DODGERS NOTEBOOK: IT'S NO FIELD DAY FOR ROBLES.

Byline: Tony Jackson  Staff Writer

HOUSTON - The feel-good story that is Dodgers infielder Oscar Robles hit a few speed bumps Sunday. Although he batted .515 (17 for 33) on the first-half-ending, seven-game road trip, Robles committed two glaring miscues in Sunday's 5-4 loss to Houston.

In the first inning, he fielded a potential double-play grounder and threw it into right field. While starter Odalis Perez was able to pitch out of that inning with only an unearned run scoring, he threw considerably more pitches than he likely would have if Robles had made a clean feed to second.

An exhausted Perez later blew all of a four-run lead in the sixth inning on a day when Minute Maid Park was suffocatingly humid, even with the roof closed.

``Twenty extra pitches is 20 extra pitches,'' Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said. ``It's an additional inning or two''

Then, with two outs in the top of the ninth, Robles poked a single to left-center off Houston closer Brad Lidge, the Dodgers' first hit of the three-game series in 7 1/3 innings against Astros relievers. Center fielder Willy Taveras easily prevented the ball from getting into the gap, but Robles turned the corner and bolted for second, where Taveras easily threw him out to end the game.

``I understand the effort,'' Tracy said. ``But you hate to see the game end at second base with what we had coming up (Jason Repko and Jeff Kent).''

On a day when some players left the clubhouse quickly to catch various commercial flights to wherever they would spend the All-Star break, Robles was gone before the media had a chance to talk to him.

--Injury updates: Dodgers outfielder Milton Bradley (right ring finger) might begin a minor-league rehabilitation assignment as soon as this week. Bradley took either soft-toss or live batting practice three consecutive days without pain, the first time he has been able to do that since suffering the injury on May 29.

Meanwhile, left-hander Wilson Alvarez lacked command in his second rehab appearance for Triple-A Las Vegas on Saturday, when he made it through just one inning on 27 pitches. Alvarez likely will make at least one more appearance, which won't be until later this week because of the Triple-A All-Star break. He won't be activated simply because the Dodgers don't have a lefty in their bullpen right now.

--Flippo recognized: Dodgers bullpen catcher Rob Flippo will accompany first baseman Hee-Seop Choi to tonight's All-Star Home Run Derby in Detroit. Choi, who will be competing for his native South Korea, asked Flippo to join him and pitch to him in the Derby.