Win Is One for the Ages

It was a good game for Dodgers fans to attend with a parent.

Dad or Mom could relate to the home run by 38-year-old Jeff Kent, the two hits and two runs by 35-year-old Olmedo Saenz and six scoreless innings pitched by Aaron Sele, who turns 36 today.

For younger fans, there were dazzling contributions from several rookies. Andre Ethier had a pair of two-run singles, Matt Kemp doubled twice, Russell Martin had two hits and a run batted in, and reliever Jonathan Broxton struck out the side in the seventh.

The generations melded when the Dodgers’ oldest rookie, 36-year-old Takashi Saito, retired the side in the ninth, securing a 7-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night at Dodger Stadium.

It was the second lopsided victory in a row against the lowly Pirates and pulled the Dodgers even with the San Diego Padres at the top of the National League West standings.

“The veterans are a lot like coaches to these rookies,” Manager Grady Little said. “If the young guys are smart, they’ll continue to listen to them.”

And watch. Sele’s effectiveness was especially welcome because he was coming off two poor outings and the Dodgers are worried about the health of starter Brett Tomko, who strained his left oblique muscle Friday.

A similar injury caused first baseman Nomar Garciaparra to spend nearly three weeks on the disabled list in April, and there is concern that Tomko might not be able to return until after the All-Star break.

For the time being, Little won’t even say Tomko can’t make his next start Wednesday at Minnesota. The Dodgers can wait on a decision because they wouldn’t need to bring someone up from triple A to replace Tomko in the rotation.

“We have the luxury of having two guys with length in the bullpen, so it isn’t as critical to make that decision quickly,” Little said.

The two guys would be left-hander Odalis Perez and right-hander Jae Seo, both of whom have failed miserably as starters. The only pitcher in the farm system with major league experience as a starter is D.J. Houlton, who has a 5.66 earned-run average in 15 starts at triple-A Las Vegas.

General Manager Ned Colletti is working to acquire a quality starter, although a deal is unlikely until closer to the July 31 trading deadline. He might have to trade a top prospect, but it would be extremely difficult for him to part with Kemp, Martin, Ethier or Broxton.

The Dodgers entered the game batting .314 against left-handed pitchers and banged out 10 hits and five runs against lefty Zach Duke. The pivotal blows came from Ethier, the only left-handed batter in the lineup, and they came on nearly identical sequences.

Ethier followed a single by Saenz and double by Kemp with a two-run single to center in the second inning and followed a single by Saenz and double by Kemp with a two-run broken-bat single to left in the sixth.

“My track record my whole life is that I’ve hit well against left-handers,” Ethier said.

Ethier leads National League rookies with a batting average of .320 and is hitting .444 against left-handers. Kemp, who is batting .333, would be the rookie leader, but he doesn’t have enough plate appearances. He’s getting there fast and has hits in 17 of 19 starts.

Martin is batting .315, and the Dodgers are 27-14 with him behind the plate.

The veterans weren’t totally eclipsed, however. Saenz started at third base because he was six for seven against Duke and is batting .463 against the Pirates. Now the numbers are even more impressive.

Kent hit his second home run in as many games and eighth of the season in the seventh, a two-run shot that extended the lead to 7-0.

“The great part of having so many good veterans here is that it takes the pressure off of us,” Ethier said. “The young guys can just go out and do their jobs.”