Juan Uribe collects four hits, three RBIs to lead Dodgers past Braves

Juan Uribe collects four hits, three RBIs to lead Dodgers past Braves

LOS ANGELES -- In a season full of disappointments, Juan Uribe was undoubtedly the biggest for the Los Angeles Dodgers last year -- at least on the field. And no one in their clubhouse has more incentive this time around than he does.

Uribe tied a career high with four hits and drove in three runs to lead the Dodgers to a 7-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Monday night, improving their record to an National League-best 13-4. They're 7-0 at Dodger Stadium.

Two of Uribe's hits came off All-Star starter Jair Jurrjens, optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett after the game with a 9.37 ERA.

Uribe, a 12-year veteran, was limited to 77 games in 2011 because of a strained hip flexor on his left side and a lower abdominal strain. He had an RBI single in the first and a two-run single with the bases loaded in the eighth.

The third baseman came in batting .211 with one RBI in 38 at-bats over his first 11 games, and returned to the lineup Sunday after missing four games with an injured left wrist.

"I was hurt last year, but I wanted to play and show the guys I could play and help the team," said Uribe, in the second season of a three-year, $21 million contract after helping San Francisco win the 2010 World Series. "I'm not putting too much pressure on myself right now. For me, it was just important for us to win the game. That's why I come to the ballpark."

A.J. Ellis had a pair of RBI singles and Chris Capuano (2-0) pitched in and out of trouble for seven innings. The left-hander allowed a run, six hits and four walks while striking out five.

Capuano needed 27 pitches to get out of the first inning unscathed, striking out Jason Heyward on a full count with the bases loaded. He escaped another jam in the fourth, retiring leadoff man Michael Bourn on a grounder with two runners in scoring position.

"It was a battle, but luckily I had a pretty decent cutter working, and that helped me out in that last situation," Capuano said. "I was struggling with my command early, and I wasn't able to get those calls on the inside of the plate to right-handers. I was just missing it and I gave up four walks, which is a high amount for me."

Atlanta third baseman Chipper Jones, who is 1 for 13 with five strikeouts against Capuano, sat this one out on the eve of his 40th birthday because of a troublesome left knee -- the one he had surgery on in March to repair a torn meniscus. The seven-time All-Star announced a month ago that this will be his final season of a big league career that began in 1993 and included a batting title in 2008 -- along with 11 stints on the disabled list.

Jurrjens (0-2) gave up five runs and nine hits in three-plus innings. The right-hander, who led the Braves with 13 wins last season, retired only seven of the 17 batters he faced -- including Juan Rivera on a double-play grounder and Capuano on a sacrifice bunt.

It was the first time Jurrjens failed to record a strikeout in 42 starts since April 29, 2010, at St. Louis, when he departed after one inning with a strained left hamstring.

"He lives off strike one, and they didn't let us get that," batterymate David Ross said. "They attacked his pitches and they didn't let him get ahead in the count. They had a real good game plan against him and they had a lot of balls that fell in. But I don't think he's where he wants to be yet. I caught him his last outing and I thought he was a lot better tonight, as far as locating pitches. He's still searching to find it."

Ross and Dan Uggla homered for the Braves, who had won 10 of 12 after opening the season with four straight losses.

The Braves pulled off an unorthodox double play in the fifth. Matt Kemp tried to score all the way from first on Andre Ethier's single to left-center, running through third base coach Tim Wallach's stop sign. Left fielder Matt Diaz relayed to shortstop Jack Wilson, who threw a perfect strike to Ross for the tag on Kemp. Ross completed the double play with a snap throw to first baseman Freddie Freeman after Ethier strayed too far off the bag.

"That was exciting. It all happened so fast," Ross said. "Anytime you get somebody trying to run over you, you get a little amped up. A guy as big and fast as Matt Kemp running around third and trying to run you over gets your blood pumping. As soon as I turned, I saw Freddie throw his hands up and I threw it to him. It was still 5-1, but I still felt like it kept us in the ballgame for a little bit longer and within reach with our offense. So I was fired up."

Game notes
Freeman was chosen NL player of the week for the first time in his career, wresting the honors away from Kemp, who was the first player to win the award in the first two weeks of a season since OF Tony Armas did it with Oakland in 1981. ... Capuano pitched a two-hitter against the Braves with a career-high 13 strikeouts last August in a 6-0 win for the New York Mets. ... Kemp and Ethier have combined for 44 RBIs, three shy of the major league record for teammates through the first 17 games of a season. Alex Rodriguez had 31 and Jason Giambi 16 in 2007 with the Yankees.

Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press

April, 23, 2012

LOS ANGELES -- It had been more than 4 1/2 years since Juan Uribe had four hits in a game. But on Monday night, with the Los Angeles Dodgers kicking off an intriguing six-game homestand and with Uribe hitting a benign .211 with one RBI for the season, he picked the perfect time to end that drought, delivering four singles in four at-bats and driving in three runs in a 7-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves before 26,376 at Dodger Stadium.

The last of those hits was a critical two-run single in the bottom of the eighth that effectively broke the Braves' backs.

For Uribe, it was finally something positive in what to date has been a rocky stretch with the Dodgers since they signed him two winters ago to a three-year, $21 million contract. He missed a total of 75 games last season with various injuries that were all related and resulted in him finally undergoing sports-hernia surgery in September, this after he hit .204 when he was healthy. And while he has played steady defense at third base this year, those offensive struggles have carried over.

Until, apparently, now. In a single evening, Uribe raised his batting average to .286.

"That was nice for him,'' Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "This guy is a good teammate. Guys love him. He walks around with a smile on his face, and he continues to play good defense. What was really nice is he was able to do it at home in front of our fans.''

It was Uribe's fifth career four-hit game, his first since Sept. 8, 2007, when he did it for the Chicago White Sox against the Minnesota Twins. Moreover, in a development that seems to bely his previously paltry average, it was his fourth multiple-hit game in his past eight games, and he is hitting .500 (11-for-22) at home this season.

That, of course, means he is 1-for-20 on the road. But why spoil a good thing with something like that, especially considering the Dodgers don't go on the road for another week?

Chris Capuano continued to make a case that he is a fifth starter in name only, holding the offensively potent Braves to a single run on six hits over seven strong innings. The veteran lefty wasn't always dominating -- he gave up at least one hit in each of the first five innings, during which he stranded four runners in scoring position -- but he managed to make big pitches when he needed to.

The result was that Capuano now is 2-0 with a 3.52 ERA in four starts in his first season with the Dodgers, even if he is averaging 4.5 walks per nine innings.

"Early on, I was just trying to slow it down and focus on making one pitch at a time and not let things snowball,'' Capuano said. "Later on, I was just trying to give the team some innings and be aggressive with my fastball and throw some good two-seamers. I wasn't trying to be perfect, just trying to attack the zone.''

Capuano gave up a home run to David Ross leading off the second, quickly erasing the 1-0 lead the Dodgers had staked him to, but that was pretty much it. The Dodgers opened up a 5-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth, just after Capuano had escaped a first-and-third, nobody-out jam in the top half without a run scoring. From there, he basically cruised.

More important, perhaps, was the fact Capuano managed to eat seven innings on a night when the bullpen already has been taxed. As a result, Mattingly was able to avoid using eighth-inningg reliever Kenley Jansen for a second day in a row. Uribe's eighth-inning single took away the save opportunity, so Mattingly then was able to stay away from closer Javy Guerra for a second day in a row, as well.

On an otherwise-triumphant evening for the Dodgers (13-4), who once again are tied with the Texas Rangers for baseball's best record and opened a four-game lead over Colorado, Arizona and San Francisco in the National League West, there was one forgettable moment.

After Matt Kemp led off the fifth with an infield single, Andre Ethier followed with a bloop single to left-center, which should have put runners on first and third with nobody out. Instead, Kemp tried to come all the way home when the throw from left field came in to the shortstop and got himself thrown out. And then Ethier, who had wandered too far off first, got himself thrown out too, on a snap throw by Ross.

"We talked about it afterward,'' Mattingly said. "Matt knows it was just the wrong time, first and third with nobody out and Juan (Rivera) and James (Loney) coming up. There is a time for that if you see a guy flip the ball in kind of lackadaisically and he doesn't think you're going to run. If (Braves shortstop Jack Wilson) had held the ball or he freezes for a split second, Matt might have been safe. There is a time for it, but that just wasn't it.''

April, 23, 2012

LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Dodgers, who allegedly has fashioned their hot early-season start around a weak schedule, began what figures to be a challenging six-game homestand by hammering the Atlanta Braves 7-2 on Monday night at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers got a strong pitching performance from Chris Capuano, and their offense came to life one day after being shut out in the final game of their series in Houston, this time pounding out 15 hits, nine of them against normally formidable Braves starter Jair Jurrjens, who was knocked out after three-plus innings.

The good

Busting out. James Loney, Juan Uribe and A.J. Ellis, who hit sixth, seventh and eighth in the Dodgers lineup and whose averages coming into the game ranged from .211 to .222, combined to go 8-for-11, score four runs and drive in five. Uribe led the way, tying his career high for hits in a game by going 4-for-4 to raise his average from .211 to .286.

Wriggling free. With his pitch count rising fast, Capuano, who to that point had been in and out of trouble and generally pitched like the fifth starter he is, worked deftly out of a first-and-third, nobody-out jam in the fourth to preserve a two-run lead, with an assist from the fact that jam came in a good spot in the Braves' order. Capuano began his escape by striking out Jack Wilson. After Jurrjens bunted David Ross to second, Michael Bourn grounded harmlessly to second, stranding both runners in scoring position. The Dodgers came back in their half to score two runs, doubling their lead.

Web gem du jour. Dee Gordon has never let his slow start at the plate affect his defense, and he flashed the leather again in the top of the second inning, diving headlong behind the bag to take a sure hit away from Freddie Freeman. Gordon burst to his feet and fired a bullet to first base, getting Freeman by a step to end the inning.

The bad

Double fizzle II. Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier began the fifth inning with back-to-back singles, Ethier's an opposite field shot that landed in shallow left-center and allowed Kemp to easily reach third -- which would have set the Dodgers up with a first-and-third, nobody-out situation if Kemp hadn't gotten greedy and tried to sneak home when the throw came in to second base. Kemp was nailed easily at the plate, and then Ethier, who had wandered too far off first, also was nailed by a snap throw from Ross. With that, first-and-third-nobody-out became two-outs-nobody-on.

Same old story. Another disappointing crowd, this one officially announced at 26,376 but in reality nowhere near that.

James Loney stays the course

April, 23, 2012

LOS ANGELES -- Even as Dodgers first baseman James Loney has struggled out of the gate to a .217 average, the message from the coaching staff to Loney has been to stay the course, to stick with the hitting mechanics that led him to have that second-half surge last season instead of tinkering the way he so often did in the past, when he also seemed to listen to too much advice from too many people.

For the most part, that message has stuck with Loney. But manager Don Mattingly said he did catch Loney, who hails from the Houston area, doing something different at the plate during his first at-bat of the team's weekend series against the Astros, in which Loney struck out.

"I mentioned it to him as soon as he got back to the dugout, and he said, 'My bad,'" Mattingly said. "I figured he went to his batting cage in his hometown with a roll of quarters and got help from somebody there."

Loney took the message to heart, and the following night, he hit his first home run of the season to start the Dodgers on their way to a second consecutive win over the Astros before they dropped Sunday's finale. The Dodgers then flew home with a 12-4 record they compiled mostly against subpar clubs. Tonight, they face a real test in the opener of a three-game series with the Atlanta Braves.

April, 23, 2012

The Dodgers, their 12-0 pounding at the hands of the lowly Houston Astros on Sunday notwithstanding, are off to one of the hottest starts in franchise history. Here are five things the club needs to do in order to hold onto first place in the National League West over the next 5 1/2 months and actually win the division.

1. Win a series against a formidable opponent

Heading into Monday night’s series opener against the Atlanta Braves, the Dodgers have yet to play a team that is above .500; their four opponents thus far have combined to go 24-40. That figure can be a little misleading this early in the season, but what is more telling is that the Dodgers have played only one team this season that is expected to contend for a playoff spot. That team, the Milwaukee Brewers, handed the Dodgers their one series loss of the season to date.

2. Give it a rest

The bullpen, that is. Through 16 games, Dodgers starters -- who have gone an impressive 7-2 with a 3.04 ERA -- are averaging fewer than six innings a game. That figure is skewed somewhat by Chad Billingsley getting knocked out of the box Sunday and Clayton Kershaw leaving the season opener after three because of illness, but the effect is the same. It’s too early to say the ‘pen is overworked, but the fact the team has played 16 games and Kenley Jansen already has pitched in 10 of them is somewhat eye-opening.

3. Get more production out of the top

Dee Gordon has the potential to be a great leadoff hitter, but the scouting reports clearly have caught up to him, and thus far, he hasn’t been able to adjust. After going 0-for-4 with a couple of strikeouts Sunday, Gordon is hitting .279 -- including a ghastly .277 on-base percentage. You can’t steal second until you get on first, and Gordon isn’t doing that nearly often enough. And your leadoff man can’t strike out once every 4.3 plate appearances.

4. Get more production out of Andre Ethier

Yeah, he started off hot. But since hitting his most recent home run Tuesday night, Ethier is 4 for 19 with five strikeouts and four RBIs. Matt Kemp is carrying this club offensively, and while we all know Kemp is capable of doing that for long stretches, he can’t do it for the entire season. Ethier is the second-most important offensive player on this club, and if he is hoping to hit the big jackpot, either in free agency this fall or with the incoming new ownership this summer, he’s going to have to do better than a .279 average and a .333 OBP, even if he does lead the team with five doubles and is second to Kemp with four homers and 21 RBI.

5. Get more production out of James Loney

Dodgers' 6-7-8 hitters combine for eight knocks, five RBIs

By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com | 4/24/2012 2:40 AM ET

LOS ANGELES -- Juan Uribe produced Monday night like the Dodgers thought he would. He just started a year late.

Uribe tied a career high with four hits, drove in three runs and led the bottom of the Dodgers' order as it lent a hand to Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier (who combined for five hits) in a 7-2 win over the Braves, the 13-4 record matching the best Dodgers' start after 17 games since 1983.

A.J. Ellis added two RBIs and Chris Capuano pitched seven effective innings as the Dodgers opened the homestand against a Braves club that was 10-2 over its previous 12 games. The Dodgers knocked out 15 hits, 14 of them singles, and overcame hitting into four double plays.

With Ellis and James Loney adding a pair of hits to the four from Uribe, spots 6-7-8 in the Dodgers' batting order contributed eight hits, four runs scored and five driven in. Ethier and Dee Gordon drove in the other runs as the Dodgers were 6-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

"It was time to pick up the slack," said Ellis. "Matt and 'Dre have been carrying us. We want to be tough one through eight. It's really big for us to get on base and create offense at the bottom of the lineup."

It was a satisfying performance for Uribe, who signed a three-year, $21 million contract and started it with a dismal 2011 that ended with sports hernia surgery.

"Last year I couldn't play, I was hurt, and it's hard when you want to show people I can play," said Uribe. "The only thing I want to do is help the team win."

Uribe missed four games last week with a sore wrist injured last Sunday sliding into home plate but returned to the lineup Sunday, just in time for the Dodgers' 12-0 blowout loss in Houston. The four hits raised his average from .211 to .286.

"It was good to see him get the hits here in the stadium in front of our fans," said manager Don Mattingly, whose team improved to 7-0 at home.

Uribe punched a single to right field in the second inning to bring home Loney, who had doubled. He reached for an outside pitch on a hit-and-run in the fourth inning to put runners on the corners preceding Ellis' RBI single. He singled to center in the sixth, but was thrown out stealing while Ellis struck out. And he drove another single to right field with bases loaded in the eighth to score two.

Braves starter Jair Jurrjens, an All-Star and 13-game winner in 2011, was tagged for five runs on nine hits in three-plus innings and was sent to Triple-A after the game.

"The bottom of their lineup really stepped up today and did a good job," Braves catcher David Ross said. "They had a good approach. They weren't trying to pull JJ. They were taking him and hitting him the other way. It seemed like a ton of balls got hit to right [field] tonight by right-handed hitters. That's a good approach and you've got to tip your cap sometimes."

Capuano (2-0) had a shaky start, escaping a bases-loaded jam in a 27-pitch first inning by striking out Jason Heyward. He allowed a home run to the former Dodger Ross leading off the second inning, walked four and had only one 1-2-3 inning but stranded five runners in scoring position while striking out five.

"It was frustrating. Every time I looked up there were runners on base," Capuano said. "There are crucial junctures to every game, and this one came up in the first inning. The strikeout really changed the momentum when they didn't score."

By pitching seven innings, Capuano allowed Mattingly to rest the bullpen one day after relievers pitched 4 2/3 innings in Houston.

Gordon singled, stole second, took third on Mark Ellis' fly ball and was singled home by Ethier for the first run. Ross tied the score two pitches into the second inning with a long home run to center field. Ross has four career hits off Capuano, two of them homers.

The Dodgers resumed their attack on Jurrjens in the second, Loney leading off with a double, Uribe and A.J. Ellis following with RBI singles. The same trio each singled in the fourth, with A.J. Ellis' RBI hit chasing Jurrjens. Gordon greeted reliever Livan Hernandez with a sacrifice fly that scored Uribe.

The Dodgers completely ran themselves out of a potential big inning in the fifth. Kemp reached first on a leadoff infield single and was singled to third by Ethier. When left fielder Matt Diaz's throw came into second base, Kemp attempted to score and was thrown out at the plate. Meanwhile, Ethier had thoughts of going to second on the throw home, only for catcher Ross' throw to beat him back to first base for a double play.

"Just the wrong time for that," said Mattingly.

Gordon also short-circuited a rally in the second when he was caught stealing second base to end the inning with Kemp batting.

Billingsley's rocky start not result of groin issue

By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com

LOS ANGELES -- Even though Chad Billingsley was roughed up Sunday after complaining of groin discomfort his previous start, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said the groin was not the reason for Billingsley's bad outing.

"I'm pretty sure of that," Mattingly said. "I talked to Chad today and he felt like the biggest thing with him is that they wrapped it and I don't know if he wasn't comfortable with it, but he wasn't striding as far.

"Whatever the reason, he didn't pitch great, but from that standpoint, he's healthy and I'm not worried about his next start. He didn't come out of it limping or having something bother him. I think he put a lot of doubt to rest."

Billingsley is scheduled to start again Saturday at home against the Nationals.

LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti on Monday repeated earlier comments indicating that a contract extension for outfielder Andre Ethier will be a high priority when new ownership takes over next week.

"You know, I've talked to them a little bit about it so it's on the map already," Colletti told SiriusXM Radio. "And when everything gets settled in and people get a chance to think about a lot of different things, that'll be one of the topics we do bring up. I'd love to keep him here. Of course, it takes more than the organization and more than me to get it done. It takes a lot of different people and factions that have a say in it, but hopefully he can be here for a long time.

"He's had a great start. Except for a little bit of a blip when he had a bad knee last year, he's been a very consistent player for us and somebody who does provide some protection for Matt [Kemp]. A couple of years ago it was the other way around in the order. But he's somebody that we count on and somebody that's been here really his whole Major League career. He started with Oakland, but he's been a Dodger ever since he showed up in the big leagues, and if we can keep it that way, it's fine with me."

Ethier is eligible for free agency after this season, and the free-agent market for run producers is expected to be light.

Watchful Mattingly keeps Loney's swing in line

LOS ANGELES -- James Loney taped a public service announcement for the Vision to Learn Foundation on Monday and had a 15-person camera crew surrounding him in a 20-minute shoot in the batting cage.

About the last thing Dodgers manager Don Mattingly wants is Loney doing anything that will change his batting swing, which is Loney's tendency.

For example, after going 3-for-11 during the three-game series in Milwaukee, Loney struck out in his first at-bat in Houston on Friday night and Mattingly immediately noticed a mechanical difference.

"I figured he must have taken a roll of quarters and gone to the local batting cage and somebody he knows there changed him," Mattingly said of Loney, who grew up in Houston. "I had [hitting coach Dave Hansen] pull up that at-bat and one from Milwaukee and told James to go look at them. When he came back and said, 'My bad,' that's when I knew he changed something."

Coffey throws simulated game, nears return

LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers reliever Todd Coffey, placed on the disabled list April 14 with a well-timed right knee inflammation, threw a simulated game Monday.

Coffey said the inflammation was the result of Spring Training running. Coincidentally, Coffey is known for his trademark sprint from the bullpen to the mound when he enters games.

Coffey said he expects to pitch in Minor League rehab games Wednesday and Friday, then be activated on Sunday, when the Dodgers will face the same roster dilemma they had on April 14, when they put Coffey on the disabled list to make room for the activation of Ted Lilly.

By Quinn Roberts / MLB.com | 4/24/2012 1:48 AM ET

Mike Minor may be only three starts into the season, but the Braves sure do like what they've seen out of the young left-hander so far.

Shutting down the D-backs in a career-high eight innings on Thursday for the win, Minor will try and keep that momentum going on Tuesday against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.

"He's heading in the right direction," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "He's growing up right in front of our eyes. He's maturing and using that changeup, and in 3-2 counts, he's throwing some pretty good breaking pitches."

Showing greater command of his fastball, Minor has been able to mix in his curveball this season, which has helped him in allowing only one earned run in his last 15 1/3 innings.

It'll be up to Dodgers right-hander Aaron Harang to stymie such a streak.

Harang got his first Dodgers win on Thursday against the Brewers, holding Milwaukee to three runs on eight hits in six innings.

Although the righty wasn't overpowering in the start, striking out only four, he kept the Brewers in the ballpark.

That's something Harang will need to do against a Braves team that has won 10 of its last 13 games.

"Both teams are playing well," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "I'm kind of excited to play them. It's kind of nice to see where you stack up at this point."

Braves: Freeman gets NL Player of Week honors

Freeman hit .478 (11-for-23) -- the third-highest average in the NL on the week -- with 14 RBIs and a 1.087 slugging percentage. He led the NL with 25 total bases, ranked among the leaders in runs scored (seven), hits (11) and on-base percentage (.481) while recording five multi-RBI games.

• Dealing with left knee discomfort that has intensified over the last few days, Braves third baseman Chipper Jones was held out of Monday's game against the Dodgers. However, Jones hopes to be in the lineup as he celebrates his 40th birthday on Tuesday.

"It would be nice, but it's not going to hurt my feelings [if I don't]," Jones said. "The good thing about having Juan [Francisco] is he's provided us some power and some offense. It's not a necessity that I be in there. So I can take my time whenever I am not feeling good."

Dodgers: Ethier deal high on Colletti's list
• General manager Ned Colletti on Monday reiterated earlier comments indicating that a contract extension for outfielder Andre Ethier will be a high priority when new ownership takes over next week.

"You know, I've talked to them a little bit about it so it's on the map already," Colletti told SiriusXM Radio. "And when everything gets settled in and people get a chance to think about a lot of different things, that'll be one of the topics we do bring up. I'd love to keep him here. Of course, it takes more than the organization and more than me to get it done. It takes a lot of different people and factions that have a say in it, but hopefully he can be here for a long time."

• Reliever Todd Coffey, placed on the disabled list April 14 with right knee inflammation, threw a simulated game on Monday. Coffey said he expects to pitch in Minor League rehab games Wednesday and Friday, then be activated on Sunday.

Worth noting

• Braves shortstop Tyler Pastornicky was out of the starting lineup for the third consecutive game on Monday. However, he did pinch-hit in the ninth inning for pitcher Chad Durbin, striking out. Gonzalez expects Pastornicky to start the final two games of the Dodgers series.

Loney, Uribe (4 hits) and Ellis go 8 for 11 to beat Braves

By J.P. Hoornstra, Staff Writer

Posted:   04/23/2012 10:46:40 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES - The Dodgers haven't had much to complain about in 2012, but the production from the bottom of their order has been downright putrid.

James Loney, Juan Uribe and A.J. Ellis entered Monday with a combined 26 hits. Matt Kemp, by contrast, had 27 by himself.

But the Dodgers' regular sixth, seventh and eighth batters showed renewed vigor as the team kicked off its six-game homestand against the Atlanta Braves. The trio went a combined 8 for 11 with five RBIs in a 7-2 win over the Braves.

Neither Loney (2 for 3), Uribe (4 for 4) nor Ellis (2 for 4) were hitting above .222 when the day began.

That was before Uribe tied a career high for hits in a game, his first four-hit performance since September 2007 when he was a member of the Chicago White Sox.

The victory, in front of an announced crowd of 26,376, was the Dodgers' seventh in a row on home turf to open the season. The 1983 team was the last Dodgers squad to open a season 13-4.

Atlanta starter Jair Jurrjens (0-2) was done after just three innings, his shortest start since April 2010. The knockout punch came in the form of three consecutive singles by Loney, Uribe and Ellis to lead off the fourth inning, the latter two driving in runs.

For Loney, at least, it was the continuation of a hot streak. The first baseman is riding a 12-for-33 stretch that has seen his average climb from .000 - Loney did not collect a hit in his first 16 at-bats this season - to .245. He even drew his first intentional walk of the season in the eighth inning.

With the game tied at 1-1, Loney led off the second inning with a double. Uribe followed with an RBI single and Ellis drove in Uribe with a single of his own to give the Dodgers a 3-1 lead they would not relinquish.

That was more than enough for Dodgers starter Chris Capuano (2-0). The left-hander enjoyed his longest start of the season, seven innings, and avoided his trademark fifth-inning swoon.

This time, in fact, Capuano only seemed to get better as the game went along. He labored through a 27-pitch first inning, bailed out at the end by a bases-loaded strikeout by Jason Heyward.

The only blemish on his record was a tape-measure home run by former Dodger David Ross in the second inning. Capuano struck out five and walked four while allowing just six hits.

Josh Lindblom pitched the eighth inning and allowed an opposite-field home run to Dan Uggla. It was the first run Lindblom has allowed this season in eight appearances (10 2/3 innings) to start the season and the first home run he's allowed in his career.

By then it was of little consequence. The Dodgers tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the eighth inning against veteran right-hander Livan Hernandez. Both runs, naturally, came around to score on a single by Uribe - his fourth and final hit.

The Dodgers opened the scoring in the first inning on an RBI single by Andre Ethier. He matched Kemp for the team and major-league lead with 22 RBIs. Their 44 combined RBIs through 17 games are the most by two teammates since then-Yankees Alex Rodriguez and Jason Giambi drove in 47 in 2007.

But the more exciting stat for the Dodgers was the production of Loney, Uribe and Ellis, a sore spot that appears to have healed quickly at home.

By J.P. Hoornstra jp.hoornstra@inlandnewpapers.com 909-483-9372 - twitter.com/jphoornstra Staff Writer

Posted:   04/23/2012 10:57:31 PM PDT

The stench of the final score Sunday in Houston, 12-0 in favor of the Astros, seemed to follow the Dodgers from the visitors' clubhouse in Minute Maid Park on to the plane ride home.

"Definitely wasn't a happy clubhouse," Dodgers catcher Matt Treanor said. "Guys understand that's not our team. It was just one of those days.

"The plane ride home was quiet."

Put in context: The Dodgers were 12-3 entering the game and, even in those three losses, they were outscored by a total of six runs.

Was the game out of character? Sure, but it's early enough in the season that a team's character is still fragile. As a character test, veteran second baseman Mark Ellis said, "I would never make too much of that game."

"Probably from the fifth inning on you have good at-bats, you still play the game but you're ready to move on," he said.

Starting pitcher Chad Billingsley's worst outing of the year left the Dodgers little choice. The right-hander allowed nine runs - five earned - in 3 1/3 innings, including a grand slam. The Dodgers trailed 9-0 after four innings.

Perhaps the only lingering concern is whether Billingsley's sore groin was and still is an issue. Manager Don Mattingly wasn't concerned.

"The biggest thing, I think, with him is that (team trainers) wrapped it and I don't know if he was uncomfortable with that, or subconsciously we talked about not striding as far or whatever," Mattingly said. "Whatever the reasons, he didn't pitch great yesterday.

"From a standpoint of him feeling like he's healthy, I'm not really worried about the next start. He didn't come out of it limping or something bothering him today."

In the community

Matt Kemp, Clayton Kershaw and Josh Lindblom, along with former Dodgers speedster Maury Wills, are scheduled to help Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles rehabilitate a dilapidated home in Lynwood today.

This will be the Dodgers' second Habitat build this year as Dodger players helped rebuild a different Lynwood home as part of the team's 2012 Community Caravan.

Also today, James Loney will help the nonprofit Vision To Learn distribute glasses to students at Castelar Elementary School in Los Angeles. Loney regularly wears glasses away from the field and switches to contacts during games.

Triple-A prospect Alex Castellanos was named the Pacific Coast League's player of the week for April 16-22. Castellanos, a second baseman and outfielder who was acquired in the Rafael Furcal trade last season, hit .440 last week. He is hitting .371 for the season with a league-leading 15 extra-base hits, 18 runs, four triples and 53 total bases. ... Former Dodgers outfielder Kenny Lofton was spotted in the dugout prior to the game demonstrating his batting stance to Loney. Coincidentally, moments earlier Mattingly bemoaned Loney making any adjustments to his swing, although Lofton's demonstration seemed to help. Loney had hits in his first two at-bats as of press time. ... Today's scheduled starter, Aaron Harang, is 1-3 with a 4.53 earned-run average in nine career starts against the Braves. ... The Braves will counter with Mike Minor, who won his only career start against the Dodgers last season. He allowed one run and struck out seven in six innings on Sept. 3.

Wire Servicesdailynews.com

Posted:   04/22/2012 12:26:46 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES -- Roxanna Green, the mother of slain 9-year-old Christina-Taylor Green, will sign copies of her book "As Good As She Imagined," Monday at Dodger Stadium.

"As Good As She Imagined," shares the Green family's journey of faith and their quest for redemption following Christina-Taylor's death. She was the youngest of six victims killed in the Jan. 8, 2011 shooting in Tucson, Ariz. that left then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., seriously injured.

The book's title stems from a comment made by President Barack Obama at a memorial service for the victims of the shooting, "I want America to be as good as she imagined."

The book signing will take place from in the right field merchandise tent from 5:10-6:30 p.m. and during the first three innings of the Los Angeles Dodgers game against the Atlanta Braves.

The Green family has formed the Christina-Taylor Green Foundation, which undertakes charitable and educational projects that reflect and embody her interests, values and dreams.

Christina-Taylor Green's father John is a Dodger scout.
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