Dodgers Rally to Sink Pirates

Yo ho, yo ho ...

A Pirates life for Jim Tracy hasn’t been as alluring as Johnny Depp makes it look on the silver screen.

Tracy basically forced the Dodgers’ hand in October and was fired as manager, knowing he was at the top of Pittsburgh’s list to replace Lloyd McClendon. Now he’s the skipper of a motley crew that has lost 11 in a row, the Pirates’ longest streak since 1955.

And he might have let loose an anguished “arr!” after the Dodgers completed a sweep with a 7-4 victory Sunday at Dodger Stadium. It doesn’t get any easier for the Pirates (26-51), who begin a series against the red-hot Chicago White Sox on Tuesday and are one loss from equaling the team’s modern record streak set in 1939.

“We know who is in front of us,” Tracy said. “There’s nobody in the American or National League who feels sorry for us.”

Including the Dodgers.

After pillaging and plundering the Pirates for 14 hits, they didn’t express much empathy for the manager who led them to the National League West title in 2004.

“We’re winning, and that’s all that matters to me,” infielder Olmedo Saenz said. “I don’t really care about the other team.”

The Dodgers outscored the Pirates 24-8 in the three-game sweep, pounding out 39 hits to move into sole possession of first place in the NL West.

“You have to play well even when a team comes into town not playing well,” center fielder Kenny Lofton said. “If you play bad, it doesn’t matter how poorly they are playing, you’ll lose.”

A four-run fourth inning was key to ensuring this victory, erasing a 1-0 Pirates lead against Brad Penny. Consecutive singles by J.D. Drew, Andre Ethier, Ramon Martinez and Cesar Izturis produced a run, a forceout by Russell Martin produced another, and after Martin stole second, a two-run single by Rafael Furcal capped the rally.

With Nomar Garciaparra at first base, Martinez at second, Furcal at shortstop and Izturis at third, the Dodgers essentially had shortstops playing the four infield positions.

Besides their flawless fielding, the quartet contributed seven hits, five runs batted in and three runs. Garciaparra hit his ninth home run and 200th of his career in the seventh inning.

Penny (8-2) didn’t have his best stuff on a humid afternoon, leaving one pitch after giving up a leadoff home run to Joe Randa in the sixth that cut the lead to 5-4. He looked to the dugout as Randa rounded the bases, threw an awkward-looking high fastball to Jose Castillo and handed the ball to Manager Grady Little.

A 26-pitch first inning had taken its toll by the fifth.

“I made some bad pitches,” Penny said. “I need to get through more than five innings. I didn’t want to come out, but how could you not take me out?”

The unpredictable Dodgers bullpen delivered. Left-hander Joe Beimel retired the three batters he faced in the sixth, Jonathan Broxton had no trouble in the seventh and eighth, and Takashi Saito got his fifth save.

Saito has filled in well for injured closer Eric Gagne, holding opponents scoreless in his last 13 appearances and lowering his earned-run average from 2.62 to 1.72. No NL pitcher has a lower ERA since May 6 than Saito’s 0.41.

The Dodgers got production up and down the lineup for the third game in a row. Left fielder Ethier had three hits, raising his average to .333, and Martin not only caught a day game in stifling heat after a night game, he had two stolen bases, giving him three in two games.

After the eighth inning, a trainer put a towel soaked in ice water on Broxton’s head. Martin sat a few feet away, without relief.

“Broxton was done for the day and here’s my catcher sweating hard, and he’s ignored,” Little said, laughing. “Sometimes we take for granted what that kid does for us.”

Overall, though, it was a feel-good day for the Dodgers. Backup catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. was in the bullpen late in the game, so who dashed from the dugout in a catcher’s mask to warm up Broxton?

Veteran second baseman Jeff Kent, who had the day off.

“That says a lot about what this team is all about,” Little said. “A lot of guys are helping each other out, and we are starting to click.”

The camaraderie no longer extends to their former manager, who is busy trying to get his team on track.

“Adversity finds its way to every player, and how they handle it and the adjustments they make to overcome it become a very intriguing thing, because you get to find out exactly the kind of individuals you have,” Tracy said. “But you have to be realistic about the situation. It’s not going to get easier soon.”