Six Road Games of Separation

Kenny Lofton declined to analyze where the Dodgers have gone right or wrong, and he wouldn’t predict whether they’ll make their 33-42 road record any less awful over the season’s final six games.

The Dodgers center fielder wouldn’t even say whether he watches the scoreboard to see if his team can gain ground in the division or wild-card races.

“We’ve got to win ballgames. That’s all I’ve got to say,” Lofton said. “There’s nothing more to say. I can’t say anything else except we’ve got to win. That’s it.

“Win. W-I-N. Period. That’s it. It doesn’t matter what anybody else does. We’ve got to win. That’s all I care about.”

Doing it, though, could be a very different matter.

The Dodgers’ season hinges on their next three games, starting today at Denver against the Rockies. Only if they follow Lofton’s advice to the letter will their final three games at San Francisco mean anything.

After traveling Monday, they will start this vital stretch by sending 40-year-old Greg Maddux to the mound in temperatures that are forecast to dip to the low 40s in the Rocky Mountain evening. They must hope he can wring at least six good innings out of an arm that seems unable to deliver more than 75 or 80 pitches and then pray that their middle relievers remember how to throw strikes.

If the Padres haven’t padded their two-game lead beyond the Dodgers’ reach and if the Phillies, whose loss to Houston on Monday put them even with the Dodgers for the wild-card spot, haven’t suddenly realized they were supposed to give up after dumping Bobby Abreu and Cory Lidle, the Dodgers will send Maddux out again on Saturday at San Francisco, on three days’ rest.

For a young Maddux, that would be no problem. Over his career he’s 22-7 with a 2.55 earned-run average in such situations, but he hasn’t started on short rest this season.

He has gone past the sixth inning only once in his last four starts and won only one, and he said he felt mentally tired after his seven-inning effort in a 3-1 Dodgers victory on Sept. 15. That doesn’t bode well for success on a quick turnaround, but the Dodgers don’t have many attractive options.

If they’re hoping to get a morale boost from Nomar Garciaparra’s decisive grand slam Sunday in their 5-1 victory over Arizona, they must realize that they can’t live on hope alone. Their 11-10, 10-inning comeback victory over the Padres last Monday might have served as a springboard for a strong finish, but the Dodgers couldn’t build on it, losing their next two games to Pittsburgh and their grip on the division lead.

“We’re not going to look back. We’re going to look forward and take care of business and hopefully get to the playoffs,” outfielder Marlon Anderson said.

“Of course, I look at the scoreboard. If you can’t handle the pressure you shouldn’t be here.”

The Dodgers have been facing this late-season pressure with an outward calm that might be seen as a lack of emotion. But Anderson said he sees no need for anyone to make a win-one-for-the Gipper locker-room speech.

“I think everybody that’s on this team has come through in pressure situations,” he said. “They’ve been doing it for years. Guys have been in playoff situations. They know.

“I think sometimes you say more by keeping quiet and going about your business than you can by saying anything.”

Against the Rockies, he said, the Dodgers must “approach it as wide-open from pitch number one and try to take advantage of everything, no matter what the situation is, and get Ws. We’ve got to figure out a way to get Ws, no matter if it’s on the road, or whatever.”

Manager Grady Little must squeeze a little more offense from an injury-depleted lineup that lacked substantial power at full strength. He must continue to make the best of an iffy bullpen corps. He has handled many players well -- J.D. Drew is probably the best example -- but might have pushed rookie catcher Russell Martin too much, to the point where fatigue has dulled Martin’s previously impressive defensive game. Martin, who was seven for 33 on the final homestand, said he’s feeling fine. “I’m only 23. I’ll be tired later,” he said, smiling.

“You live to play in these type of situations. I’m in my first year, but maybe I won’t have another opportunity like this, so I’m going to try and make the best of it. There’s really no pressure. If you don’t like playing in this situation, you shouldn’t be playing baseball at all.”

The Phillies, with no expectations of success, have surged into contention for a wild-card spot by winning 10 of their last 13 games. They seem unfazed by what has opened up before them, embracing the possibilities.

The Dodgers, playing in a weak division that should have given them better playoff prospects, have faltered under the weight of the moment and have little time to right themselves.

“We need to play those six games we have left harder than any other games, because it’s going to be like playoff games,” shortstop Rafael Furcal said.

“I like this situation. I’ve been there before. You don’t try to do too much. You try to be natural, and everything comes together.”

Or, it falls apart. Six games will tell the tale.