LOS ANGELES—This was a fitting way for the Cubs to finish their awful first half with yet another awful performance. Carlos Silva,who was questionable for this game,was hit hard and also wild. He was also ejected in the bottom of the second after a second ‘bang bang’ call by first base Umpire Brian Runge went the Dodgers way,and LA went on to a 7-0 rout. Silva departed with the Dodgers already ahead 5-0,and with the bases loaded. It started badly in the bottom of the first when Rafael Furcal lined a double down the RF line. Matt Kemp walked,and that was a quick sign that Silva(9-3)normally with good control,didn’t have it.After Andre Ethier fanned, James Loney(he of the key grand slam in game one of the NLDS against Ryan Dempster two falls ago)blasted a long homer into the RF Pavilion seats to make it 3-0 before many folks got off the Hollywood Freeway into the parking lots-much less into Dodger Stadium.After failing to score against Vicente Padilla in the second, things got worse in the LA half of the frame. Blake DeWitt singled to left,then Padilla(4-2)hit a slow roller to Xavier Nady and he tried to tag the runner going by but missed him by a few inches. After a brief argument Lou Piniella returned to the dugout. Furcall walked to fill the bases,and Kemp lifted a sac fly to Kosuke Fukudome in RF. Silva then walked Ethier intentionally to re-load the sacks. Loney hit a slow roller to Nady,which he handled,but he got to first about the time as the base runner and Runge called him safe.Padilla scored and Silva was quickly ejected after yelling at the Umpire.Mitch Atkins relieved and fanned Casey Blake,but then walked Xavier Paul to force in Furcal to make it 6-0 after only two innings.The Dodgers added another in the fourth and chased Atkins who walked Paul with the bases loaded-the third walk of the inning,and eight(1 intentionally)in the first four frames.That finished the scoring but an old war between Padilla and his former Texas teammate Marlon Byrd showed up in the seventh when Padilla drilled Byrd. He remembered that when the Rangers released him(Padilla)last year,Byrd was quoted as saying that “It was addition by subtraction” with Padilla being let go. In the eighth, Andrew Cashner of the Cubs hit LA’s Blake DeWitt and warnings were issued to each bench,but nothing happened.

NOTES—Attendance was announced as 45,398, but there had to be about 10,000 no shows…..The Cubs dropped three of four to the Dodgers,but still finished this road trip 4-3. LES