Dodgers’ hopes sink in the West

DENVER -- Jonathan Broxton returned to the scene of the crime Wednesday. And once again he and the Dodgers had their pockets picked.

Though the names and dates may change, the M.O. is always the same: tight game, late innings, Broxton brought in to protect a lead -- only to have the win stolen away.

Wednesday the perpetrator was Colorado’s Brad Hawpe, who followed Garrett Atkins’ eighth-inning leadoff single with a two-run homer on a full-count slider, lifting the Rockies to a 6-5 victory.

A day earlier Broxton gave up a single and homer to start the eighth inning in a 9-8 loss. And less than two weeks before that he gave up two game-winning home runs in the span of three days in San Francisco.

After appearing in a club-record 94 consecutive games without yielding a home run, Broxton has suddenly given up six in less than a month.

“I’m just making some bad pitches there. I’m leaving them over the center of the plate,” Broxton said, his voice barely rising above a whisper. “It’s always going to catch up with you sooner or later.

“I’m going through a rough stretch now. I’ve just to got to get over the hump.”

By the time he does, however, it figures to be too late for the Dodgers, because their fourth consecutive loss, combined with wins by Arizona and San Diego, dropped the Dodgers’ magic number for elimination from the National League West race to four games. They’re 5 1/2 games back in the wild-card race with 10 to play. And they now trail the Rockies.

Broxton (4-4), who received a “hang in there” pep talk from closer Takashi Saito after his latest meltdown, said he can’t remember a rougher stretch in his short career. And fatigue may be playing a part in that: Wednesday’s appearance was the 80th of the season for the 23-year-old right-hander, second-most in the National League. And he has thrown a career-high 79 innings as well.

“I’m a little sore,” he said. “It ain’t super-super sore where it’s going to affect me. But I can tell it’s September. It’s just part of baseball and you’ve got to learn how to go through a whole season.”

One big league scout who watched Broxton on Wednesday said that while his high-90s velocity is still there, his pitches have flattened out recently.

“He’s got to be getting tired,” Dodgers starter Brad Penny said. “And as much as he’s thrown, you can’t blame him for getting tired.”

Three of the Rockies’ first four runs also came on homers -- all off Penny, who had given up only three homers combined in his 13 previous second-half starts. Yorvit Torrealba hit one of those leading off the second, and Matt Holliday hit the other two, leaving him with a .636 (seven for 11) average, three homers and six RBIs in the first three games of the series.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, had 12 singles in their 15 hits, meaning they had to work a little harder for their runs. Juan Pierre got two of them while singling, tripling and stealing his 60th base of the season and Penny accounted for two more, doubling and scoring in the third and driving in another run with a bases-loaded infield single in the sixth.

“Tonight was one of those situations were we took a knife to a gun fight,” Manager Grady Little said.

Four other Dodgers also had two hits, including James Loney, who drove in three runs and is hitting .457 over his last eight games. He also has 18 RBIs in his last 12 games. But with the Dodgers going five for 22 with men in scoring position, stranding 11 runners, the Rockies were able to stay close enough to make Broxton’s appearance count -- for them.

That also wound up leaving the Dodgers to play for something far less glamorous than a playoff berth over the final week and a half.

“You’ve got to play for pride,” Penny said. “You’ve got to go out there and do the best you can.”

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kevin.baxter@latimes.com