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Ramirez powers Dodgers past Padres

Sep 11, 2008 - 6:06 AM By Tim Powers PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

SAN DIEGO (Ticker) -- Manny Ramirez launched a pair of two-run homers on Wednesday, powering the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 7-2 victory over the San Diego Padres.

Ramirez hit his first blast in the fifth inning and sealed the win in the ninth with another, his 14th homer since being acquired by the Dodgers from the Boston Red Sox on July 31. Overall, Ramirez has 34 home runs on the year.

"I'm trying just to get a good pitch and hit it," Ramirez said.

With the win, Los Angeles (75-71) moved 3 1/2 games in front of the Arizona Diamondbacks (71-74) in the National League West.

Ramirez's power surge helped Derek Lowe (13-11) notch his third win in as many starts. The righthander allowed one run and three hits in 5 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out three.

"What can you say about Manny?" Lowe said. "He has been absolutely phenomenal since we got him. This is absolutely a pitchers' park, we all know that. You don't see too many balls at night go out to center field. It's pretty impressive."

Ramirez was equal in his praise of Lowe, who was teammates with the slugger in Boston from 2000-04.

"Every time we give the ball to Lowe, we have a good chance to win with him," Ramirez said.

Lowe was forced to leave the game early, however, as he was struck in the back of his right knee by a grounder off the bat of Kevin Kouzmanoff in the sixth.

"You never want to come out of the game with circumstances like that, but the bottom line is we won the game," Lowe said. "It was just precautionary so I could go in and get some treatment."

Four relievers combined to hold San Diego to one run over the final 3 1/3 frames and secure Los Angeles' 10th win in 11 games.

"(Lowe) said he was just a little stiff and I had to wrestle the ball away from him," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "He didn't want to come out. If it was earlier in the game, I probably wouldn't have (taken him out), but with his pitch count where it was, it was his last inning anyways."

San Diego jumped to an early lead against Lowe as Brian Giles opened the game with a double, advanced to third on a groundout by Luis Rodriguez and scored on a grounder by Kouzmanoff.

James Loney's solo shot in the second off Shawn Estes (2-2) sparked a three-run rally as the Dodgers took the lead for good.

"(Estes) didn't really throw many (curveballs) in the first couple of innings," Padres manager Bud Black said. "It looked to me as though in the second, they laid off some sinkers and he couldn't quite get the ball in the strike zone. He sort of left it up."

Estes yielded five runs and six hits in five innings of his third start since returning from the disabled list from a broken left thumb. The 35-year-old lefthander walked three and struck out one.

"I think (the Dodgers) had a game plan and they stuck to it," Estes said. "They made me elevate the ball, and when I did, they hit it. I elevated more pitches than I would've liked to and they definitely capitalized on those."