Jones has a big day in defeat

TUCSON – Justin Upton’s two-run home run off Rudy Seanez in the eighth inning today capped a Diamondbacks comeback from a six-run deficit and gave Arizona a 9-8 victory over the Dodgers, erasing a stellar afternoon by Andruw Jones.

Jones had three hits, including his third home run of the spring, a two-run shot off Randy Johnson in the fourth. Jones later added a double, a single and a stolen base, scoring twice.

Matt Kemp also had a big day, keying a five-run sixth inning with a two-run double off the top of the center-field wall, increasing his spring training-best RBI total to 17. That hit, Kemp’s second, also gave the Dodgers an 8-3 lead.

The Dodgers also got RBI hits in that inning from Chin-lung Hu, Ramon Martinez and Rafael Furcal. But they wouldn’t score again.

The Diamondbacks started their comeback in the bottom of the sixth on a three-run, two-out home run by Chris Snyder, his second of the afternoon.

The Dodgers’ Chan Ho Park, who hadn’t given up an earned run this spring, gave up three on Snyder’s first homer. Park is locked in a tight battle with Esteban Loaiza for the final spot in the rotation.

Snyder’s second three-run homer, a towering blow that traveled more than 440 feet, came on the third pitch from reliever Mike Koplove. Upton’s game-winner came off Seanez, who hadn’t given up a hit in three previous appearances.

The game, the Dodgers’ second in Arizona, was played before a standing room-only crowd of 11,374 at Tucson Electric Park, the largest crowd to see the Dodgers play in the U.S. this spring. A day earlier in Phoenix the Dodgers also drew a standing room only crowd with the East Valley Tribune reporting tickets were reselling for $200.

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Jeff Kent may be running out of time to get ready for opening day, Manager Joe Torre said, which could leave the Dodgers with two big holes to fill in their infield.

“It may be debatable whether he has enough at-bats,” Torre said of Kent, who hasn’t played in a major league game since March 4 because of a strained right hamstring. “I know opening day is in sight. We have to evaluate how much is enough and make that decision.”

Torre said Thursday that he’s not expecting third baseman Nomar Garciaparra, who has a fracture in his right hand, to be able to play in the team’s March 31 opener. If Kent can’t play either that will have an impact on Torre’s search for a replacement because Tony Abreu and Hu, who are among those competing for the starting job at third, are also the most likely replacements for Kent at second.

Complicating matters is the fact that if Kent is in the opening-day lineup but can’t play after that, the Dodgers would lose him for a minimum of 15 days by placing him on the disabled list. If they disable him before then, however, they could make the roster move retroactive, allowing him to return sooner.

“We’d have to make that decision when the time comes,” Torre said. “I think he’ll be close if he’s able to start playing at the start of the week.”

Kent, who did not accompany the team to Tucson, was expected to do some jogging back in Phoenix and Torre said Kent will bat against some of the team’s relievers in a simulated game Sunday.

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Garciaparra also stayed in Phoenix and participated in pitchers’ fielding drills by taking throws at second and third, then fielding grounders after batting practice. He did not throw or swing a bat in an effort to avoid aggravating his fractured hand.

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In addition to the questions surrounding Kent and Garciaparra, the Dodgers say they have no firm timetable for the return of right-hander Jason Schmidt, who had season-ending shoulder surgery last June.

“It’s crazy to be speculating right now until he feels back up to the level where he can start progressing and get on the mound,” pitching coach Rick Honeycutt said of Schmidt, who is throwing 150 feet off flat ground.

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The Dodgers are carrying 41 players on their roster, 16 over the opening-day limit, but Torre said he doesn’t expect to make any moves before Monday… . Catcher Lucas May, pitchers James McDonald, Greg Miller, Justin Orenduff, Cory Wade and Ramon Troncoso, outfielder Xavier Paul and utility player Delwyn Young have all signed split major league-minor league contracts. Young’s deal is for $391,000 if he remains in the big leagues. The rest are for the big league minimum of $390,000.

Staff writer Dylan Hernandez contributed to this report.

kevin.baxter@latimes.com