Read More: James Loney (1B – LOS), Juan Rivera (LF – LOS), Hiroki Kuroda (P – LOS), A.J. Ellis (C – LOS), St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Dodgers at St. Louis Cardinals, Aug 24, 2011 11:15 AM PDT

The Los Angeles Dodgers gave plenty of run support to Hiroki Kuroda for the third straight start, beating the St. Louis Cardinals 9-4 to complete a three-game sweep. Home runs by Juan Rivera and A.J. Ellis paced the offense, who scored 24 runs in the three-game series. For Kuroda, the runs were a welcome change of pace.

Kuroda received 24 runs in a 12-start stretch from June to August, and was just 2-9 despite a 2.54 ERA. The Dodgers have scored 24 runs in Kuroda’s last three starts, all wins. Kuroda allowed three runs in seven innings for his 10th win of the season.

The home run for Ellis was the first of his major league career. Ellis went nearly three years without a home run in the majors or minors until hitting two in Triple A in July. Rivera had a double and a home run for the Dodgers. James Loney had two doubles and a single, and has 11 hits in his last 17 at-bats.

The Dodgers are off Thursday, but open a weekend series with Colorado Friday night at Dodger Stadium.

For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.

Aaron Miles’ RBI triple keyed a two-run, ninth inning rally and the Los Angeles Dodgers came from behind to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 on Monday night.

Cardinals starter Chris Carpenter, who has never lost to Los Angeles, dominated the Dodgers for eight innings, shutting them out on five hits. Carpenter took a 1-0 lead into the ninth, but then hit Juan Rivera to start the frame.

Manager Tony La Russa brought in Arthur Rhodes, who struck out Andre Ethier. La Russa then went back to his bullpen, but that move backfired when Miles tripled to right center off Fernando Salas (5-5) to tie the game at 1-1.

La Russa then went to Jason Motte, who got Rod Barajas to ground sharply to short. But shortstop Rafael Furcal bobbled the ball briefly allowing Miles to score the go-ahead run.

The blown save was the fifth in 27 tries for Salas.

Matt Guerrier (4-3) pitched a scoreless eighth to get the win. Javy Guerra pitched the ninth for his 11th save in 12 opportunities.

James Loney went 3-for-4 for the Dodgers. Matt Kemp was 0-for-4 and had his 11-game hitting streak snapped.

Los Angeles rookie starter Nathan Eovaldi allowed just a solo home run to Lance Berkman, his 29th, leading off the second inning. Eovaldi lasted five innings and allowed five hits while walking one and striking out two.

NOTES: St. Louis failed to score in the opening frame against the Dodgers, who have allowed just 35 first inning runs. Los Angeles is on pace to allow 45 first-inning runs, which would be the fewest by a National League team since 1920. The 1975 Dodgers’ team holds the record with 49 runs allowed. . . . Berkman’s homer was the first Eovaldi has allowed in his career. . . . With two out in the Dodgers half of the eighth, Matt Holliday left the game holding his right ear and was replaced by Corey Patterson. . . . Velez went 0-3 and is hitless in 25 at-bats on the year.

Read More: Rod Barajas (C – LOS), Lance Berkman (RF – STL), Matt Guerrier (P – LOS), Rafael Furcal (SS – STL), Aaron Miles (2B – LOS), Scott Elbert (P – LOS), Josh Lindblom (P – LOS), Javy Guerra (P – LOS), Nathan Eovaldi (P – LOS), St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Dodgers at St. Louis Cardinals, Aug 22, 2011 5:15 PM PDT

The Los Angeles Dodgers staged an improbable rally for two runs in the top of the ninth inning to beat the St. Louis Cardinals in the opening game of a three-game series at Busch Stadium. Aaron Miles hit a game-tying triple into the right field gap, then scored on a ground ball by Rod Barajas, a play that was booted by ex-Dodger Rafael Furcal. The ninth inning represented a dramatic change from the first eight innings, which were owned by Chris Carpenter.

Carpenter allowed no runs through eight innings, which is par for the course for Carpenter against the Dodgers. He was removed after hitting Juan Rivera to open the ninth inning, and eventually allowed a run, but Carpenter still owns the Dodgers. In his last eight starts against the Dodgers, Carpenter has allowed just five runs and five walks. Total.

But Carpenter didn’t get a win on Monday night.

Nathan Eovaldi allowed one run in five innings in his fourth major league start, a home run to Lance Berkman in the second inning. The Dodger bullpen — Josh Lindblom, Scott Elbert, Matt Guerrier, and Javy Guerra tonight — retired 12 of the 13 batters they faced to close out the game. The Dodgers are now 2-62 this season when trailing to start the ninth inning.

For more news and information about the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.

By: AP Photo/Alex Gallardo

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina, left, springs up to throw out Los Angeles Dodgers’ Chad Billingsley, on a sacrifice bunt during the fifth inning of a major league baseball game in Los Angeles, Sunday, April 17, 2011.

Ryan Franklin defended the sinker he threw to Matt Kemp that landed in center field and prevented the St. Louis Cardinals from sweeping the Los Angeles Dodgers.
It was right where he meant to throw it, Franklin said, unlike in the series opener when Kemp homered off him but the Cardinals won anyway.
Kemp’s two-run shot in the bottom of the ninth inning Sunday gave the Dodgers a 2-1 win and ended their five-game losing skid.
“I made a good pitch. Anyone can go back and look at it. It was right on the corner and down,” said Franklin (0-2), who has four blown saves in five chances. “The pitch to Kemp the other night was a mistake. I was trying to get ahead with a first-pitch curveball in a 9-3 game and he hit the first pitch. So what?”
Matt Holliday went 3 for 3 and scored the Cardinals’ only run. He batted .563 with five doubles and five RBIs in the series.
In the Cardinals’ first three wins, they scored 29 runs and had 48 hits.
Chad Billingsley made sure that didn’t happen this time, dueling with Chris Carpenter in a matchup of two of the National League’s best daytime starters over the last five-plus seasons.
Carpenter allowed five hits over seven innings, struck out six and walked none.
“I commanded the ball well. My cutter was good and I had command of my fastball on both sides of the plate and kept the ball down,” he said. “I was trying to be aggressive in the strike zone and I was ahead in the count for the most part. That’s a pretty good lineup and every guy can hurt you in many different ways.”
Billingsley gave up a season-low two hits over eight innings, struck out a season-high 11, and walked none in his longest outing of the season.
“He’s a good pitcher and he’s got good pitches. He’s got a good curve ball and a good cutter, and he throws 93-94 with his out pitch,” Holliday said. “He just located really well and made it hard for us to score runs. You never expect an easy one against him.”
The victory prevented the Cardinals from earning their first four-game sweep in Los Angeles since 1968. Their four-game winning streak also ended.
“It is a tough loss, but any time we win a series, it is a good thing,” Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said.
Kemp homered to center field on a 2-2 pitch from Franklin (0-2). Andre Ethier led off with a double to deep right field off Trever Miller, extending his major league-leading hitting streak to 14 games.
Jonathan Broxton (1-0) got the win despite giving up a two-out RBI single in the top of the ninth by David Freese.
The Cardinals didn’t advance a runner to third until the eighth. Yadier Molina was safe at second when Ethier tried to shade his eyes with his left hand while attempting to make the catch in right field, but the ball dropped behind him for an error.
Daniel Descalso sacrificed Molina to third, but pinch-hitter John Jay struck out and Ryan Theriot flied to right to end the inning.
NOTES: The Cardinals’ streak of scoring six or more runs ended at seven games, something they hadn’t done since July 25-Aug. 3, 2004, when they did so in eight straight. … The Dodgers avoided their first four-game sweep at home since Aug. 9-12, 1993, against Colorado. … Kemp came in leading the majors with a .453 batting average and has now hit safely in 14 of the Dodgers’ 16 games. Last year, he led the team in homers with 28.

Read More: Matt Holliday (LF – STL), Matt Kemp (CF – LOS), Jonathan Broxton (P – LOS), Chad Billingsley (P – LOS), Ryan Franklin (P – STL), David Freese (3B – STL), St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals at Los Angeles Dodgers, Apr 17, 2011 1:10 PM PDT

Matt Kemp hit a two-run home run off Ryan Franklin in the bottom of the ninth inning, giving the Los Angeles Dodgers a 2-1 walkoff win over the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Dodgers, who also avoided a four-game sweep at the hands of the Cardinals. Jonathan Broxton, despite giving up the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth, picked up the victory for the Dodgers.

It seemed like the run by St. Louis in the top of the ninth off Broxton — an RBI single by David Freese, knocking in Matt Holliday, who had three hits and two doubles in the game — would be enough to ruin a great pitching performance by Chad Billingsley. The Cardinals had scored 66 runs in their previous seven games, including 29 in the first three contests this weekend at Dodger Stadium, but Billingsley shut them out for eight innings.

“He was great today,” manager Don Mattingly said of Billingsley. “I kept letting him go and he was clean all day. His stuff was good and sharp. That club is on fire, so to stop that momentum there was huge.” Billingsley had 11 strikeouts against just two walks on the day.

The Dodgers next host the Atlanta Braves for four games, beginning Monday night at Dodger Stadium. Ted Lilly will face Tim Hudson in the series opener tomorrow night.

For more news and information on the Dodgers, or on today’s game, be sure to read the SB Nation blog True Blue LA.

LOS ANGELES, April 17 (UPI) — Allen Craig clubbed a three-run homer among his three hits Saturday and the St. Louis Cardinals smashed the Los Angeles Dodgers 9-2.

Craig’s fifth-inning blast put St. Louis ahead 5-1 and the Cardinals continued an offensive surge that has seen them rap out 95 hits for 60 runs over their last six games, five of which have been victories.

Ryan Theriot went 3-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored, and David Freese added a pair of RBIs on a single and a sacrifice fly for St. Louis, which took its third straight from the slumping Dodgers.

Kyle McClellan (2-0) tossed seven innings of one-run ball to pick up the victory, allowing six hits while walking none and striking out two.

Clayton Kershaw (2-2) was lit up for five runs on six hits over 4 2/3 innings as Los Angeles absorbed its fifth straight loss.

Andre Ethier went 3-for-4 with a run scored in for the Dodgers.