VERO BEACH, Fla. (AP) _ Kevin Brown appears primed and ready for his second opening day assignment in as many years for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Brown, who signed a seven-year, $105 million contract in December 1998, pitched six scoreless innings Thursday as the Dodgers blanked the Atlanta Braves 1-0 in a game shortened to 6 1/2 innings by rain.

Eric Karros doubled to drive in Todd Hollandsworth in the sixth with the game's only run. Brown and Kevin Millwood kept the game scoreless through five innings before the Dodgers broke through against Paul Assenmacher.

Brown struck out five and allowed three hits and two walks, while Millwood struck out seven and gave up four hits and no walks.

Brown, who pitched five scoreless innings in his previous start, is 2-0 with a 1.23 ERA this spring, and hasn't allowed more than two earned runs in any of his five starts.

``Brown was special today, but he's been special all spring,'' Dodgers manager Davey Johnson said. ``The other guy was pretty special too.''

Brown and Millwood benefited from strong winds that kept a couple of long drives from going over the fence. Hollandsworth hit a drive to deep right field in the second, and Atlanta's Bobby Bonilla belted a fourth-inning shot that died in deep center.

Trying to earn a spot in the Braves' bullpen, Assenmacher allowed singles by Hollandsworth and Shawn Green before Karros doubled to left.

Assenmacher, 2-1 with an 8.18 ERA at Cleveland last season, has given up six runs in six innings this spring. Opponents are batting .469 (15-of-32) against him.

After the game, the Dodgers announced they had designated third baseman Kevin Orie and right-handed pitcher Dan Naulty for assignment. They also purchased the contracts of shortstop Kevin Elster and right-handed reliever Mike Fetters, who entered camp as non-roster invitees.

In addition, they optioned left-hander Jeff Williams to Triple-A Albuquerque of the Pacific Coast League and assigned catcher Adam Melhuse to their minor league camp.