Dodgers Split Out of Philadelphia

Phillie fans finally had something to boo besides J.D. Drew.

The day after a downpour had caused a postponement, a sizable crowd rained displeasure during a three-run Dodger outburst in the second game of a doubleheader.

The eighth-inning rally -- and subsequent hold-your-breath relief work by Lance Carter -- enabled the Dodgers to win, 6-2, and gain a split Sunday at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies won the first game, 6-3, on a walk-off three-run home run by Bobby Abreu against rookie left-hander Tim Hamulack.

That blast prompted rare cheers from a crowd that showered Drew with jeers every time he batted during the three-game series.

Why pick on Drew? Well, he declined to sign with the Phillies after they drafted him.

In 1997.

Yes, Philadelphia folks are long on memory and short on patience. Abreu’s homer was forgotten by the second game, especially when consecutive doubles by Ramon Martinez and pinch-hitter Olmedo Saenz of the Dodgers capped the three-run inning against left-handed reliever Aaron Fultz.

The Dodgers countered a Phillie run in the bottom of the eighth with another in the ninth as the crowd filed out, leaving a vapor trail of boos when Ryan Howard grounded out to end the game.

The Phillies’ victory in the opener was their first of the season. The Dodgers (3-3) will begin a four-game series today against another struggling team, the Pittsburgh Pirates, who won their first game Sunday after six losses under former Dodger manager Jim Tracy.

“When we can win a series on the road, we’ll take it,” Dodger catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. said. “That’s what good teams do.”

Are the Dodgers good? They didn’t look like it in the first game when sloppy relief pitching by Yhency Brazoban and Hamulack spoiled a strong effort by Derek Lowe.

With the Dodgers leading, 3-2, Brazoban came on in the seventh with a runner on second and walked pinch-hitter Shane Victorino. Brazoban threw two wild pitches and was fortunate on the second one because it bounced off the backstop to catcher Dioner Navarro, who tossed to the pitcher covering the plate in time to tag out pinch-runner Abraham Nunez. But Aaron Rowand singled to score Victorino with the tying run.

Hamulack made one mistake in the ninth -- a very costly one. The inning started with an error by Rafael Furcal. After Victorino’s sacrifice bunt, Jimmy Rollins was walked intentionally and Sal Fasano flew out to center, bringing up Abreu.

Two pitches before the home run, first base umpire Laz Diaz called a balk, but plate umpire Ted Barrett reversed the call after Manager Grady Little argued. Hamulack’s rhythm was upset, however, and Abreu drilled a full-count pitch into the left-field seats.

This park is becoming a house of horrors for Hamulack. Called up by the New York Mets last September for his first taste of the big leagues, he gave up five runs in two-thirds of an inning at Philadelphia.

“If that pitch [to Abreu] is a little down, it would have been a ground ball,” he said.

Little acknowledged he is still trying to figure out appropriate roles for his relievers.

“We’re still feeling our way through it in the absence of Eric Gagne,” he said.

Dodger starters had no such problems. Brad Penny (2-0) was dominant for seven innings of the second game, giving up a run and two hits in the first inning, then only two hits thereafter. The split-finger pitch he introduced in his last start was devastating.

“They can’t sit on fastballs anymore, because I’ve got three pitches,” he said.

In the first game, Lowe was pleased with the way he responded to a crisis -- something that has been a problem for him in past starts. In the third inning, the Phillies loaded the bases with one out and he induced Utley to hit what appeared to be a double-play ball to shortstop. Second baseman Jeff Kent threw in the dirt to first, however, allowing a run to score and keeping the inning alive.

Although Pat Burrell singled for another run, Lowe retired the next batter, averting disaster.

“Sometimes it’s the small victories within yourself you are happy with,” he said. “Not allowing that to escalate into a big inning.”