Dodgers manager Joe Torre announced his starting rotation for the start of the second half.
In a development sure to make waves in his native Japan, right-hander Hiroki Kuroda will get the nod in the "opener" on June 18 at Arizona, followed by Chad Billingsley. Derek Lowe, who will go 11 days without pitching unless Torre uses him out of the bullpen against Florida this weekend, will start the third game. Chan Ho Park and Eric Stults will round out the rotation, taking the ball for the first two games of a three-game series at Colorado July 21-23.
Pushing Lowe to the middle means the veteran right-hander won't have to pitch at Coors Field, where he is 2-4 with a 6.23 ERA in eight career starts and where he has given up 15 earned runs in 12 1/3 innings in his past three starts.
Park and Stults would appear to be holding down spots temporarily while the club waits for Brad Penny and Jason Schmidt to return from the disabled list around the end of this month. Torre said earlier this week that when Schmidt finally returns from the shoulder operation he underwent 13 months ago, it will be as a starter.
MARLINS 3, DODGERS 1: Ryan Volstad exploited the Dodgers' swing-early, swing-often approach, getting through 8 2/3 innings on just 100 pitches. The Dodgers didn't get a runner past first base until the ninth, when they scratched out their only run on a single by Russell Martin. Eric Stults gave up all three runs on back-to-back homers by Jeremy Hermida and Jorge Cantu in the first inning before an out was recorded.
