Manny, Wolf lift Dodgers past Mets
Manny Ramirez hit a pair of RBI singles to key an early outburst last night against struggling starter Livan Hernandez, and Randy Wolf pitched the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers past the New York Mets, 11-2, last night for his first win in eight outings.
Dropped to seventh in the batting order, slumping All-Star Orlando Hudson responded with a three-run double that capped a four-run first inning. Leadoff man Rafael Furcal had three hits and scored three times, and the Dodgers cruised to an easy victory that boosted baseball's best record to 54-31.
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Los Angeles took two of three in its first trip to Citi Field and won the season series, 5-1, against the injury-ravaged Mets, who have lost five of six and 10 of 13.
The only downer for the Dodgers: Hudson came out in the seventh after being hit on the left knee by Brian Stokes' pitch. Los Angeles finished with 17 hits.
Russell Martin added a two-run single and Ramirez had a perfect night at the plate, going 2 for 2 with two walks before taking a seat in the seventh. He is 6 for 18 (.333) with two homers and seven RBIs in six games since returning from a 50-game drug suspension.
Looking to change his luck, Wolf (4-3) switched Wednesday from jersey number 21 to 43, the digits he used to wear with the Phillies. Perhaps most important, however, was the matchup with the Mets.
The lefthander improved to 12-5 with a 3.29 ERA in 30 starts against New York, his most wins against any team. He is 6-0 in his last nine outings vs. the Mets since losing on May 4, 2005, with the Phillies.
Wolf labored through 6 1/3 gritty innings, giving up seven hits and throwing a season-high 118 pitches. He entered 0-2 in seven starts since beating the Chicago Cubs 2-1 on May 28.
Hernandez (5-5) allowed hits to his first three batters and was hammered for four innings while dropping his fourth straight start.
In other games:
* At Houston, Lance Berkman's three-run homer was one of 16 hits used by the Astros in a 9-4 victory over Washington.
The win came a few hours after the Astros lost the completion of a suspended game from May, 11-10, in 11 innings - a result that gave former Nationals reliever Joel Hanrahan the victory. Hanrahan (1-3) was traded to the Pirates on June 30.
In the regularly scheduled game, All-Star Hunter Pence and Jeff Keppinger drove in two runs each for the Astros, who used a four-run sixth inning to overcome a two-run deficit and take the lead.
* At Denver, pinch-hitter Garrett Atkins hit a two-out, two-run double in the eighth inning, lifting Colorado past Atlanta, 7-6.
* At San Francisco, Tim Lincecum (10-2) allowed three runs on three hits in 6 2/3 innings and the Giants beat the San Diego Padres, 9-3.
* At Milwaukee, Joel Pineiro (7-9) scattered three hits and Ryan Ludwick hit a three-run homer in a five-run eighth inning, rallying St. Louis to a 5-1 win over the Brewers. *
