Choi Wins Power Test

Happy-go-lucky Hee-Seop Choi wouldn’t deliberately hurt an insect, let alone a 6-foot-4, 250-pound hulk, 24 of his Cardinal teammates and 38,984 onlookers. Yet it was Choi who delivered a devastating one-two combination Tuesday night.

He gave as good as he got in a fifth-inning collision at first base that knocked St. Louis Cardinal slugger Scott Rolen out of the game, then hit a three-run home run in the sixth to cap a six-run Dodger inning in a 9-8 victory at Busch Stadium.

Choi’s right shoulder bore a bruise, but it was the Cardinals who were beaten.

“If I come out of the game, then no homer,” the South Korean native said. “Good for me.”

What’s good for Choi has been good for the Dodgers (20-12). Playing primarily against right-handed pitchers, he continued a hot streak in which he has batted .378 with five home runs since he was mired at .200 on April 25.

“There were tough times,” he said. “Now I feel good. Let’s keep going.”

Rolen, who hit a two-run home run in the fourth, had X-rays on his left shoulder and will be evaluated today. The absence of his powerful bat was felt in the ninth when his replacement, Abraham Nunez, came up with one out and a chance to tie the score. He slapped a single, but Yhency Brazoban, the seventh Dodger pitcher, retired the next two batters for his 10th save.

“There was a lot of cat-and-mouse in this game,” Dodger Manager Jim Tracy said. “There were so many key points. For our bullpen to hold them to one run after the fifth inning was huge.”

The biggest pitch came with one out and runners on first and second in the eighth when Giovanni Carrara induced the dangerous Albert Pujols to ground into a 6-4-3 double play.

An inning earlier, reliever Duaner Sanchez got out of a similar two-on, one-out jam by getting Einar Diaz to hit into a 6-4-3 double play.

Thirty-two games into the season and the absence of All-Star closer Eric Gagne hasn’t cost the Dodgers, who are 14-0 leading after the seventh inning. Gagne made his second one-inning rehabilitation appearance for triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, retiring the side in order and striking out two. He is scheduled to pitch again Thursday, and could be activated over the weekend.

He was handed a two-game suspension for being in uniform in the dugout while on the disabled list, but he should be available as soon as he is activated because he appealed.

The bullpen was taxed because Scott Erickson couldn’t get out of the fifth inning. It’s not a great sign when the number of home runs a pitcher has given up is nearly double his strikeout total.

Yet that’s the position Erickson is in, having allowed nine home runs while striking out five in 31 innings. The Cardinals didn’t miss many of his pitches -- Reggie Sanders hit two home runs and Rolen hit one.

Erickson gave up 10 hits and left after 4 2/3 innings with the Dodgers trailing, 7-3, and pointed a finger at the defense. Two pitches before Sanders hit a home run in the fourth, he lifted a foul popup near the stands that fell behind third baseman Oscar Robles -- playing in his first game after having his contract purchased from the Mexican League.

“With a lineup like theirs, it’s tough to give extra outs,” Erickson said. “I seriously felt I threw much better than the results.”

Erickson was responsible for the collision at first base. His throw sailed into the baseline, and the 6-5, 240-pound Choi had to move into Rolen’s path to catch the ball.

Rolen grabbed his shoulder and Choi knelt to catch his breath. Tracy went out to make sure he could continue. Catcher Jason Phillips had a clear view and could hardly believe that Choi not only absorbed the blow from Rolen, but delivered the crowning blow moments later.

“Good job, Hee-Seop,” Phillips said.