Nomar's debut: 2-for-4 in Dodger loss to D-Backs

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Miguel Batista took a hard comebacker off his

leg and Luis Gonzalez was beaned on the right side of the head.

Both stayed in the game, and the Arizona Diamondbacks got away with

a gritty win.

Chad Tracy tied a career high with four hits and equaled a

franchise record with three doubles, leading Arizona to a 5-4

victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night.

Nomar Garciaparra, playing his first game for the Dodgers after

spending the first two weeks of the season on the disabled list,

hit a hard smash in the first inning that ricocheted off Batista's

right shin and rolled right to first baseman Tony Clark for the

third out. But Batista gutted his way through the next four

innings.

"It sounded worse than it felt," said Batista (2-0), who

allowed three runs and five hits. "I didn't see the ball at all.

It was hit hard and hit me right by the bone, but it didn't hurt.

It's swollen right now, but I should be OK."

Johnny Estrada homered in the second inning against Jae Seo

(0-2), who retired just five of the first 14 batters he faced and

was removed in the fourth after giving up a double to Tracy. The

right-hander gave up four runs and nine hits in 3 2-3 innings.

Jose Valverde, the fifth Arizona pitcher, struck out the side in

the ninth for his third save in four attempts.

Tim Hamulack put a scare into the Diamondbacks in the eighth

when his fastball got away from him and struck Gonzalez, who shook

it off and tried to break up a double play moments later.

"I just barely got my shoulder up and it hit my ear flap. It

was scary for a second," Gonzalez said. "You've got a lefty out

there, and he looked like he lost his control for a second on

Tracy. I was just going to take a look at the first pitch, and I

got a real good look at that one.

"I made sure to get right back up," Gonzalez added. "I always

tell my family and friends if I come out of the game, it's because

I'm hurt. I just didn't want anybody to worry about me. I'm sure I

got 100 phone calls tonight from family and friends."

The last Diamondbacks player to hit three doubles in a game also

was Tracy, on June 28, 2005, against San Francisco. Last season, he

had 14 RBI and 19 hits in 18 games against the Dodgers.

"Tracy's been unbelievable, and that helps a guy like me,"

Gonzalez said. "If you look at my numbers the last six or seven

games, my RBI have jumped up tremendously with him being as hot as

he is."

Garciaparra, who was sidelined because of a strained muscle on

his right side, returned to Los Angeles Saturday after a two-game

minor league rehab stint. He went 2-for-4 with a double and scored

Los Angeles' first run on a fourth-inning sacrifice fly by Jose

Cruz Jr.

"It was special to run out there with that uniform," said

Garciaparra, an 11-year veteran who was born in nearby Whittier and

lives in Manhattan Beach. "I'm not going to lie. I was nervous.

I'm still nervous and anxious, especially when it feels like

opening day and playing in front of these fans. I felt pretty good.

I was able to make my plays, so that was good."

Garciaparra, a five-time All-Star shortstop with Boston, was

converted to first base in spring training. In his first game that

counted, he made 11 putouts and started a double play in the eighth

on Shawn Green's grounder. Garciaparra also dug two throws out of

the dirt, both by shortstop Rafael Furcal on routine grounders by

Orlando Hudson.

"He made two nice picks," Arizona manager Bob Melvin said. "I

was surprised to see how comfortable he was. They were moving him

around and keeping an eye on him. You could tell."

The Dodgers scratched out a pair of runs in the fifth on

groundouts by Kenny Lofton and Jeff Kent, trimming Arizona's lead

to 5-3. Garciaparra came within a few feet of a game-tying two-run

homer, sending Green to the right field fence to end the inning.

The Dodgers got a run closer in the sixth on a bloop RBI double

by pinch-hitter Ricky Ledee. But Hudson, who won a Gold Glove at

second base last season, prevented the tying run from scoring later

that inning with a diving stop of Furcal's single up the middle.

Green, who set a Dodgers franchise record with 49 home runs in

2001, ended three Arizona rallies by striking out with runners in

scoring position. He is batting .211 with one home run and two RBI

in his first 57 at-bats. Last April, Green hit .253 with three

homers and 12 RBI in 91 at-bats.Game notes
Ledee's RBI was only the fourth in 30 official at-bats this

season by Dodgers pinch-hitters. ... Rookie 1B James Loney was

optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas to make room for Garciaparra. ...

The Diamondbacks have won nine of their last 11 games at Dodger

Stadium after going 1-8 at Chavez Ravine in 2004.