Good News Draws Blank

Little went right for the Dodgers on and off the field Wednesday.

The expansion Arizona Diamondbacks defeated them, 3-0, before a crowd of 37,016 at Dodger Stadium, and that wasn’t the worst news of the day for team officials.

All-star catcher Mike Piazza ended his discussions with the team on the multiyear contract he is seeking, because he is frustrated by the lack of progress in negotiations. Fans continued to boo the Dodgers’ franchise player, presumably because of the money he wants.

Right-handed reliever Darren Hall was put on the 15-day disabled list after an MRI exam revealed he has a tear on the rotator cuff of his throwing shoulder.

And a day after believing their offensive problems were behind them, the Dodgers had only eight hits and never threatened against Arizona.

Other than that, it was a great day.

“The situation with Mike is between him and his agent,” Manager Bill Russell said. “Mike is giving us 100%, and we all have a job to do. That’s what the focus is in here.”

The Dodgers had 13 hits in their 9-1 victory over the Diamondbacks on Tuesday in the home opener but couldn’t do much against left-hander Brian Anderson (1-1), who gave up seven hits and struck out four in eight innings. Felix Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth for his second save.

“You just have to keep coming back when you have a bad day,” second baseman Eric Young said. “You can’t get down about things.

“As far as Mike’s situation is concerned, we’re all supportive of him as friends and teammates, but it’s not our business to get into. This is between Mike and the team--and that’s where it should be left.”

Nomo (0-1) had a mixed performance in his debut on the road, a 6-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds in which he didn’t get the decision. He struck out seven consecutive batters at one point.

And Nomo threw harder than he has since undergoing off-season arthroscopic surgery on his throwing elbow, the Dodgers said. So they had many reasons to feel good about Nomo.

But they also had cause for concern. Nomo walked five, threw 87 pitches and ran out of gas after four innings.

The Dodgers were hoping for something more from Nomo on Wednesday, but the results were again mixed.

He struck out seven in five innings, including the side in the fourth. He gave up only five hits without a walk.

However, Nomo gave up back-to-back home runs in the fourth on consecutive pitches. Jorge Fabregas and Brent Brede each hit Nomo’s first pitch into the right-field pavilion.

Although Nomo had thrown only 67 pitches--and 46 strikes--Russell pinch-hit for Nomo in the fifth inning with two out and one on. Trenidad Hubbard struck out looking to end the inning.

Russell had hit for Hubbard in the fourth inning of the Dodgers’ victory Tuesday. Russell said that with the problems the Dodgers have had scoring runs, he is forced to make unconventional moves.

“We’re in a situation where we’re just not scoring enough, we’re just not making enough things happen,” he said. “We’ve had guys in scoring position, and we’re not coming through with enough big hits.

“When then happens, you sometimes have to take chances. You wouldn’t have to do those things if you were scoring more.”

The Diamondbacks scored the only run they would need in the top of the first. Nomo hit Devon White with a pitch and White stole second. Jay Bell singled to to left, and White stopped at third. But Todd Hollandsworth bobbled and then dropped the ball, allowing White to jog in from third with the Diamondbacks’ first run.

The Dodgers again wasted the few opportunities they had. Raul Mondesi opened the second inning with a single to left, but Paul Konerko grounded into a double play. Hollandsworth then doubled to left, but Jose Vizcaino grounded out to end the inning.

And Wilton Guerrero’s second key baserunning error of the season ran the Dodgers out of the eighth inning. Guerrero, hitting for Darren Dreifort, singled to left with one out.

Young lined out to Arizona second baseman Andy Stankiewicz, Guerrero was caught too far off the bag and Stankiewicz threw to first to complete the double play.

“We’re still making fundamental mistakes that we can’t make,” third baseman Todd Zeile said. “We’re a better ballclub than that.”