Whether he was catching a pop fly in the outfield or coming up to bat, Parra was subjected to constant jeers from the jaded L.A. crowd, likely in response to his "F-You" homer from Tuesday night's game. Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw also got retribution when he plunked Parra on the flank with one of his signature fastballs after having told the Arizona slugger "I'm gonna get you!" the night before.
Kershaw's beanball, which came at the start of the sixth inning, sparked off a shitstorm of drama. Home plate umpire Bill Welke immediately tossed the pitcher, Dodgers skipper Don Mattingly came out to vociferously protest the call, and the game ground to a halt while arguments ensued and L.A. began warming up a new pitcher in the bullpen.
Meanwhile, Kershaw skulked around the dugout and refused to hit the showers, causing several umpires to literally stare at him from the third baseline until the Cy Young candidate got the hint. He was eventually joined by Donnie Baseball in the clubhouse, as Welke also booted his ass as well.
Unfortunately, the D-Backs didn't make the most of Kershaw's ejection, as they were unable to overcome a one-run deficit despite some late-game rallying. The Dodgers got ahold of the lead early in the contest when Matt Kemp and Jerry Sands hit RBI singles in the first inning against Daniel Hudson. Arizona's ace gathered his wits after giving up the runs and went on to strike out four batters, but the damage had already been done.
While the Diamondbacks have pulled off 44 come-from-behind wins during this amazing season (and were 19-1 when Hudson was on the pitching mound), they couldn't muster enough runs. It certainly wasn't for lack of effort, as both Geoff Blum and Miguel Montero generated runs in the final two innings. Parra also had a big hit in the eighth that nearly turned into a homer, but the ball seemed to die in the chilly night air and fell just short of the fence.
Arizona lost ground in the National League West standings as a result of the defeat, but are still 7.5 games ahead of the San Francisco Giants. The D-Backs are still tied with the Milwaukee Brewers in their quest for home-field advantage in the upcoming playoffs, however, as the Brew Crew also lost last night.
The Diamondbacks (87-63) head down the California coastline for their next series, as they'll battle the San Diego Padres (63-87) at PETCO Park starting on Friday. Rookie lefty Wade Miley (3-1, 4.50 ERA) is up next in the rotation and face off against San Diego's Tim Stauffer (8-12, 3.87 ERA). First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. TV: Fox Sports Arizona. Radio: KTAR 620 AM. For more info, visit www.dbacks.com.
