Furcal’s Lead Role Is That of Producer

In a wonderfully wacky summer for the Dodgers, this makes as much sense as anything: The guy most effective at driving in runs is the guy most responsible for scoring them.

The Dodgers lavished $39 million upon Rafael Furcal last winter and installed his name atop their lineup. Score some runs as the leadoff hitter, save some runs as the shortstop, thank you very much.

Furcal didn’t score any runs Friday, but he drove in two, including the one that put the Dodgers ahead to stay in a 6-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers won their sixth consecutive game and increased their National League West lead over San Diego to four games, tying their largest lead of the season.

Derek Lowe won, Wilson Betemit homered and Marlon Anderson, acquired Thursday, delivered a pinch-hit single in his Dodgers debut.

“Every single day, there’s somebody else being the hero,” Lowe said. “We’re not relying on one particular guy.”

Furcal is batting .360 with runners in scoring position, tops on the Dodgers. Jeff Kent and Nomar Garciaparra are batting .352 apiece in that situation, but Furcal has more at-bats than either one with runners in scoring position. Oh, and he ranks among league leaders in runs scored, hits and stolen bases.

“He’s been some kind of catalyst for us,” Manager Grady Little said.

This is Furcal’s time of year. His average after the All-Star game: .322 last year, .326 this year. He refuses to leave the run production to the designated run producers.

“I’m not an RBI hitter,” he said, “but, when I get a chance, I put a lot of concentration into it. When you play baseball, you have to do everything. You have to turn double plays. You have to drive in runs.”

The Padres lead an all-comers race for the wild card, by one-half game over the Phillies and Reds and by two games over the Marlins.

Lowe started, Takashi Saito finished, and the Dodgers used three pitchers in between. Lowe went five innings for his second victory in four days; he pitched the final three innings of Tuesday’s 16-inning victory over Cincinnati.

“He wasn’t in any shape to go further than five today,” Little said. “He was fortunate just to win.”

Lowe (13-8) has won more games this season than he did last season. He went 12-15 in 2005, the first in a four-year, $36-million contract.

And, on Friday, he got the Dodgers’ first hit and scored their first run. On Tuesday, he batted but did not swing, hampered by a bruised left thumb. He walked anyway.

All better, apparently. He swung at the first pitch he saw Friday, delivering a single into center field. Furcal singled Lowe to second, Kenny Lofton doubled him home, and the Dodgers led, 1-0, after three innings.

Lowe gave up three runs in the fourth inning, but so did Colorado starter Jason Jennings.

Betemit doubled home one run, Jennings threw a wild pitch that enabled Andre Ethier to score, and Furcal delivered a sacrifice fly that gave the Dodgers a 4-3 lead.

Furcal drove in another run in the sixth inning, on a two-out single, and Betemit homered in the eighth.

Colorado rookie Troy Tulowitzki, who played for Long Beach State last year, was hitless in four at-bats. The Rockies promoted him from double A this week and plan to start him at shortstop this month and, if all goes well, next year.

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bill.shaikin@latimes.com