NOMAR SLAMS PROSPECT OF A CRUCIAL LOSS WALKOFF HR SAVES DODGERS DODGERS 5, ARIZONA 1.Byline: VINCENT VINCENT Vital Information Necessary Centralized (movie, The Black Hole) BONSIGNORE Staff Writer Nomar Garciaparra's right quad hurts so much he can barely cover first base, let alone put the ball in play and run the bases. But it has done nothing to hinder his ability to carry a ballclub. For the second time in less than a week, Garciaparra hit a walkoff home run in a must-win situation, this one a grand slam grand slam n. 1. The winning of all the tricks during the play of one hand in bridge and other whist-derived card games. 2. Sports The winning of all the major or specified events, especially on a professional circuit. against Arizona to give the Dodgers a 5-1 victory in their last home game of the regular season Sunday in front of 49,822. Whether they play another game this year at Chavez Ravine depends on this week's crucial season-ending road trip starting Tuesday in Colorado and culminating Sunday in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden . The Dodgers are still 1 1/2 games behind In sports, the phrase games behind, often abbreviated as GB in tables, is a common way to reflect the gap between a leading team and another team in a sports league, conference, or division. first-place San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. in the National League West and trail Philadelphia by a half-game in the wild- card race. The situation isn't ideal but it is much less dire, thanks to Garciaparra's heroics over the past seven days. He hit a walkoff two-run home run last Monday to beat San Diego in one of the most thrilling Dodgers victories ever. On Sunday, he gingerly walked to home plate against Diamondbacks reliever Luis Vizcaino, worked a 2-1 count, then crushed a flat fastball deep into the left-field pavilion for the winner. ``It's a very, very special feeling,'' Garciaparra said. ``More so because we're all working hard out there trying to win. From the at-bats, from the guys in front of me, to the pitching performances we got today, we're all chipping in and doing everything we can to win.'' And, in Garciaparra's case, he is doing so with an injury so limiting he probably would be on the disabled list any other time of the season. ``He can barely run out there, yet he's contributing big-time,'' Dodgers manager Grady Little William Grady Little (born March 30, 1950 in Abilene, Texas) is a manager in Major League Baseball. He guided the Boston Red Sox from 2002 to 2003, and has been manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2006. said of Garciaparra. Rookie pitcher Hong-Chih Kuo Hong-Chih Kuo (Traditional Chinese: 郭泓志; pinyin: Guō Hóngzhì) (born July 23, 1981 in Tainan City, Taiwan) is a Major League Baseball pitcher with the Los Angeles Dodgers. made another bold statement for postseason pitching consideration, delivering seven strong innings while allowing an unearned run on four hits, with two walks and a career-high eight strikeouts. Kuo also had his first career hit, a double to left in the fifth that barely missed going over the wall for a home run. He later scored on Kenny Lofton's single to tie the score 1-1. It was Kuo's work on the mound that provided the biggest lift, easing the workload of a tired Dodgers bullpen stretched to the limit by too many short, ineffective starting pitching performances recently. ``It's something we needed terribly,'' Little said. ``I like the way this guy works. He takes the ball and gets right to work.'' Kuo didn't get the win, but he lowered his ERA to 4.12 with his third quality start in fouroutings since joining the rotation three weeks ago in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . A solid relief effort from Jonathan Broxton Jonathan Roy Broxton[1] (born June 16, 1984, in Augusta, Georgia),[2] nicknamed "The Ox," and "The Biggest Man In The World" by former Cub and current Arizona Diamondbacks announcer Mark Grace, is a Major League Baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers. and Takashi Saito in the eighth and ninth kept the score tied at 1-1, setting the stage for Garciaparra in the bottom of the ninth. Marlon Anderson Marlon Ordell Anderson is a Major League Baseball infielder who was born on January 16, 1974 in Montgomery, Alabama. Marlon attended the Autuaga County School system in Prattville, Alabama. He currently plays for the New York Mets. started the inning with a single, then moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Russell Martin
Four pitches later, Garciaparra ignited Dodger Stadium with his long home run, and for a second or two he couldn't feel the pain burning in his right leg. ``The thing is, everyone's banged up and grinding it out this time of year,'' Garciaparra said. ``You just do what you've got to do to get ready for a game and play the best you can. That's what it's about this time of year.'' Now it's on "Now It's On" is a single by the American rock group Grandaddy released in 2003. Track listing 7"
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``Of course you'd want to be on top, but the fact that we're playing big games at this time of the season is satisfying,'' Little said. vincent.bonsignore@dailynews.com (818) 713-3612 CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1) The Dodgers' Nomar Garciaparra watches as his walkoff grand slam in the ninth inning flies into the left-field pavilion Sunday at Dodger Stadium. (2) Marlon Anderson collides with Arizona's Stephen Drew at second base after an errant throw by pitcher Livan Hernandez. (3) The Dodgers' Wilson Betemit reaches into the crowd and prepares to catch a pop fly by Arizona's Eric Byrnes. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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