Ramirez stays hot as LA beats Rox
Don Mattingly knows this won't be the last time he jogs out to right field to check on his rookie phenom.
The Los Angeles Dodgers manager was cautioned well in advance that Yasiel Puig has one speed -- all out.
Puig's simply going to run into things, including fences.
Hanley Ramirez had four hits, including a solo homer in the ninth, to help the Dodgers hold off the Colorado Rockies 10-8 Wednesday night in a game Puig left early with a bruised left hip after his leaping catch in right field.
"He just plays like that," Mattingly said. "They kind of warned us coming up he plays like that and he's going to get hurt."
Puig reached up to rob Nolan Arenado of a hit in the fifth, only to smack his hip on a padded column below the scoreboard in right. Puig stayed down on the warning track for several minutes before jogging around the outfield and remaining in the game.
The next inning, Puig drove in a run with a sacrifice fly before being taken out when the Dodgers made a double switch. Puig, who was just named the NL player of the month, finished 1 for 3 with a double.
Team officials said a precautionary X-ray was negative and he's listed as day-to-day.
"I think he'll be able to play but we'll see," Mattingly said.
Puig has been sensational since being called up on June 3, hitting .440 this season with eight homers.
And when he fell to the dirt, Dodger fans held their breath. Matt Kemp quickly rushed over to check on him, along with Ramirez and Adrian Gonzalez. Mattingly also jogged out to the outfield to see how Puig was feeling.
Earlier in the day, Puig won the National League player and rookie of the month awards. It was hardly even a contest after he hit .436 in June. His 44 hits were a Dodgers rookie record for a month.
"Now, it's getting to be where you kind of expect him to do something all the time," Mattingly said.
Juan Uribe, Gonzalez and Kemp added homers for the Dodgers, who have won 10 of their last 11 games to climb back into the thick of the NL West race.
Zack Greinke (6-2) struggled on the mound but still earned his third straight win. He gave up five runs in five innings and tied a career high with seven walks.
"I felt I did as good as I could do today," Greinke said. "It's not very good, but that's how bad it was. We played well. Tough game but we pulled it out."
Reliever Paco Rodriguez pitched 1 1-3 scoreless innings to set up Kenley Jansen, who recorded the final four outs to pick up his eighth save in 11 chances. Jansen got pinch-hitter Tyler Colvin to pop up to end the game in front of a sellout crowd waiting to see the fireworks.
Tyler Chatwood (4-2) never found his grove, surrendering a season-high six runs, five earned, and 11 hits in five innings. Chatwood entered the game with a 2-0 mark at Coors Field, with a 3.14 ERA.
"He didn't get away with much," manager Walt Weiss said of his starter. "I didn't think Chat threw that bad. I thought he threw the ball all right.
"I think right now they're a tough lineup to get through."
With the Dodgers leading 8-7 heading into the ninth, Ramirez and Kemp hit homers to give them some breathing room. The Dodgers would need the insurance runs as Arenado had an RBI single to drive in Wilin Rosario after the catcher led off the ninth with a walk.
Every starter in the Dodgers' lineup had at least a hit, with Ramirez extending his hitting streak to 14 games on a single in the first.
"Hanley's just a beast," Mattingly said. "He seems to be on a mission this year. He had a rough start to the year being hurt, but he's been focused all year."
A day after Michael Cuddyer had his 27-game hitting streak snapped, the outfielder singled in his first at-bat and later drove in a run by drawing a bases-loaded walk. Carlos Gonzalez added a solo homer off Greinke in the first inning.
The Rockies couldn't hold an early 4-1 lead against a hot-hitting Dodgers team that had 17 hits.
"Every team goes through those good runs. Every team goes through a downward turn," said Cuddyer, who got a haircut with his long streak over. "The good ones go through the good runs a couple of times over the course of the season. They're on a good run right now, playing really well, hitting the ball really well."
NOTES: After a rehab stint with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, Dodgers OF Carl Crawford (strained left hamstring) could rejoin the team in San Francisco for the weekend series. ... Rockies OF Dexter Fowler (bruised right hand) is hoping he will be ready to go when he's eligible to come off the disabled list on July 11. "We don't want it lingering on the rest of the year," Fowler said. ... Weiss said SS Troy Tulowitzki (broken rib) is progressing, but hasn't started hitting live pitching yet.