Saturday, July 20, 2002
San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers
recap | boxscore
Seattle Mariners at Anaheim Angels
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LOS ANGELES - With the meat of the Los Angeles Dodgers' lineup coming up short recently, it was left to leadoff hitter Dave Roberts to provide some punch.
Roberts hit a tiebreaking, two-run single to cap a three-run eighth inning Saturday as the Dodgers rallied to beat the San Francisco Giants 4-2 and snap a season-high five-game losing streak.
Roberts, who entered in an 0-for-10 skid, had three hits, three RBIs and a career-high three stolen bases as the Dodgers won for only the second time in 11 games.
They are 2-8 since the All-Star break, scoring only 23 runs in the 10 games - all at home.
"That's not my forte," said Roberts, whoops 24 RBIs on the season. "I'll do whatever it takes for us."
Roberts is 20-for-46 (.435 average) with 21 RBIs with runners in scoring position.
"We were destined to break through at some point in time," Roberts said. "It's been very frustrating."
Dodgers outfielder Shawn Green, who has 27 homers and 69 RBIs, is hitless in his last 18 at-bats and Paul Lo Duca, hitting .309, is in a 1-for-15 slump.
The Giants played without slugger Barry Bonds, who sat out the game with a strained right hamstring he sustained Friday night.
Bonds will probably be sidelined at least a few more days, although Giants' trainer Stan Conte before the game Bonds was "a little better this morning."
Giants manager Dusty Baker said he had no idea when Bonds will return.
Roberts said the Dodgers were motivated in part when Felix Rodriguez (3-6) hit Eric Karros with a pitch in the seventh. The ball appeared to glance off Karros' wrist and carom off his jaw.
"I was told he has a pretty good gash underneath his chin," Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said. "He was not bleeding profusely, but he was bleeding. I believe he was bleeding from his tongue.
"Right now, we're calling it a bruised jaw."
Karros was taken to a nearby hospital for precautionary X-rays, which were negative. The Dodgers said Karros was having minor plastic surgery on his chin and is day to day.
"That kind of lit a fire under us," said Roberts, who didn't believe there was any intent on Rodriguez's part.
Rodriguez, who began his career in the Dodgers' organization, seemed upset afterward, calling Karros a friend and saying he planned to call the Dodgers' first baseman to express his concern.
Paul Quantrill (2-3) pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth by retiring Tsuyoshi Shinjo on a liner to second to earn the victory. Eric Gagne pitched a perfect ninth for his 34th save in 36 chances.
"That's probably the worst inning I threw this year," Quantrill said. "The thing that got me in trouble was the double by Reggie Sanders on a pretty good pitch. That was one of the few good ones I threw."
Quantrill deflected a liner up the middle by Rich Aurilia to shortstop with one out and runners at second and third to prevent two runs from scoring before Shinjo hit another shot that Grudzielanek caught.
"Good fortune was on their side today," Baker said. "They made their hits count. They've been going so bad, I guess good fortune would be on their side somehow."
Roberts looped 1-1 pitch from Tim Worrell into short right field near the foul line, driving in Grudzielanek and Alex Cora.
Adrian Beltre, Grudzielanek and Cora singled to start the eighth off Rodriguez, with Cora's hit driving in Beltre and tying the game at 2.
Pinch-hitter Jeff Reboulet sacrificed Grudzielanek and Cora into scoring position before Roberts came through.
The Giants, who lost for just the fourth time in 12 games, took a 1-0 lead in the first when Jeff Kent hit an 0-1 pitch from Omar Daal over the left-field wall for his 16th homer.
After threatening in the first three innings, the Dodgers broke through in the fourth against Ryan Jensen, scoring on an RBI single by Roberts to make it 1-1.
An error by Kent at second base on Daal's grounder made the run unearned.
The Giants took a 2-1 lead in the seventh on pinch-hitter Ramon Martinez's sacrifice fly with the bases loaded.
Jensen allowed six hits and an unearned run in six innings, retiring the final eight batters he faced. Daal allowed five hits and two runs in seven innings in his longest outing of the season.
The Dodgers stranded eight baserunners in the first four innings before Jensen retired the side in order in the fifth and sixth.
Notes: Kent's homer extended his hitting streak to 12 games. ... When the Dodgers lost to the Giants 3-2 in 12 innings Friday, they fell into third place in the NL West for the first time since May 28. The win moved them back into second place. ... Aurilia was dropped from his normal No. 2 spot to fifth in the Giants' lineup. Baker said the move wasn't made because Aurilia has been struggling. "He hit the ball hard last night. If you can drive in 97 runs from the second spot, you can drive in runs anywhere." Baker said, referring to Aurilia's RBI total last season. Aurilia went 0-for-4 and is now in a 2-for-25 slump. ... Jensen had blanked the Dodgers for 17 innings in his career before they finally broke through in the fourth.