Dodgers Find Help Everywhere

Those mid-season acquisitions certainly helped the Dodgers the day after the trading deadline.

The Cincinnati Reds’ acquisitions, that is.

Three recently obtained relievers were torched and the Dodgers pounded out 17 hits in breezing to their fourth victory in a row, 10-4, Tuesday night at Great American Ball Park.

Not that the new Dodgers didn’t contribute. Third baseman Wilson Betemit hit a two-run home run, first baseman James Loney had three hits and second baseman Julio Lugo singled, walked and scored.

The big blast, however, came from the senior statesman of the Dodgers’ infield, shortstop Rafael Furcal, who drove in three runs with a seventh-inning double and had two singles.

Yes, Furcal is steeped in Dodger blue -- he was the only infielder with the team since opening day.

“The GM made the team better and we’re going to try to win it,” Furcal said. “We need to keep it going.”

A lineup that lost top run producers Jeff Kent and Nomar Garciaparra to injuries was invigorated by the additions. Betemit and Lugo were acquired in trades and Loney was promoted from triple A.

“I like the look of our ballclub right now,” Manager Grady Little said.

He’ll like it even more Thursday when Greg Maddux makes his first Dodgers start. But bringing in the future Hall of Fame right-hander and Lugo took substantial maneuvering before the trading deadline Monday afternoon.

Frustrated by his inability to make an impact deal, General Manager Ned Colletti sat in an office 45 minutes before the deadline staring at a telephone, waiting on a ring and a prayer.

Finally a call came from Jim Hendry of the Chicago Cubs, making a last-ditch effort to move Maddux. Colletti wanted him, but was unwilling to part with the players Hendry requested -- power-hitting prospects Matt Kemp and Andy LaRoche.

Then Colletti remembered that weeks earlier Hendry had expressed interest in infielder Cesar Izturis, so he confirmed that the interest was still there and asked Hendry to call back in 15 minutes. Colletti had been adamant about keeping Izturis because of Kent’s uncertain health, but he had a brainstorm, called Andrew Friedman of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and asked if Lugo was still available.

Friedman e-mailed a list of players he would take for the productive Lugo, who like Maddux will become a free agent at the end of the season. The list contained the usual names Colletti considered untouchable, so with the clock ticking toward the 1 p.m. deadline, Friedman e-mailed a second list, which included versatile power hitter Joel Guzman.

A month ago, trading Guzman, 21, for a two-month rental such as Lugo would have been unthinkable. The 6-foot-6 prodigy signed for the largest bonus given to a player from the Dominican Republic and only a year ago was considered the Dodgers’ best prospect.

But he had fallen from favor because of a snooty attitude and pedestrian numbers at triple-A Las Vegas. Furthermore, Colletti reasoned that the only way to justify trading Izturis was to obtain Lugo.

In effect, he would trade Guzman for two months of Maddux, for a chance to win the National League West by giving the ball every five days to one of the best pitchers of the last 20 years. Even Friedman’s request to throw in Sergio Pedroza, a minor league outfielder who starred at Cal State Fullerton, didn’t deter Colletti.

Meanwhile, Kim Ng, the Dodgers’ assistant GM, was a whirlwind, contacting the commissioner’s office and settling the paperwork to get both deals done in less than 30 minutes.

“My staff did an incredible job,” Colletti said, mentioning Ng, Roy Smith and Bill Lajoie. “We did all we could under the circumstances. Now we put the team on the field and hope it plays to its potential.”

It might have exceeded it in the first game of a series against the Reds. Aaron Sele (7-4), fighting to keep his spot in the rotation because of the addition of Maddux, gave up four runs in six innings but benefited from the five-run Dodgers explosion in the seventh.

The Dodgers touched starter Bronson Arroyo for four runs and didn’t let up, roughing up recent acquisitions Bill Bray, Rheal Cormier and Kyle Lohse as well as holdover Todd Coffey.

Meanwhile, Lugo and Betemit appeared comfortable, fitting in quickly with Furcal, their Dominican Republic countryman. In fact, anyone walking into the Dodgers’ clubhouse for the first time would have thought Lugo and Betemit had been teammates for years. They sat side by side laughing, joking and talking baseball.

“I’m happy to be here, I know a bunch of the guys,” Lugo said. “I was shocked to hear I was traded to the Dodgers. I never considered it.”

Lugo said he prefers shortstop -- where he played for the Devil Rays -- but that he knows the Dodgers need him at second until Kent returns.

Betemit knows the Dodgers need his bat. He is five for nine in two games with a homer and two doubles.

“I felt like part of the team right away because I played with Raffy in Atlanta,” Betemit said. “I think they are serious about winning. That’s important to me.”