The Arizona Diamondbacks swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-game series. This disappointing series indicated that Los Angeles is not yet ready to compete the up-and-coming Diamondbacks. The Dodgers are now in third-place in the National League West division with a pitiful 4-5 record thus far.

The Recap of Monday's Game:

Esteban Loaiza was credited with his second loss of the Regular Season, surrendering four runs in four innings on the mound. His Earned-Run Average for the 2008 Regular Season is currently 6.75. At the moment, Loaiza does not look like a reliable starter in the Dodgers' rotation. It may be time for Los Angeles to start considering other alternatives for their rotation, such as calling up Clayton Kershaw from AA Baseball.

Jeff Kent connected on his second home-run of the Regular Season in the fourth inning. The second-baseman does not show any indications of old age as he leads the Dodgers' organizations in both home-runs and RBIs. Chin-Lung Hu may be the future of the Los Angeles at second-base.

Chris Young and Orlando Hudson of the Arizona Diamondbacks whacked home-runs off of Scott Proctor. The reliever gave up four runs in only one inning of action. The former-Yankee's Earned-Run Average is now 9.82, due to the fact that Torre likes to throw him into the game whenever possible.

The Recap of Tuesday's Game:

The Dodgers witnessed their second-straight loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Chad Billingsley earned the loss by giving up four earned-runs in two and 1/3 innings. With the Dodgers' trailing by three in the bottom of the first inning, their loss was inevitable. Ramon Troncoso ensured the victory for Arizona when he surrendered four runs in one inning.

Blake DeWitt, who had been hitless for four successive games, finally made contact for a pair of RBIs. His batting-average for the 2008 Regular Season is currently .280. DeWitt is doing a spectacular job at third-base in the absence of Andy LaRoche and Nomar Garciaparra.

In addition, Jeff Kent went two-for-four with a double and two RBIs. The second-baseman has been batting .500 with a home-run and four RBIs against the Arizona Diamondbacks during this series. If the Dodgers' pitching staff had been playing well, Los Angeles may have been capable of capturing the win today.

The Recap of Wednesday's Game:

Hiroki Kuroda suffered his first loss of the Regular Season, despite pitching five and 2/3 strong innings and striking out four batters. But, the rookie also gave up nine hits in the outing. Hopefully, Kuroda will be accompanied by sufficient run support in his future performances.

James Loney smashed his first home-run of the Regular Season in the sixth-inning. The first-baseman currently has a .364 batting average in 2008. Believe it or not, Loney's batting average is .281 points higher than the Boston's David Ortiz. The Dodgers are fortunate to have such a talented youngster on their roster.

Juan Pierre, who has been recently starting for the Los Angeles Dodgers, improved his batting average to .167 with two hits and an RBI. The outfielder also sped around the bases for his first double of 2008. Hopefully, he will start hitting well and his $8-million annual paycheck.

--
The Dodgers will have an opportunity to seek revenge against the San Diego Padres on Friday night at 10:40 EST. Hopefully, Brad Penny will pitch better against the Padres than he did the last time. In addition, Peavy will be certain to wash the "pine tar," from his hands between pitches.

 http://DodgersBlog.MLBlogs.Com