Ellis, Mattingly blame ballpark for struggling L.A. offense

BOX SCORE

OAKLAND -- The Los Angeles Dodgers no longer have the bestrecord in baseball, and they have the Oakland As to blame.Five days away from a National League West showdown with the second-place SanFrancisco Giants at AT&T Park, the Dodgers look lost at the plate, courtesyof Brandon McCarthy and Tommy Milone.A day after McCarthy threw seven shutout innings in a 3-0 As win, Milone wentthe distance for the teams first complete game of the season in a 4-1 win.The Dodgers mustered just three hits and a walk against thelefty Milone, who improved to 7-5 and lowered his ERA to 4.13 in the process.Hes just one of those guys; weve had trouble against left-handers, Dodgersmanager Don Mattingly said about Milone. He was changing speeds and kept usoff balance.Milone only struck out two Dodgers, but was effective all evening, throwing 73of his 112 pitches for strikes.We havent looked real offensive, Mattingly said. But I thought we were alittle better tonight.Mattingly is right, at least according to the run column. But a Dodgersoffense that has held its own without its biggest bat in Matt Kemp is suddenlystruggling to score.With the Giants looming after the Dodgers return to Southern California for athree-game series with the Angels, who beat San Francisco 6-0 Wednesday, Mattinglywas asked if he plans to make any adjustments to his offense.Not a whole lot you can do, he said. Not panic is what you can do. Weregoing to have stretches like this.The Dodgers were doing just fine until they arrived in Oakland, as they had won10 of their last 15 games. While they are no longer the Major Leagues bestteam by recordthat distinction now belongs to the Texas RangerstheDodgers still hold a 4.5 game lead in the N.L. West thanks to two straightGiant losses in Anaheim.
Clayton Kershaw will take the mound Thursday in Oakland looking to help theDodgers avoid just their second sweep of the season. With a more dependableoffense earlier this year, Los Angeles racked up sweeps over the Pirates,Padres, Nationals, Rockies, Cardinals and Phillies. Mattingly used the pitchers haven known as the O.co Coliseum as a possibleexplanation for his struggling offense. Mark Ellis, who played in Oakland from2002 until June 30, 2011, backed up his manager that the park is a factor.For guys that have never played here before, it can be a little bit of adifferent place to play with the ballpark and the weather, Ellis said. Itsjust something you have to get adjusted to.Ellis said there was nothing he could do to help his teammates understand howto deal with the extensive foul ground and unpredictable weather in Oakland.Instead, its just a matter of experience, Ellis said.Itll be 80 degrees in batting practice, then you go out and play and its 55degrees at night, he said. That wasnt the case Wednesday, as summer weather has hit the Bay Area. Withthe sun shining on Root Beer Float Day in Oakland, Ellis received some pregamerecognition, which included a montage of his Athletics career highlights.I spent a lot of good years here with my family, Ellissaid. It was nice, but a little embarrassing. Something they didnt have todo, but it was a really nice gesture.Ellis tipped his cap to the crowd from the steps of the visitors dugout, thenwatched his current team lose from the bench. After undergoing emergency legsurgery in May, Ellis has been stuck as a spectator for the Dodgers. Theyve thrown the ball really well, he said. They just maybe got a few morebreaks than we have. So hopefully we come out tomorrow and play good baseballand get a win to salvage the series.To dodge the sweep, Los Angeles will have to find its offensive stride againstanother left-hander. Travis Blackley will make his fifth start since he wasclaimed off waivers from the Giants and is coming off a strong start againstthe Padres on Friday, when he picked up his first big-league win in almosteight years.Kemp was batting an unfathomable .486 against left-handed pitchers before hewent on the disabled list for the second time this season with a lingering hamstringissue. As a team, the Dodgers are hitting .257 against southpaws, compared to.265 vs. right-handers. With no official timetable set for Kemps return, the Dodgers need to figureout how to hit lefties in the long term, and how to hit in Oakland in the shortterm. If they dont, that 4.5 game lead in the division could shrink by thetime Mattinglys club arrives in San Francisco for a date with the division rivalson Monday.