NL West: Injuries piling up in LA

Baseball Betting Lines

07/19/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Imagine the San Diego Padres trying to stay atop the NL West standings without Adrian Gonzalez, Chase Headley and Yorvit Torrealba.

The Los Angeles Dodgers would certainly enjoy seeing that happen, but they're the ones trying to stay healthy for a gigantic stretch run in the second half. The Dodgers, currently 5 1/2 games behind the division-leading Padres, are dealing with injuries to Manny Ramirez, Russell Martin and James Loney.

Ramirez hasn't played since Friday because of a tight calf muscle. That was the last time Martin saw action because of a thumb ailment and Loney recently tweaked a hamstring, forcing manager Joe Torre to make a late scratch before Sunday's 5-4 loss at St. Louis. All three are questionable for Monday's series opener versus rival San Francisco.

The Cardinals completed the four-game sweep of Los Angeles (49-43) with two runs in the bottom of the ninth and erased a 4-0 lead.

"It's tough. Very tough," Torre said on the team's site. "It looked like what should have been a good enough lead, we let get away, and we have nobody to blame but ourselves."

Torre was "celebrating" his 70th birthday and the loss may have added a few years. He is still mum on his future with the club, and has more to worry about with injuries and breakdowns in pitching. It's not as if the Dodgers can go out and make a big trade or sign someone since moving money around is not a subject the franchise wants to discuss at this point. What you see is what you get from this current group of Dodgers, and it's going to be tough making ground in the NL West for the remainder of the season.

PADRES PAINT FUTURE BLACK

It's safe to say San Diego Padres manager Bud Black has performed a mini miracle with the ballclub this season.

Upper management seems to feel the same way and handed him a three-year contract extension through 2013 with club options for 2014 and 2015. Black, whose deal was extended through 2010 with a club option for 2011 last August, has the confidence of his players and general manager Jed Hoyer.

"I am really happy to announce that the Padres have reached an agreement on a well-deserved contract extension for Bud Black," said Hoyer. "This news comes at time when the team is playing well, but my faith in Bud goes far beyond wins and losses. He and his staff are exceptionally well prepared, he embraces the challenge of teaching young players and, most importantly, the players compete for him every night."

During his three-plus seasons at the helm, Black has led San Diego to an overall mark of 281-297.

Many pegged the Padres to finish near the basement in the NL West this season and that they would probably trade All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. Instead, San Diego has spent numerous weeks atop the division standings and owns the best record in the National League at 54-37. Atlanta is right behind with a 54-38 ledger.

Gonzalez isn't going anywhere as of now, and the Padres would be foolish to let their best left-handed bat go. The team locked up Black, so why not Gonzalez too?

San Diego has won four straight and will visit the Braves for three games starting with Tuesday's series opener.

GIANTS MUST PLAY BETTER IN NL WEST

With the Los Angeles Dodgers ailing and the Arizona Diamondbacks struggling, the San Francisco Giants' upcoming schedule should get a bit easier.

The Giants (50-42) will open a seven-game road trip in Hollywood and Arizona tonight, but have the worst division mark in the NL West. At 9-20 in division play, it's no wonder the Giants are 4 1/3 games out first place.

On a sour note, San Francisco has won only three of 14 road games against teams from the NL West this season.

"I think as much as anything it's the focus these guys came in with, knowing this is part of the schedule and how important it is to play on the road, especially when you have a long stretch, and that can determine your season," noted Giants manager Bruce Bochy. "That's how you have to look at it, how important it is, and come out every day and be ready to go."

On a more uplifting note, the Giants have won nine of their last 11 games and almost completed a rare four-game sweep of the visiting New York Mets before the bullpen imploded Sunday afternoon. Bochy has a strong trio of pitchers for the upcoming set with LA, as young prospect Madison Bumgarner, two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum and 2002 AL Cy Young honoree Barry Zito are scheduled to pitch in Hollywood.

HIT STREAKS END FOR COLORADO'S GONZALEZ, HERRERA

Colorado Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and infielder Jonathan Herrera both had lengthy hitting streaks come to an end in Sunday's win at Cincinnati.

They are probably more relieved that the ballclub was able to halt a three- game losing streak despite combining to go 0-for-8 in the 1-0 win.

Herrera was riding a 13-game hitting streak and batted .396 with seven runs and seven RBI before an 0-for-4 showing yesterday. He had a 10-game streak going earlier this season and the longest streak by a Rockie this season was Clint Barmes' 14-game run from the end of June to the beginning of July.

Gonzalez had a hit in 10 consecutive contests before his 0-for-4 performance on Sunday. He hit .442 with 13 runs bated in over the stretch.

In other team news, All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki is expected to join the team in south Florida this week. The injured infielder, who is hampered by a broken left wrist, could begin a Minor League rehab assignment in the next few days. First baseman Todd Helton is still on the disabled list with a back problem, but has been taking swings in the batting cage.

The Rockies (50-41) are four games off the NL West lead and have won seven of their last 10 games. They are 1-2 on an 11-game trek through Cincinnati, Florida and Philadelphia.

IF ONLY VASQUEZ COULD START FOR D'BACKS

The Arizona Diamondbacks have been through turmoil this season.

A lack of hits in the clutch and poor pitching has led the Diamondbacks to an abysmal 34-58 record this season, a manager change and a new GM. Arizona has the worst overall earned run average this season at 5.40, while its relievers own an MLB-low 6.78 ERA.

Relief pitcher Esmerling Vasquez has been able to put all of that aside and has worked 8 1/3 straight scoreless innings. Interim manager Kirk Gibson could use just about anything right now on the mound. Heck, he could test and see if the batboy has a good arm.

But it's been nice for Vasquez and his scoreless streak because there hasn't been much to talk about in the desert these days.

Arizona may even make some moves at the upcoming trade deadline, but don't expect them to break the bank or dump salary for the fun of it. Perhaps starting pitcher Dan Haren will be on the trade block or some other veteran who could bring in a package of prospects.

"I don't think anybody is really in a deal-making mode yet. We've been very open in discussing with teams what we'd be interested in doing," D'Backs GM Jerry Dipoto said on the team's site.

The Diamondbacks have lost four in a row and are last in the NL West standings, 20 1/2 games behind frontrunning San Diego. Meanwhile, infielder Kelly Johnson has ripped off four straight multi-hit games and has hit safely in 12 of his last 14 games, recording two triples, two homers and 10 RBI.