--LF Juan Pierre had two hits for the Dodgers, extending his hitting streak to a season-best seven games. He is batting .308 (8-for-26) during the streak. He also has hit safely in 10 of his past 11 games.
--OF Matt Kemp went 1-for-4, extending his career-best hitting streak to 18 games. He is batting .365 (27-for-74) during the streak, with five homers and 10 RBIs. The streak is tied with that of Seattle's Jose Lopez for the longest active run in the majors. --RHP Derek Lowe took the loss despite allowing just two runs over 6 1/3 innings while striking out seven without a walk. He lowered his ERA for the season to 3.70, which matches the ERA for his entire four-year stint with the Dodgers, during which he is a middling 48-46 because of a frequent lack of run support. Lowe's ERA at home is 2.69 this season, eighth best in the National League.
--INF Mark Sweeney singled in the eighth inning and now has hit safely in his past two pinch-hitting appearances after going hitless in his previous 16 such at-bats. Sweeney is now hitting .132 (7-for-53) as a pinch hitter this season, with two doubles and five walks.
--OF Manny Ramirez will make his Dodgers debut Friday night, presumably in left field, but it isn't clear where he will be batting in the lineup. It also isn't clear who will be benched to make room for Ramirez. The Dodgers now will have five everyday-caliber outfielders for three spots, and with the slumping Andruw Jones essentially having been demoted to a backup role earlier this week, the light-hitting Juan Pierre is the most likely victim of Ramirez's arrival.
BY THE NUMBERS: .281 -- Batting average for the Dodgers in their first nine games of the second half, during which they averaged 5.2 runs and won six times. The Dodgers hit a collective .253 before the All-Star break, 12th in the National League, while averaging 4.1 runs a game. They entered play Sunday with the third-best second-half batting average in the N.L., trailing only Colorado (.383) and Pittsburgh (.295).
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Don isn't going to tell you what you want to hear. He will tell you what he sees. Some players don't like that. They want to hear that they took a good swing when they rolled the ball over, and that's not a good swing. As a coach, your job is obviously to root for these guys, but at least be honest. If you can't be honest, you're not doing your job as a coach, and you're definitely doing a disservice to the athlete." -- Dodgers third-base coach Larry Bowa on what to expect from new hitting coach Don Mattingly.
