LOWE BLOW FOR DEM BUMS NEW HURLER'S SHUTOUT LEADS `BROOKLYN' DODGERS 4, SAN DIEGO 0.

Byline: Rich Hammond  Staff Writer

Derek Lowe just can't seem to escape these uniform issues.

Lowe recently received a pair of cleats with the number 32, which he wore in Boston, stitched on the side. A nice touch - except that 32 is retired by the Dodgers in honor of a fellow named Sandy Koufax.

``Probably shouldn't wear these,'' said Lowe, who instead had Koufax autograph one of the shoes.

On top of that, Lowe made his first start at Dodger Stadium on Friday night wearing a jersey that didn't read ``Dodgers.'' But this time, unlike the Red Sox ring-ceremony fiasco, Lowe didn't spark any controversy - the Dodgers were wearing Brooklyn jerseys as part of a Jackie Robinson Day tribute.

Given the way Lowe performed for ``Dem Bums'' - a popular nickname for the Brooklyn Dodgers - on Friday, he could have worn a pink dress on the field, and nobody in the crowd of 51,816 would have minded. Lowe pitched a three-hit shutout and drove in two runs as the Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 4-0.

``It was one of those days where you felt like you were in control of the game,'' said Lowe, whose only other career shutout was a no-hitter in 2002 with Boston. ``All in all, it was a good day.''

Jeff Kent and Milton Bradley hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning and Bradley scored three runs as the Dodgers (7-2) matched their best nine-game start since 1983, when they won eight of their first 10 games. The Dodgers' only two losses this season came in games started by Lowe.

On Friday, Lowe (1-1) got his first real look at his new home park, and he appeared quite comfortable. He didn't allow a runner to reach third, walked one, struck out five, threw 108 pitches and dispatched the Padres in 2 hours, 8 minutes.

Lowe, a sinkerball pitcher, got 17 groundball outs. The Padres hit only three balls to the outfield.

``He was fantastic,'' manager Jim Tracy said. ``The way he pounded the strike zone early in the count, it opened all kinds of doors for him to use his entire repertoire. He used both sides of the plate very well.''

There had been concern entering Friday about Lowe - not about his choice of jerseys, but about his arm, because he had to leave his previous start after being hit by a line drive on his right triceps.

Any worries vanished early, as Lowe retired the first eight San Diego hitters before pitcher Woody Williams lined a single into left field. Lowe, perhaps startled, then walked Sean Burroughs but retired the next five Padres.

The ball again was a magnet for Lowe again in the fifth inning, when Xavier Nady's comebacker hit Lowe in the back of his right calf. Lowe scrambled after the ball and nearly made the play at first base, but Hee- Seop Choi juggled the ball and Nady reached on an infield single.

``I'm tired of getting hit out there, I can tell you that much,'' Lowe joked.

Lowe wouldn't give up another hit until the eighth, when Burroughs blooped a single into short left.

``He felt good out there,'' catcher Jason Phillips said. ``He was utilizing both sides of the plate very well. Everything was working. He was doing all the work. I was just making suggestions.''

Williams (1-1), signed during the winter to provide a veteran presence for a young rotation, had his second subpar outing in three starts, allowing four runs in 6 1/3 innings.

In the second inning, Bradley came back from an 0-2 count to draw a leadoff walk and moved to second on Jose Valentin's sharp single. Ricky Ledee struck out, and Jason Phillips flied out to center, but Lowe then sent a soft liner toward Phil Nevin at first base.

Nevin, not the most nimble of fielders, made a leaping stab at the ball, but it glanced off the top of his glove for a single - and Lowe's second career RBI, as Bradley scored from second.

With two outs in the third, Kent swung at a 3-0 pitch from Williams and hit a towering home run just a couple feet inside the left-field foul pole. Bradley followed with a home run to straightaway center.

The Dodgers loaded the bases with out one in the sixth on a Bradley single, a Valentin walk and a Jason Phillips bloop single. Lowe followed with a ground ball deep to the left side, and the Padres' only play was to force Valentin at third, which allowed Bradley to score easily.

Rich Hammond, [phone]

rich.hammond(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, 5 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- color) Dodgers pitcher Derek Lowe, who threw his second career shutout, helps his cause with an RBI single.

(2) Jeff Kent, right, accepts congratulations from third-base coach Glenn Hoffman after hitting a third-inning homer in the Dodgers' 4-0 victory.

David Owen Baker/Staff Photographer

Box:

(1) DODGERS vs. SAN DIEGO

- Rich Hammond

(2) GAME RECAP

(3) HOW THE RUNS SCORED

(4) ALMANAC 

(5) STORY LINES