Dodgers 4, Padres 3, 13 innings

By BERNIE WILSON
AP Sports Writer

SAN DIEGO (AP) It took the Los Angeles Dodgers extra innings to avoid what would have been an embarrassing four-game sweep by the San Diego Padres.

Barely able to hold his bat, Brian Jordan somehow managed to get a ball in play with the bases loaded in the 13th inning, driving in a run to give the Dodgers a 4-3 victory Sunday.

The victory was hardly impressive. The Dodgers didn't hit the ball out of the infield during the winning rally, and didn't get a hit out of the infield after the second inning.

``I tell you what, I'm just happy we won,'' Jordan said. ``It was ugly but we came away with a win. This is a tough place to win, San Diego. I don't know why. So we have to take every victory as it comes and keep going.''

Jordan was hit by a pitch from Luther Hackman in the 11th, and the ball pinched the fleshy part of his left hand against the bat.

With one out in the 13th, Jordan hit a slow roller to third base. Sean Burroughs charged and fielded the ball, but couldn't get it out of his glove cleanly and decided to throw out Jordan at first rather than try for a close play at the plate with Mike Kinkade, who got a great jump and scored.

``I was in pain,'' said Jordan, who showed off an ugly welt on his hand. ``My last at-bat I couldn't put the knob there, so I was holding it with two fingers. I put it in play.''

Burroughs called it ``an awkward jam-shot knuckleball and it moved around in my glove. I tried turning my shoulder toward home and it wasn't happening so I had to get one'' at first.

Kinkade had beaten out an infield single off Jaret Wright (0-1) with one out when Burroughs couldn't dig the ball out of his glove after making a diving stop. Cesar Izturis beat out a bunt down the third base line and Shawn Green walked to load the bases and bring up Jordan.

``That last inning we just had bad luck,'' Padres manager Bruce Bochy said. ``There were some ground balls we couldn't quite get to.''

The Dodgers' bullpen was brilliant, with five relievers throwing 6 2-3 scoreless innings. Guillermo Mota (1-0) pitched two hitless innings for the win, following two strong innings by Eric Gagne.

``When that bullpen parade starts, it's real difficult to get hits and score runs off those guys,'' manager Jim Tracy said. ``That's going to be a constant for us.''

Padres rookie Xavier Nady had his first three-hit game and Adrian Beltre had three hits for Los Angeles.

The Dodgers loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the 10th off Brandon Villafuerte but rookie Shane Victorino made a running catch in left of Dave Roberts' fly ball to end the threat. Roberts, the Dodgers' leadoff hitter, was 1-for-18 in the series.

The Dodgers committed three errors, and the Padres stranded 12 baserunners.

After Beltre singled with two outs in the fourth, Padres starter Adam Eaton and relievers Mike Matthews and Brandon Villafuerte retired the next 16 batters, until Fred McGriff walked leading off the 10th.

The Dodgers took a 3-0 lead in the second and the Padres slowly closed the gap, tying the game on Ryan Klesko's bases-loaded walk in the seventh.

The Dodgers had four straight hits off Eaton in the second before making an out. Beltre had an RBI double and Todd Hundley had a two-run double.

Eaton allowed three runs and five hits in seven innings.

Perez went 6 2-3 innings, allowing three runs, two earned, and eight hits.< ^Notes:@ The loudest cheer of the day was a standing ovation for a few hundred Marine recruits and drill instructors, who stood and saluted while the Marines' Hymn was played before the bottom of the third inning. ... The Dodgers play their home opener Monday against Arizona while the Padres are at San Francisco for the Giants' home opener.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)