Milwaukee’s rare triple play squashes Dodgers’ rally

Reporting from Milwaukee — Just when the Dodgers thought they might get an early jump on the Brewers, Milwaukee killed the Dodgers’ rally by turning a triple play in the second inning Monday night.

Matt Kemp led off the inning with a walk and moved to second base when Juan Rivera singled. James Loney then hit a grounder up the middle that was grabbed by Brewers second baseman Josh Wilson.

Wilson then made a nice backhanded flip of the ball — with his gloved hand — to shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to force Rivera, and Betancourt threw to first baseman Prince Fielder to get Loney.

Meanwhile, Kemp was racing home but Fielder threw to catcher George Kottaras who tagged Kemp out on a close call at the plate for the third out.

“Just being aggressive,” Kemp said. “Prince made a good throw and got the out. It was close. Simple as that.”

It was the seventh time the Dodgers had hit into a triple play since the team moved to Los Angeles in 1958. Oddly enough, the prior one — on May 4, 2009, against the Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium — also involved Wilson when he played for Arizona.

For the Brewers, it was their sixth triple play in franchise history.

Dodgers bankruptcy

The Dodgers return to bankruptcy court Tuesday, for a hearing in which the most significant issue is when owner Frank McCourt must decide whether to retain the team merchandise vendor. The company has asked McCourt to decide now so it is not at risk of ordering next season’s merchandise without a chance to sell it. The Dodgers have argued a decision is premature and the company could sue for any damages at a later time.

Bruce Bennett, the Dodgers’ lead bankruptcy attorney, had said the agenda would include the issue of whether the team could break its contract with Fox and sell its cable television rights. The Dodgers also had asked the court to approve the hiring of an investment bank to help with the sale of those rights.

The issue of whether the Dodgers can hire the investment bank has been rescheduled for Sept. 26. A Dodgers spokesperson would not say why the Dodgers put off the Fox issue or when they might pursue it, and would not comment “on any questions regarding media rights.”

Short hops

Reliever Kenley Jansen, who went on the disabled list with an irregular heartbeat, is expected to start playing rehabilitation games Thursday, though it hasn’t been determined which Dodgers’ minor-league team he will join, Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly said .... The Dodgers signed two more draft picks: right-handed pitcher Ryan O’Sullivan (their fourth-round pick) and third baseman Kevin Taylor (36th round). The team now has signed its top nine draft selections.

Times staff writer Bill Shaikin contributed to this report.

james.peltz@latimes.com