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Posted at 2:04 p.m., Sunday, September 23, 2007

Baseball: Dodgers defeat D'Backs, snap 7-game skid

Associated Press

PHOENIX - The Arizona Diamondbacks wasted a chance to extend their lead in the AL West, losing 7-1 to Chad Billingsley and the Los Angeles Dodgers today.

Arizona remained 2½ games ahead of second-place San Diego, which lost 7-3 to the Colorado Rockies. After a day off Monday, the Diamondbacks have six games remaining — three at Pittsburgh and three in Colorado. Their magic number is five to clinch the division title.

Billingsley (12-5) limited Arizona to one run and five hits in 5 2-3 innings. Juan Pierre had four hits and James Loney added three, including a two-run homer, to help Los Angeles stop a seven-game losing streak.

Tony Abreu also homered for the Dodgers, barely alive mathematically in the wild-card race. Billingsley walked four and struck out six.

Arizona starter Edgar Gonzalez (8-3) allowed three runs and eight hits in 3 1-3 innings. Gonzalez, who has bounced between the bullpen and the rotation, lost for the first time in eight decisions. His previous defeat was on April 21 at San Francisco.

The series matched two teams going in opposite directions. Los Angeles has been beset by injuries and, unlike the Diamondbacks, the Dodgers have not had good team chemistry. Last week, veteran second baseman Jeff Kent criticized the team's younger players for their lack of professionalism.

The Dodgers took out their frustrations on the Diamondbacks at the end of a 1-6 road trip.

Los Angeles went up 1-0 in the first on Abreu's homer.

The Diamondbacks tied it in the bottom half on Mark Reynolds' two-out bloop single.

Los Angeles made it 3-1 in the fourth on Andre Ethier's sacrifice fly and Andy LaRoche's RBI single. Loney's two-run homer in the fifth, off Juan Cruz, stretched the lead to 5-1.

The Dodgers added two more runs in eighth on Chin-Ling Hu's RBI single and a throwing error by shortstop Stephen Drew.<

Notes: Los Angeles LHP Joe Beimel set a team record for lefties by appearing in his 81st game. The club mark is 106 appearances by RHP Mike Marshall in 1974. ... Arizona went 50-31 at home this season, the third-most victories in team history. The Diamondbacks won 55 home games in 2002 and 52 in 1999, winning the division both years. ... Arizona's regular-season finale drew 43,372. The Diamondbacks drew 2,325,233, their highest attendance since 2004.