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DeWitt's homer propels Dodgers past Angels

May 18, 2008 - 12:08 AM ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Rookie Blake DeWitt helped the Los Angles Dodgers end a skid at their personal house of horrors.

DeWitt hit a two-run homer as the Dodgers posted a 6-3 interleague victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Saturday.

Andre Ethier and Russell Martin each drove in a run and Hong-Chih Kuo pitched four innings of quality relief for the Dodgers, who snapped a six-game losing streak at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

"Kuo certainly gave us a big lift today," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "This was a much-needed win for us."

It also was just the Dodgers' second victory in their last 10 meetings with the Angels.

"Finally, it's good to get on the winning end against the in-city rival," Torre said. "The Angels made it tough on me when I was in New York (with the Yankees) and were not making it any easier on the Dodgers."

DeWitt, whose .320 batting average is one of the best among rookies in the National League, put the Dodgers on the board first when he blasted the first pitch he saw from Ervin Santana (6-1) over the right field wall to give the Dodgers a 2-0 lead. It was the third baseman's fourth homer of the season.

An inning later, RBI singles by Ethier and Martin - who went 3-for-4 - doubled the advantage. DeWitt also scored on a base hit by Luis Maza in the eighth to make it 6-2.

"It just seemed like (the Dodgers) had guys on base every inning against us," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "They played our style of game today."

Kuo (3-1) entered the contest in the fifth, one inning after Dodgers starter Chan Ho Park allowed two runs while facing eight batters.

"Kuo came out of the bullpen blowing it by people today," Martin said. "He's hard to hit when he's throwing strikes, and he's a dominating pitcher with just his fastball."

It was Park's first start since April 30, 2007, when he took the loss for the New York Mets against the Florida Marlins. The 34-year-old also gave up three hits and two walks while striking out three in this one.

"Chan had his control with him all game but just couldn't get easy outs in the fourth inning," Martin said.

A native of Taiwan, Kuo yielded just three hits while striking out four to notch his third win in his last four relief outings. Closer Takashi Saito yielded a run in the ninth in a non-save situation.

Santana suffered his first loss of the season, giving up four runs, five hits and three walks in five innings.

"I didn't have my best stuff out there today," Santana said. "I threw a lot of pitches early in the game and made some mistakes with my control."