Lima sparks Los Angeles
Dodger silences mighty Cardinals with sterling effort
LOS ANGELES -- Never has "Lima Time" meant so much or been this good.
Jose Lima pitched a five-hitter last night and the Los Angeles Dodgers staved off elimination in their first-round series by beating the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-0.
Steve Finley hit a two-run double and Shawn Green hit two solo homers as the Dodgers won their first postseason game since the 1988 World Series.
Lima, an animated 32-year-old righthander who has struggled for much of the last five years, followed two miserable outings by Los Angeles starters with his first complete game since 2001.
"It doesn't get any better than this right here," Lima said. "I knew I was having a great game, but I didn't want to be too excited and get away from my game. I kept telling myself every batter, `Jose, if you get this guy out, you will win the game.' "
Working against the team that led the NL in batting with a .278 average and runs with 855, Lima pitched his second career shutout, striking out four and walking one.
Larry Walker, Albert Pujols, and Scott Rolen, the Cardinals' 2-3-4 hitters, went a combined 0 for 12.
"I tried to keep at least one of those guys off base," Lima said of the Cardinals' heavy hitters. "I tried to stay away from big innings."
Lima pumped his fist, shouted, and pointed at teammates in celebration and practically danced off the field after setting the Cardinals down inning after inning.
"He's always been like that," Cardinals outfielder Reggie Sanders said. "One thing, on our part, you can't get too hyped up or too caught up on that. Lima has always been Lima. He tries to get you caught up in his world. He did tonight."
"I don't know that you can do it much better," Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said. "That's not bad for someone who came to spring training not guaranteed a job." Lima signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers last winter. He went 21-10 with the Houston Astros in 1999, but was 7-16 the following year. He pitched in the Independent League in 2003 before joining the Kansas City Royals in June.
Tracy said had the Cardinals gotten a runner on base in the ninth, he would have gone to closer Eric Gagne. It didn't happen, as Lima retired Pujols and Rolen on fly balls and Edmonds on a popup.
Odalis Perez, rocked for six runs in 2 2/3 innings in Tuesday's opener, starts tonight for the Dodgers against Jeff Suppan. Los Angeles had lost eight postseason games in a row since beating Oakland in the 1988 World Series.
Lima, 9-1 with a 3.08 ERA at Dodger Stadium this season, faced more than four batters in an inning only once -- when the Cardinals put two on with two outs in the fifth. Losing pitcher Matt Morris grounded out to end the threat.
Green hit solo homers off Morris in the fourth and sixth to give Los Angeles a 4-0 lead.
Los Angeles got a big break in the third inning. Alex Cora was hit by a pitch and went to third on Brent Mayne's single. It appeared Lima's bunt bounced up and hit his bat as he left the batter's box, meaning it should have been ruled a foul ball or he should have been called out. Cardinals catcher Mike Matheny threw to second, but Mayne was safe, leaving the bases loaded. "They went and discussed it and they didn't see it," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said of the umpiring crew. "You can't call it if you don't see it."
Morris retired the next two batters before Finley came through, slicing a broken-bat double inside third. It's his only hit in 12 at-bats in the series.
Green opened the fourth by hitting a 2-0 pitch over the left-center-field wall and hit a pitch from Morris over the right-field fence with two outs in the sixth.
Morris, pitching for the second time since Sept. 20, gave up four runs and six hits in seven innings before being lifted for a pinch hitter. 