DODGERS NOTEBOOK: BALDWIN SAYS TIP WILL HELP.

ST. LOUIS - Dodgers starter James Baldwin has been knocked around lately on the mound, but the right-hander is confident he will pitch well in the playoffs. And, yes, he said the Dodgers will make the playoffs.

In fact, Baldwin believes he'll fare much better as soon as Thursday against San Diego because a flaw was discovered in his delivery.

Pitching coach Jim Colborn reviewed tape of Baldwin's four-inning, five-run outing in Saturday's loss to St. Louis and noticed Baldwin's arm was much slower than the rest of his body.

``It's something Colby and I are going to work on and and get right, and I know I will,'' Baldwin said. ``I'd rather have it to happen now than in the playoffs, because I know for a fact we're going to be in the playoffs.''

Colborn and Baldwin hope to make a slight adjustment during the next bullpen session.

``I don't even know if it needs to be that drastic,'' Colborn said. ``If it's done right, the arm is slow. But you don't speed up the arm or slow down the body, you synchronize the arm and the body.''

The Dodgers hope that such a tweak will enable Baldwin to become a positive factor in the last three weeks of the season because for the last month he's hampered their efforts. Baldwin is 0-3 with a 9.00 ERA in his past three starts and opponents are batting .429 against him. He's 1-4 with a 6.69 ERA in his past six starts.

``Right now, it's just one or two pitches off,'' Baldwin said. ``I'll be all right. It's going to happen, but I'm just so close to getting out of the inning. Right now, I'm having some tough times and the guys are really picking me up on that, so it's going to be OK. I want to go out there and pitch today because I'm anxious.''

--Sheffield sits: Dodgers left fielder Gary Sheffield, mired in an 0-for-10 slump that included leaving seven men on base, sat out with a migraine. With Chan Ho Park starting, meaning Chad Kreuter would catch, Paul LoDuca started in left field for the second time. Lo Duca's other start there was on July 14.

``I think he was feeling it a bit (Saturday), to be quite honest with you, and tried to get through it,'' Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said. ``He's hurtin' (Sunday). It's a bad migraine. The guy's got a headache to the point where it's just pounding. It's like you're pounding a drum off his head. Focusing is tough, I'm sure, so with the day off (today), we just don't want to risk losing him for a series of days in a row because that's something that we can ill-afford at this time.''

--Needing a day: Dodgers second baseman Mark Grudzielanek will use today's day off to rest his battered body. Not only is he playing with a torn ligament in his right thumb and a fracture in his middle finger, but he's also nursing a right-hamstring strain that's hampered his ability to run.

``I could definitely use a day off,'' Grudzielanek said. ``The treatment and stuff like that only does so much. The running on it, the throwing on it ... you really need a day off and it will give me a chance for my body to feel better.''

--Odd timing: With the Cardinals leading 7-1 before the bottom of the fifth inning, in the third game of the series, St. Louis officials decided to give an impromptu greeting to Dodgers batting coach Jack Clark. A replay of his 1985 homer in the National League Championship Series for the Cardinals against the Dodgers was shown on the right-field video board.

The crowd roared and Clark climbed a few steps up the dugout and tipped his cap.

--Odds and ends: Third baseman Adrian Beltre extended his hitting streak to a career-high 15 games with a ninth-inning single. It's the longest by a Dodger in at least two seasons. ... Right-hander Kevin Brown had the nail removed from his right big toe but will make his next start. ... Matt Herges, who leads Dodgers relievers with 65 appearances and 87 innings pitched, wasn't available for the second consecutive day because of a strained left side. Tracy is only hopeful Herges will be ready Tuesday. ... Eric Gagne, the odd man out when the Dodgers went to a four-man rotation, pitched for the first time since Aug. 31 and allowed one hit in 2 1/3 shutout innings.