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"Honestly it's amazing," Dodgers' manager Don Mattingly on Colorado Rockies' aged starter Jamie Moyer comeback. Unfortunately for the crafty lefty and the Rockies, Mattingley's team disregarded that sentiment punishing him for five runs helping lift their own crafty lefty Chris Capuano to a 7-3 victory.
"He doesn't have the velocity that he used to, but he's not going to give in," Dodger second baseman Mark Ellis said. "He's going to try to work the edges of the plate."
Easy for the former Rockie to say since he took Moyer to left field in the first inning to give the Dodgers the quick 1-0 lead. With his good defense at second base, it should follow then that the Dodgers expect this power regularly from Ellis.
"I hope not," Ellis laughed.
Ellis also came through with a two-run double in the fifth inning giving him a season-high three RBI.
For the other lefty in the game, Capuano had another ho-hum outing going seven innings for the third time this season.
"I'm feeling good out there, making some good pitches," Capuano said. "I'm able to keep my focus now and just making those pitches one at a time."
Coming into the game, Capuano had a 18 2/3-inning scoreless streak. It was going swimmingly until Michael Cuddyer hit a solo homer in the seventh inning breaking Cuddyer's streak at 24 2/3 innings.
"I knew I had a little streak going there," Capuano said. "I probably didn't make the best two-strike pitch there."
Nonetheless with only four hits and three strikeouts, Capuano improved his record to 5-0 tying for his best start since 2007. His performance didn't shock his battery mate Matt Treanor.
"He's so locked in when he goes out for warmups in the pen," Treanor said. "He knows exactly what he wants to do."
Mattingly has admired him from afar prior to this season.
"He locates. He changes speeds. He's got something for everybody. He's got a lot of different weapons.
"It seems like he's getting stronger."
In a note that only fascinates me and those who like rhymes, for the second time in his career Capuano was on the mound while Ed Rapuano was the home plate umpire. The last time Rapuano called balls and strikes, Capuano gave up six runs on eight hits on June 8, 2007 at the Texas Rangers.
With Matt Kemp going 0-for-3 tonight, Andre Ethier picked up the offense hitting a triple short of the cycle while notching two RBI.
"I know what my job is," Ethier noted. "Giving Matt protection. Just to be there when they put him on base or he's having a rough night."
This gives Ethier a National League leading 32 RBI while hitting safely in all four games so far in this homestand.
Juan Uribe completed the three-homer night for the Dodgers in the eighth inning, his first of the season and first since June 20, 2011. It was the third time the Dodgers got a three-homer game and came after a three-game homerless drought.
The Dodgers are now 21-11 with the best record in the National League and a half game behind the Texas Rangers for the best record overall. If the Dodgers can continue to get this kind of performance from Capuano, they will feel a bit better about their starting rotation that has seen Chad Billingsley struggle a bit.
But perhaps everything will be solved since they just signed second baseman Aaron Miles to a minor league deal.
