Little Things Add Up to Dodger Victory

Dodger Manager Jim Tracy couldn’t resist peeking at the scoreboard Friday to check on the Arizona Diamondbacks’ game against the San Francisco Giants.

“Everyone is a scoreboard watcher at this time of year,” Tracy said. “But I didn’t see anything that interested me. All I saw was a lot of zeros.”

No matter. He saw plenty of interesting action by watching his own team, which rallied for a 3-2 victory over the Houston Astros before a crowd of 47,138 at Dodger Stadium.

Eric Karros’ sacrifice fly scored Shawn Green with the winning run in the eighth inning, and closer Eric Gagne earned his 48th save to the accompaniment of a standing ovation. The Dodgers’ victory, coupled with the Giants’ 1-0 victory over the Diamondbacks, lifted them within 4 1/2 games of the Western Division-leading Diamondbacks and kept them three games ahead of the Giants in the wild-card race.

“That’s the way it’s going to be from here on out,” said left fielder Brian Jordan, who singled home the tying run in the sixth inning following a controversial play. “Each team is going to do what it takes. You’ve got to be able to do the little things.”

And get a little help, too. With the Dodgers trailing, 2-1, Dave Roberts led off the sixth with a bunt up the first base side. Roberts, trying to dodge Jeff Bagwell’s tag, ran outside the lane and appeared to miss the bag but was called safe. That sparked an argument by Astro Manager Jimy Williams, who was ejected.

Roberts stole second with Paul Lo Duca at bat, and Lo Duca reached base by being hit on the arm by a pitch by Astro rookie Kirk Saarloos, a Long Beach native and standout at Cal State Fullerton. Adrian Beltre hit a fly ball to the warning track in right-center, allowing Roberts to tag and move to third and Lo Duca to advance to second.

After the Astros walked Green intentionally, they brought in right-handed reliever Ricky Stone to face Jordan, who was 0 for 2. Jordan punched an 0-and-2 pitch off the front of the mound and into center field, scoring Roberts. A spectacular throw by center fielder Brian Hunter got Lo Duca at the plate, trying to score from second.

“It was great to find a way to win,” Roberts said. “I was just trying to make something happen.”

Those things, however, might not have included touching the bag.

“It was close,” Roberts said, winking. “I was going there to avoid the tag and trying to get as close as I could.”

Saarloos, who had about 100 friends and relatives at the game, said he didn’t have a good view of the play, but teammates told him Roberts missed the bag.

“I thought I threw good, but obviously Roberts’ play changes the complexion of the inning and the game,” said Saarloos, who gave up two runs and four hits over 5 1/3 solid innings.

Neither Saarloos nor Dodger starter Hideo Nomo figured in the decision. Nomo pitched seven innings, walking six but striking out eight. He hasn’t lost since July 16, a span of 10 starts, and is 4-0 with a 3.68 earned-run average in that span.

“My statistics today are not very good, but we won, so I am happy,” Nomo said through a translator.

Paul Quantrill (4-4) earned the victory by pitching a perfect eighth inning. Octavio Dotel (5-4), the fourth Astro pitcher, was the loser.

The Dodgers manufactured the decisive run after Green worked out a full-count walk against Dotel and sped to third on Jordan’s single to center. Karros fought off a handful off pitches before driving a slider to deep left, allowing Green to score without a throw home.

“The key was the eighth-inning base hit by Brian Jordan and the baserunning of Shawn Green,” Tracy said. “That’s another facet of Green’s game. That set up the sacrifice fly by Karros.... [Karros’] was a professional at-bat by a professional player. He fought off some very tough pitches, some strike-three pitches.”

The Astros, clawing to stay in the National League wild-card race, scored their first run before most fans had found their seats.

Hunter led off the game with a double to left-center. Craig Biggio sacrificed, and Karros fielded his bunt. Karros’ throw to second baseman Mark Grudzielanek, who was scurrying to cover first, hit Biggio on the back of the head; it was initially ruled an error but later changed to a hit.

Hunter reached third and Biggio was safe at first. Hunter scored when Lance Berkman singled sharply to right.

Nomo gave up a towering home run to Berkman in the third, a drive that landed a few rows from the top of the right-field pavilion seats. The home run was the 22nd off Nomo, tops on the Dodger staff, and the team-leading 38th by Berkman.