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Wednesday, Sep. 6 10:05pm ET
Bucs complete 6-0 West Coast sweep | |||||
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GAME LOG
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- There are certain telltale signs that let a team know its hopes for a postseason berth are almost over. For the Los Angeles Dodgers, it was a three-game sweep by the Pittsburgh Pirates. With their 8-3 loss to Pittsburgh on Wedesday night, the Dodgers dropped to 10 games behind San Francisco in the NL West. "Look around. There's not a happy face in here," catcher Chad Kreuter said. "I'm bitter, everybody in here is bitter. When a last-place team beats you -- and thoroughly beats you -- yeah, we're all scratching our heads." The Pirates entered the series with a 56-79 record -- the worst in the majors. But the Dodgers managed only three earned runs against them in the series and were outscored 28-4. "Obviously, we didn't play well, and it seemed like everything went right for them," reliever Jeff Shaw said. "And unfortunately, it happened at a bad time for us." Dan Serafini pitched six strong innings before needing relief help as the Pirates completed a perfect West Coast road trip. They went 6-0, finishing off their first three-game sweep at Dodger Stadium since 1988 following a three-game sweep at San Diego. Brian Giles had three hits and drove in two runs for the Pirates, whose season-high six-game winning streak has come after a 4-17 slide. "We were due for a streak like this," manager Gene Lamont said. "We really haven't had a really good streak all year. Coming out to the coast is always tough, but we played well. We pitched well, got timely hitting and played pretty well defensively." Serafini (2-3) lasted 6 2/3 innings, allowing four hits and two earned runs. The left-hander struck out four, walked one and was removed after giving up Alex Cora's two-out triple in the seventh and a single by pinch-hitter Kevin Elster. "I'm just trying to get some consistency for the end of the season and finish on a good note, then come back next year and win a job in the rotation," Serafini said. "I was able to get the ball over the plate and throw two different pitches for strikes." Pittsburgh third baseman Enrique Wilson and shortstop Pat Meares committed throwing errors on consecutive routine grounders by Jim Leyritz and Chad Kreuter in the second inning. The miscues ended the Pirates' errorless streak at a season-best 58 innings, and helped the Dodgers score two runs without the benefit of a hit after they had fallen behind 5-0. The Pirates, whose three-run first inning Tuesday night triggered an 8-0 victory, scored four in the first off against Ismael Valdes (2-7). John Vander Wal drove in Pittsburgh's first run with a double, Wilson and Alex Hernandez added RBI singles and Pat Meares capped the rally with a bases-loaded sacrifice fly. "He was wild around the zone and pitched behind the first couple of hitters," Kreuter said of Valdes. "But the main thing was that we believed he was tipping his pitches. And when you do that, they have a heads-up on what's coming and it makes it a lot easier to hit." Valdes was charged with five runs and eight hits in six innings, and fell to 0-3 since rejoining the Dodgers in a July 26 trade with the Chicago Cubs. The Pirates blew it open in the eighth with two-out RBI singles by Adrian Brown, Jason Kendall and Giles against Mike Fetters. Game notesThe last time the Pirates swept a road trip of at least six games was 1991, when they were 6-0 on visits to St. Louis and Philadelphia. ... Vander Wal, whose 116 career pinch-hits are sixth all-time, has driven in 60 runs in the 46 starts he has made in RF this season. ... Dodgers LHP Carlos Perez, 1-6 with a 6.43 ERA in his last 15 starts, will miss the rest of the season and will undergo shoulder surgery next Friday. An MRI and CAT scan detected a bone spur that had broken loose from the back of the shoulder capsule. Perez won't be able to throw for 2-3 months, but should be ready for the start of spring training, according to Dr. Frank Jobe. ... RHP Luke Prokopec, who made his major league debut Monday night and mopped up with three scoreless innings in a 12-1 loss, is scheduled to start next Tuesday at Arizona in place of Perez. Prokopec had planned on pitching for his native Australia in the Olympics before he was promoted from Double-A San Antonio on Sept. 1. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Pittsburgh Clubhouse Los Angeles Clubhouse RECAPS Minnesota 4 Baltimore 1
Pittsburgh 8
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