By Jim Peltz, Los Angeles Times –
CHICAGO — The Los Angeles Dodgers started the day fretting about a hamstring injury to slugger Matt Kemp, then enduring a 2-hour 41-minute rain delay at Wrigley Field.
When the game against the Chicago Cubs did start Sunday, the Dodgers quickly had another worry when third baseman Jerry Hairston Jr. injured his left hamstring running to first base and had to leave.
(PHOTO: Chicago Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro hits a two-run single in the third inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illoinois, Sunday, May 6, 2012.)
And one more concern surfaced in the ninth inning when Javy Guerra blew his third save this season, raising anew the question of how long he’ll be the Dodgers’ closer.
So it’s fair to say that by the time Jamey Wright walked David DeJesus with the bases loaded in the 11th inning to give Chicago the winning run, the Cubs’ 4-3 victory was not the most pressing matter on the Dodgers’ mind.
The Dodgers lost four of the six games on their trip to Colorado and Chicago, returning to Los Angeles to open a homestand Monday night against the San Francisco Giants with lingering questions about the injuries and their bullpen.
Kemp, batting .388 and leading the big leagues with 12 home runs, was scratched from Sunday’s starting lineup because of a strained left hamstring.
However, Kemp was able to pinch-hit in the seventh inning — he flied out — which extended his streak of consecutive games played to 393, also highest in the major leagues.
Asked if Kemp was listed as day to day, manager Don Mattingly replied, “That’s what we feel like, yeah. We want to be cautious.”
Hairston’s injury occurred in the second inning when he hit a ground ball at pitcher Travis Wood. As Hairston raced to first base, he felt the pain and grabbed his hamstring.
Hairston immediately was replaced by Adam Kennedy, who scored the Dodgers’ first run in the inning when pitcher Aaron Harang grounded into a force play. Juan Rivera added to the Dodgers’ lead with a two-run home run in the third inning.
But the Cubs came back with two runs in the third inning when Wood doubled, DeJesus walked and both scored on a single by Starlin Castro.
That set up the call for Guerra in the ninth inning, and he began by striking out Welington Castillo.
But then pinch-hitter Ian Stewart singled, DeJesus walked and Tony Campana doubled to drive in Stewart with the tying run. DeJesus also tried to score the winning run but was thrown out at home.
“I got the first out and I didn’t get the rest,” Guerra said, adding that “physically, yes, everything was there” in terms of his velocity. “Just good at-bats and bad pitches. I’ve got to be able to execute.”
Mattingly was asked about his stance toward maintaining Guerra as his closer.
“Well, I’ve got to keep looking at it, that’s for sure,” Mattingly said.
And when he could pinpoint any problem with the 26-year-old Guerra, Mattingly said “I’m not real sure about that. I mean, the ball still looks like it’s coming out (strong). You can see the (speed) gun and it’s still there.”
