Kent’s Outlook Remains Positive

Every day, the sagging Dodgers are compared with their National League West competition. That’s the nature of a division race such as this one.

Second baseman Jeff Kent doesn’t watch the scoreboard during games but is acutely aware of where San Diego, Arizona and San Francisco stand. It keeps hope alive.

“I’ve been on a lot of teams that seemed dead in the water and did good things,” he said. “We have young kids trying to develop while trying to walk a rough road. But if you believe in yourself and trust in your teammates and believe in their ability, it can happen.

“If we were in the Central [Division], we’d be out of it. But we aren’t, and we still have an opportunity that can’t be ignored.”

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Dioner Navarro has a live arm. That is apparent when he throws to first base after fielding a bunt. But the rookie catcher has yet to clamp down on opponents’ running, having made two throwing errors and thrown out only one of eight base stealers in nine games.

He could get his first big test in the next three days against Philadelphia, second in the NL with 74 stolen bases. Jimmy Rollins has 25, Bobby Abreu has 23 and Chase Utley and Kenny Lofton each has 11.

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Something that aggravates General Manager Paul DePodesta is the subpar Dodger on-base percentage, perhaps the statistic he values most. The Dodger on-base percentage, .327, is the lowest in the NL West. Philadelphia, the Dodger opponent the next three games, gets on base more than any other NL team with a .344 percentage.

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Wilson Alvarez isn’t the only aging Dodger reliever struggling. Right-hander Giovanni Carrara has a 7.45 earned-run average over his last 10 games.

“To a certain extent, it’s mechanical,” Manager Jim Tracy said. “He’s rushing his delivery and, as a result, his pitches are up in the strike zone.”

Tracy says he has no doubt that Carrara, 37, can regain the effectiveness that has made him a reliable middle-inning option for several years.

“There were periods like that a couple years ago where people might have thought the same thing, and he bounces back,” Tracy said.