 innings, then threw a wild pitch that allowed Podsednik to go to third and another that allowed him to score.

The Rockies got that run back in the second against Hiroki Kuroda when singles by Seth Smith and Ian Stewart put runners on first and third. Miguel Olivo lifted a blooper to left that Jay Gibbons charged and dove for, but the ball bounced off his glove for a double that drove in Smith.

The Dodgers regained the lead in the bottom of the inning on a single by Casey Blake and Jamey Carroll’s run-scoring double.

Colorado made it 2-2 in the fourth. Smith walked, took third on a one-out single by Stewart and scored on a groundout by Olivo.

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Hammel settled down after the second. He went six innings, giving up two runs on four hits, four walks and the two wild pitches. He struck out four.

The Rockies, however, suffered a loss of another kind. The Rockies have been more hampered by injuries this season than even the Dodgers, and in the sixth inning they lost their best offensive player.

James Loney singled with two out before Blake lined a drive to the wall in right. Carlos Gonzalez made an excellent running catch just before crashing into the wall. He held onto the ball but collapsed on the warning track and remained down for several minutes.

He walked off the field but did not return to the game. The Rockies said he suffered a right knee bruise.

Kuroda went seven innings for the Dodgers, giving up two runs on six hits and one walk with seven strikeouts.

-- Steve Dilbeck

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