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 Loney's
Leads Dodgers Past Cardinals 2-1
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[August 11, 2007]
ST. LOUIS (AP)
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James Loney broke a scoreless tie with a two-run homer off Adam Wainwright with one out in the ninth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers held on to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 on Friday night.
Before Loney hit his fifth homer into the right-field seats on an 0-1 pitch, the Dodgers had been on the verge of being shut out for the fifth time in seven games. After Russell Martin singled, Loney, who batted third for the fourth time all season, homered for the first time since July 24.
[Caption: St. Louis Cardinals'
Adam Kennedy leaps over Los Angeles Dodgers Luis Gonzalez after
throwing to first to get Nomar Garciaparra for a double play in the
second inning of a baseball game Friday, Aug. 10, 2007, in St.
Louis. (AP Photo/Tom Gannam)]
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 It also was the first long ball allowed by Wainwright (10-9) in seven starts covering 48 1-3 innings. Cardinals pitchers had thrown 25 consecutive scoreless innings before Loney's homer.
Wainwright allowed two runs and six hits in his first career complete game, striking out five and walking one.
Brad Penny worked seven innings of five-hit ball for the Dodgers, who won for only the second time in eight games. Joe Beimel (3-1) allowed an intentional walk in the eighth, Albert Pujols on a 2-0 count with no one one and two outs, and Takashi Saito worked out of trouble for his 29th save in 32 chances.
Saito allowed a leadoff walk to Jim Edmonds and a one-out single to Rick Ankiel. Yadier Molina followed with his third hit of the game, an infield hit off the glove of diving third baseman Nomar Garciaparra, to cut the gap to 2-1. Saito struck out pinch-hitter Ryan Ludwick and Adam Kennedy, the latter on a pitch in his eyes, to end the game.
Ankiel, the former pitcher who hit a three-run homer on Thursday in his major league debut as an outfielder, went 1-for-4 for the second straight game. He has struck out four times in eight at-bats.
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Penny struck out six and walked three in an outing that lowered his ERA to 2.54. The Cardinals were 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position against Penny, with Jim Edmonds and Pujols grounding into double plays with two on to end the first and fifth.
Molina singled his first two at-bats, giving him five straight hits with a walk over two games, before flying out in the seventh.
Edmonds robbed Martin twice with running catches, one near the center-field wall in the first and swooping in to snare a sinking liner to end the sixth.
Notes:@ Molina has thrown out 16 of 30 runners attempt to steal after easily catching Rafael Furcal trying for second in the fourth. ... Penny has made six straight quality starts and has an NL-high 21 in 24 starts overall. ... Wainwright threw eight innings of one-hit ball at Kansas City on June 13 in his previous long outing. ... Wainwright was whipped by the Dodgers on May 15 in Los Angeles, allowing a season-high eight runs in a season-low 2 2-3 innings.
[Associated Press;
By R.B. FALLSTROM]
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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