Last October the Dodgers pitching staff was undone by the inability to put away the bottom of the Phillie lineup and evidently no lesson was learned. For two innings Kershaw breezed throught the Phillie lineup and then ran into trouble by walking the weak sisters of Pedro Feliz and Carlos Ruiz. He was able to wiggle out of the mess he made by getting Chase Utley and thus only gave up one run but he didn't learn his lesson.
The Dodgers took the lead back in the fourth on a two out two strike RBI single by Matt Kemp but the lead was short lived. Clayton gave up a single to Werth, then walked Howard who entered the game with a 2009 OPS of less then .600 against LHP, gave up a single to Rollins, a double to Ibanez, a walk to Ruiz again and still managed to keep the damage to only three runs.
So down 4 - 2 with Park on the mound it should not have been a formidable task to come back, but alas it was, as the offense could only manage one more run and that came against Brad Lidge in the 9th as they dropped the first game of the six game road trip 5 - 3.
Jason Werth and the Z boys did most of the damage against the Dodgers. Ibanez, Feliz, and Ruiz, all have a last name ending in Z and only Ibanez has historically been an offensive threat. The Dodger pitchers must have felt that Pedro Feliz was the reincarnation of Mike Schmidt as they walked him four times which is really really hard to do. Walking Feliz once a week used to be a chore but the Dodgers managed to walk him four times for the first time in his career. The Z boys ended up getting on base seven times. These aren't the middle of the lineup guys but the bottom of the lineup.
Jason Werth made like Jackie Robinson by stealing 2nd, 3rd, and home in the 7th inning, and ended the night with four stolen bases. One more then Furcal has for the season. Probably because Werth gets on base while Furcal makes his weakly four outs a night.
So now the worse scenario Dodger fans could imagine is unfolding. Without Manny the team is 1 - 4 and looking pathetic in the process. Between the walks and the stolen bases this was an embarrassing endeavor. Not hitting Chan Ho Park in the bandbox of Philly is just another notch in the embarrassment belt. The critics said the Dodgers hot start was fueled by playing the West. Coming East they have a chance to prove the critics wrong. The critics said the Dodgers would fold without Manny. They have had five games to prove them wrong. So far the only thing they have proven is that big leads in May dissipate very quickly.