Dodgers get 4 homers in 9-5 win over D'backs

[April 20, 2010]  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Manny Ramirez homered for the first time this season, the first of four longballs by the Dodgers, and LA beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 9-5 Tuesday to win its home opener for the third consecutive year.

Casey Blake hit a two-run drive, Matt Kemp added a solo shot and Andre Ethier hit a three-run homer for the Dodgers, who beat San Francisco 11-1 in their 2009 home opener. Blake went 1 for 2 with a walk and is batting .389, carrying over his strong spring into the regular season.

Ramirez, Kemp and Ethier homered in the same game for the second time since Ramirez joined the Dodgers in 2008.

Clayton Kershaw (1-0) allowed two runs and three hits in 5 1-3 innings. The 22-year-old left-hander struck out seven and walked five in his second start after a no-decision in the Dodgers' 4-3, 10-inning loss at Pittsburgh last week.

Ian Kennedy (0-1) gave up six runs and six hits over 4 1-3 innings in his first game against the Dodgers.

Ramirez's leadoff homer in the fourth -- No. 547 of his career and his 2,501st hit -- gave Los Angeles a 2-1 lead. He hit a 2-2 pitch from Kennedy halfway up the pavilion in left-center, elicting chants of "Manny! Manny!" from the sellout crowd of 56,000. Ramirez, who has been unusually quiet around the media since spring training, responded with a brief curtain call from the top of the dugout steps.

James Loney doubled before Blake went deep, reaching the first row of the left-field pavilion to make it 4-1.

In the fifth, Kemp sent a 3-2 pitch over the wall in right for his third homer of the season, bringing his girlfriend Rihanna to her feet for a celebration dance behind the dugout.

Ethier connected on an 0-2 pitch from Esmerling Vasquez in the sixth, making it 9-2.

The Dodgers led 1-0 on Russell Martin's bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the first.

Ramon Ortiz retired the first two Arizona batters in the seventh, then gave up three runs in his second major league appearance since Oct. 1, 2007. He allowed a two-run homer to Mark Reynolds on the first pitch and an RBI single to Kelly Johnson that left the D'backs trailing 9-5.

Chris Young and Chris Snyder also had RBI singles for Arizona.

NOTES: The Dodgers improved to 28-25 in home openers since 1958. ... CF Kemp was presented with his Silver Slugger and Gold Glove awards on the field before the game. ... Dodgers manager Joe Torre on the Yankees' Joe Girardi getting his World Series ring as a manager Tuesday: "It's a proud moment for me, too." ... Country star LeAnn Rimes sang the national anthem and Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am tossed the ceremonial first pitch wide left but 1B James Loney scooped it out of the dirt.

[Associated Press; By BETH HARRIS]

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