Final
Fielder's postgame charge mars Dodgers' 17-4 win
Aug 5, 2009 - 6:56 AM By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports WriterLOS ANGELES(AP) -- If Prince Fielder's teammates and several security guards hadn't stopped the furious Milwaukee slugger at the Dodgers' clubhouse door, reliever Guillermo Mota could have faced a whole other kind of discipline for the late shenanigans that marred Los Angeles' landmark win.
Fielder was denied in his postgame attempt to challenge Mota, who hit him with a pitch in the ninth inning of Los Angeles' 17-4 victory over the Brewers on Tuesday night.
Mota drilled Fielder with two outs, apparently in retaliation for a pitch that hit Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez in the seventh inning of Los Angeles' highest-scoring home performance in 30 years. Home plate umpire Marvin Hudson immediately ejected Mota, who slowly left the field while Fielder voiced his anger.
When the game ended, Fielder charged through the underground tunnels at Dodger Stadium to the door of the home clubhouse, shouting obscenities with many fellow Brewers trailing behind. Several security guards and teammates Bill Hall and Casey McGehee prevented Fielder from entering the locker room in search of Mota.
"He ran over there, and they weren't going to let him in, and everybody came back," Milwaukee manager Ken Macha said. "I don't know if you can restrain Prince. I don't think I can. I don't think there's anybody else out there who can."
Fielder had calmed down moments later, but his actions set up a potentially explosive series finale Wednesday night.
"He came inside. It just got away from him," Fielder said. "It happens. That's baseball. He tried to come inside."
When asked about his postgame march to the other side, he deadpanned: "I don't remember that."
Most of the Dodgers didn't know about Fielder's march, since the door he reached is at least 30 feet down a hallway from the clubhouse. The Dodgers had plenty of their own anger after Brewers reliever Chris Smith hit Ramirez when Los Angeles had a nine-run lead in the seventh.
"It's just part of the game," catcher Russell Martin said of Mota's pitch. "Our premier hitter gets hit, and he gets protection. I understand (Fielder) is frustrated, but you don't take care of that after the game.
"We don't want the same situation as last year in the playoffs, when Philly threw at Manny and we didn't retaliate," Martin added, referring to last fall's NL championship series against the Phillies. "We don't want to be known as a team that doesn't have each other's backs."
The trouble overshadowed the Dodgers' highest-scoring performance of the season on 18 hits. Los Angeles improved the majors' best record to 66-41.
"It's a part of the game I don't like," Macha said. "We're just trying to get out of the game after getting our butts kicked pretty good. I thought it was pretty obvious. He hits Prince and walks right off the mound. Prince was standing at home plate looking at him, so he was pretty upset after the game."
The Dodgers had little trouble until after the game. Ramirez ended his 10-game RBI drought with a homer and a two-run double, and Matt Kemp had a homer among his four hits while driving in five runs. Kemp had two hits and two RBIs during the seven-run sixth inning, while Martin reached base five times and had three RBIs.
Los Angeles sent eight men to the plate in a four-run first inning and used 12 batters in the sixth before batting around again in the five-run eighth. Six Dodgers had multihit games, including three apiece for Martin and Andre Ethier.
The Dodgers hadn't scored 17 runs at Dodger Stadium since May 25, 1979, against Cincinnati.
Hiroki Kuroda (4-5) pitched six resilient innings to earn his first win since July 3. He yielded nine hits and three runs, struck out seven and escaped a fifth-inning jam.
Ramirez ended his RBI-less streak at 44 at-bats, matching the longest drought of his career in 1997, with a long homer in the fifth off Yovani Gallardo (10-8), who yielded 10 hits and nine runs. Ramirez hadn't driven in a run since his pinch-hit grand slam July 22.
Ramirez, in a 7-for-44 slump before his 12th homer, had a chance for his 22nd career grand slam in the sixth. He settled for a sharp two-RBI drive down the left field line.
Kemp matched his career highs in hits and RBIs during his fourth five-RBI game of the season, missing only a triple to complete the cycle. He hit a two-run homer in the eighth, and Ethier added a two-run double before Mota drove in his first run since 2004 with a long single.
NOTES: The Dodgers scratched All-Star 2B Orlando Hudson about 90 minutes before game time because of an upset stomach. Hudson had started 101 of Los Angeles' first 106 games. Juan Castro replaced him. ... Junior Seau served as a Dodgers batboy as a stunt for a television show. Seau hasn't formally said he's retired from his 19-season NFL career, but the 40-year-old certainly seemed ready for new challenges while running around in a slightly too-tight No. 55 Dodgers uniform.
- ** CONFIRMED **
NL
MILWAUKEE 4
LA DODGERS 17 FINAL
Aug 5 1:43 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY GUILLERMO MOTA SCORED ANDRE ETHIER
SITUATION: 5 RUNS IN, G MOTA ON FIRST, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 4
LA DODGERS 17 BOTTOM,8TH
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: C BLAKE (.288, 2-FOR-4, BB, 2 RBI)
Brewers 4, Dodgers 17 Bot 8, 0 OutsAug 5 1:28 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
DOUBLE BY ANDRE ETHIER SCORED JUAN PIERRE AND RUSSELL
MARTIN
SITUATION: 4 RUNS IN, A ETHIER ON SECOND, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 4
LA DODGERS 16 BOTTOM,8TH
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: G MOTA (.000, 0 HR, 0 RBI)
Brewers 4, Dodgers 16 Bot 8, 0 OutsAug 5 1:27 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
TWO-RUN HOME RUN BY MATT KEMP (15) TO CENTER WITH 0 OUT IN
THE 8TH OFF R.J. SWINDLE SCORED JAMES LONEY.
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 4, LA DODGERS 14
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: R MARTIN (.267, 2-FOR-2, 2 BB, 2 RBI)
Brewers 4, Dodgers 14 Bot 8, 0 OutsAug 5 1:15 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY JODY GERUT SCORED JASON KENDALL
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, J GERUT ON FIRST, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 4
LA DODGERS 12 TOP,8TH
DUE UP FOR MILWAUKEE: F LOPEZ (.299, 1-FOR-4)
Brewers 4, Dodgers 12 Top 8, 0 OutsAug 5 1:06 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY RUSSELL MARTIN SCORED CASEY BLAKE
SITUATION: 7 RUNS IN, R MARTIN ON FIRST, M KEMP ON THIRD, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 3
LA DODGERS 12 BOTTOM,6TH
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: J CASTRO (.325, 0-FOR-2, SAC)
Brewers 3, Dodgers 12 Bot 6, 0 OutsAug 5 12:32 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY MATT KEMP SCORED MANNY RAMIREZ AND ANDRE ETHIER
SITUATION: 6 RUNS IN, M KEMP ON FIRST, C BLAKE ON THIRD, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 3
LA DODGERS 11 BOTTOM,6TH
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: R MARTIN (.265, 1-FOR-1, 2 BB, RBI)
Brewers 3, Dodgers 11 Bot 6, 0 OutsAug 5 12:30 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
DOUBLE BY MANNY RAMIREZ SCORED RAFAEL FURCAL AND MARK
LORETTA
SITUATION: 4 RUNS IN, M RAMIREZ ON SECOND, A ETHIER ON THIRD, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 3
LA DODGERS 9 BOTTOM,6TH
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: C BLAKE (.289, 2-FOR-3, 2 RBI)
Brewers 3, Dodgers 9 Bot 6, 0 OutsAug 5 12:24 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY MARK LORETTA SCORED RUSSELL MARTIN AND MATT KEMP
SITUATION: 2 RUNS IN, M LORETTA ON FIRST, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 3
LA DODGERS 7 BOTTOM,6TH
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: R FURCAL (.266, 1-FOR-3)
Brewers 3, Dodgers 7 Bot 6, 0 OutsAug 5 12:15 AM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SOLO HOME RUN BY MANNY RAMIREZ (12) TO LEFT CENTER WITH 2
OUT IN THE 5TH OFF YOVANI GALLARDO.
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 3, LA DODGERS 5
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: C BLAKE (.287, 1-FOR-2, 2 RBI)
Brewers 3, Dodgers 5 Bot 5, 0 OutsAug 4 11:53 PM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
FORCE OUT BY FRANK CATALANOTTO SCORED RYAN BRAUN
SITUATION: 3 RUNS IN, F CATALANOTTO ON FIRST, P FIELDER ON THIRD, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 3
LA DODGERS 4 TOP,5TH
DUE UP FOR MILWAUKEE: J HARDY (.228, 0-FOR-2)
Brewers 3, Dodgers 4 Top 5, 0 OutsAug 4 11:44 PM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY PRINCE FIELDER SCORED FELIPE LOPEZ
SITUATION: 2 RUNS IN, P FIELDER ON FIRST, R BRAUN ON SECOND, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 2
LA DODGERS 4 TOP,5TH
DUE UP FOR MILWAUKEE: M CAMERON (.254, 1-FOR-2)
Brewers 2, Dodgers 4 Top 5, 0 OutsAug 4 11:39 PM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY RYAN BRAUN SCORED YOVANI GALLARDO
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, R BRAUN ON FIRST, F LOPEZ ON SECOND, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 1
LA DODGERS 4 TOP,5TH
DUE UP FOR MILWAUKEE: P FIELDER (.304, 1-FOR-2)
Brewers 1, Dodgers 4 Top 5, 0 OutsAug 4 11:38 PM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
DOUBLE BY RUSSELL MARTIN SCORED MATT KEMP
SITUATION: 4 RUNS IN, R MARTIN ON SECOND, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 0
LA DODGERS 4 BOTTOM,1ST
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: J CASTRO (.333, 1 HR, 9 RBI)
Brewers 0, Dodgers 4 Bot 1, 0 OutsAug 4 10:31 PM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY MATT KEMP SCORED CASEY BLAKE
SITUATION: 3 RUNS IN, M KEMP ON FIRST, 2 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 0
LA DODGERS 3 BOTTOM,1ST
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: R MARTIN (.263, 3 HR, 31 RBI)
Brewers 0, Dodgers 3 Bot 1, 0 OutsAug 4 10:30 PM - NL
AT LA DODGERS - SCORING UPDATE
DOUBLE BY CASEY BLAKE SCORED ANDRE ETHIER AND RAFAEL FURCAL
SITUATION: 2 RUNS IN, C BLAKE ON SECOND, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: MILWAUKEE 0
LA DODGERS 2 BOTTOM,1ST
DUE UP FOR LA DODGERS: J LONEY (.293, 7 HR, 68 RBI)
Brewers 0, Dodgers 2 Bot 1, 0 OutsAug 4 10:27 PM
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