LOS ANGELES (AP)—Late-inning deficits are no problem for the Arizona
Diamondbacks.

Chris Young scored the go-ahead run on a bases-loaded walk in the 10th
inning, lifting NL West-leading Arizona to a 5-4 win over the Los Angeles
Dodgers on Tuesday night. It was the Diamondbacks’ 44th comeback victory, tops
in the majors.

“We get frustrated sometimes, but overall just a good game,” said manager
Kirk Gibson, a former Dodgers star. “We felt the pressure, but we performed
well. We didn’t make any big mistakes and finally got a run across.”

Gerardo Parra(notes) sparked the Diamondbacks with a tying homer off Hong-Chih Kuo(notes)
with two out in the seventh, then a leadoff single in the 10th.

After Aaron Hill(notes) sacrificed and Justin Upton(notes) struck out, Javy Guerra(notes) (2-1)
issued consecutive walks to Miguel Montero(notes), Paul Goldschmidt(notes) and Young, helping
Arizona win its second in a row and sixth in seven games. The D-backs are 8-4 in
extra-inning games.

“It’s a pressure situation,” Young said of Guerra’s jam. “He had been so
successful at home and he has great stuff. He lost control. It happens every now
and then.”

Micah Owings(notes) (7-0) pitched a scoreless ninth for the win and J.J. Putz(notes)
finished for his 40th save in 44 chances.

Arizona starter Ian Kennedy(notes) was denied his 20th victory. The right-hander
gave up four runs and seven hits, struck out four and walked one in six innings.
It was his most runs since July 3, when he allowed seven in a 7-2 loss at
Oakland.

“I wasn’t commanding it as well. It wasn’t as sharp as it had been,
especially with two strikes,” said Kennedy, who was getting over a cold bug
that has hit the team. “I kind of let the team down. It was tough.”

Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley(notes) allowed three runs and four hits in 6 1-3
innings, struck out two and walked three in his fourth straight no-decision.

“The past few starts have been a rough stretch,” he said. “I’m trying to
find my delivery again and trying to figure it out, I guess. I’m just going to
keep working.”

Matt Kemp(notes) was hitless in five at-bats, including three strikeouts, for the
Dodgers a day after going 2 for 4 with a homer in the series opener. Los Angeles
has dropped three in a row.

Montero drove in three runs, including a two-run homer—his career-best
16th—in the first that gave Arizona the lead. His sacrifice fly in the third
trimmed Los Angeles’ advantage to 4-3.

The Dodgers scored four runs on five hits off Kennedy in the bottom of the
first.

Kemp hit a sacrifice fly, then James Loney(notes), Aaron Miles(notes) and Jerry Sands(notes) had
two-out hits. Loney doubled into the right-field corner, Miles singled to center
and Sands doubled into the left-field corner to complete the scoring in the
34-minute inning.

NOTES: The Dodgers lost their first extra-inning home game of the season and
fell to 8-2 in extra-inning games. … Kennedy has allowed one run or less 15
times this season. … The Diamondbacks are 7-2 at Dodger Stadium with one game
remaining. … The Dodgers have gone 14-5 in RF Juan Rivera’s(notes) 19 starts in the
cleanup position. He went hitless in four at-bats.

Read More: att park, bruce bochy, nl west, kirk gibson, nl west rivalry, nl west rivals, 2011 nl west pennant race, Tim Lincecum (P – SFG), Ian Kennedy (P – ARI), San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Arizona Diamondbacks at San Francisco Giants, Sep 3, 2011 6:05 PM PDT

The Arizona Diamondbacks Ian Kennedy has emerged as a Cy Young hopeful in the National League with his outstanding season thus far. The San Francisco Giants’ Tim Lincecum has already won the award, twice. Needless to say we might have a pitcher’s duel on our hands at AT&T Park Saturday night, though the Giants offense would like to say otherwise. 

Lincecum (12-11 2.58 ERA) got a bit roughed up by the Cubs in his last outing, allowing four earned runs on six hits, three of which were home runs, the most he ever allowed in a single game. He also walked four and fanned four along the way, a but of kilter to say the least, but is 6-2 with a 2.81 ERA in his last 12 starts against Arizona, along with a complete game under his belt as well. 

As for Ian Kennedy (17-4 3.03 ERA), he earned his NL leading 17th win on Sunday, pitching seven strong innings of one run ball, along with six hits, seven strikeouts and no walks against the Padres. Kennedy has pitched seven innings or more in seven of his last nine starts, as well as winning nine of his last 10 starts. 

First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 pm PT this evening with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.

We were glad to see colleague Bob McManaman raise the possibility that Diamondbacks ace Ian Kennedy has pitched his way into the NL Cy Young race.

After all, with all the talk about Justin Upton being a viable NL Most Valuable Player candidate, it had occurred to us that Upton might not even be the MVP of his own team!

That’s not a knock on Upton. It’s just that Kennedy has taken the NL by storm this season with a 17-4 record, 3.03 ERA and .232 opponents batting average.

He’s blown through August like a haboob, going 5-1 with a 2.31 ERA amid the heat of a pennant race.

ESPN.com’s “Cy Young Predictor” factors in a pitcher’s record, innings pitched, ERA, strikeouts, etc., and awards a “victory bonus” based on the club’s position in the standings.

It rates Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw first in the NL followed by Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay and then Kennedy.

Cliff Lee of the Phillies, who has been even more on fire than Kennedy in August, is fourth.

Trouble is, Kershaw and Kennedy both benefit in the formula from having an NL-best 17 victories. But voters tend to give little credit for victories these days, although Kershaw deserves extra credit from voters for having that record on such a crappy team.

Anyway, just last year, Felix Hernandez won the AL Cy Young despite a 13-12 record for the Mariners. He ranked only sixth in the “Cy Young Predictor” formula, which tells us the predictor can’t predict.

And Diamondbacks fans will recall that in 2008 Brandon Webb tied for the major-league lead in victories with 22 – four more than Tim Lincecum of the Giants, who with more strikeouts and a superior ERA, won the Cy Young.

Lincecum was rated fourth by “The Predictor” in 2009 but won the Cy Young with a 15-7 mark.

This season, he isn’t even among the top 10 on the “Predictor’s” list of NL Cy Young contenders, with a 12-11 record.

But with a 2.58 ERA, 193 strikeouts and a 1.16 WHIP (walks and hits per inning), Lincecum will get votes.

A couple of factors might help Kennedy, though.

First, it appears he will get five more starts, and all but one will be against NL West teams – three of which are among the four worst run-producing clubs in the NL. The other should be against the Pirates.

Meanwhile, the Phillies have six games remaining against the NL East second-place Braves and four each against Milwaukee and St. Louis, who are first and second in the NL Central.

And, depending on how those two Phillies perform, they also could split some Cy Young votes.

That said, Kershaw has the same advantages as Kennedy, except his next start likely will be against the Braves. After that, the schedules are similar.

Can Kennedy win it? Maybe not. But he sure belongs in the conversation.

And only a haboob would have told you in April that when the monsoon waned in August the Diamondbacks would lead the division and we would be talking about their MVP and Cy Young candidates.

Dysfunctional stars

ABC announced its lineup of contestants for the next edition of “Dancing With the Stars,” and we have to wonder if they confused “dance steps” with “12 steps.”

Chynna Phillips? David Arquette? Ricki Lake? Chaz Bono?

Did they use a casting couch or a therapist’s to find this group?

Athletes have dominated “DWTS,” and soccer goalie Hope Solo is in the field along with the poster child of dysfunction, Ron Artest.

Or rather, The Artest Formerly Known as Ron, being that the Lakers forward is changing his name to “Metta World Peace.”

No, seriously.

Reach The Heat Index at bob.young@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8271.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Arizona Diamondbacks had their routine completely upended before playing the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night, and manager Kirk Gibson wasn’t complaining.

Sean Burroughs hit a two-run home run and Ian Kennedy pitched seven scoreless innings in a 2-0 win that ended a six-game losing streak.

The Diamondbacks’ team bus arrived at Nationals Park 45 minutes late after being stuck in heavy traffic caused by the afternoon’s East Coast earthquake. The bus, which arrived at 5:15 p.m., was set to be later than usual even before the disruption, as Gibson had decided not to have Arizona take batting practice.

“We have a 4:15 bus again tomorrow, no BP, and I’m going to try and call another earthquake,” Gibson said after the game. “If the earthquake doesn’t show up, we’ll do the rest the same.”

Kennedy (16-4) allowed six hits, struck out eight, and had a single and a double at the plate. It was Kennedy’s eighth win in his last nine starts.

“It’s been kind of crazy,” Kennedy said. “It felt like high school all over again. You show up late, start getting ready an hour before the game.”

Although the Nationals had few real scoring chances, they did put the leadoff runner on base five times against Kennedy.

“I wasn’t making it easy on myself,” he said.

Nationals starter Jordan Zimmermann (8-11) held the Diamondbacks scoreless on three hits through six innings, but gave up two runs, two hits and a walk in the seventh.

After getting a groundout by Lyle Overbay to lead off the inning, Zimmermann gave up a walk to Chris Young before Burroughs’ homer to right field. The home run was Burrough’s first since April 30, 2005.

“Was basically looking dead red fastball, get out in front,” Burroughs said. “I wasn’t trying to hit a home run. I obviously never do.”

After Burrough’s homer, Kennedy doubled to end Zimmermann’s day.

“Definitely frustrating,” Zimmermann said. “It’s happened a couple of times this year where it’s just one pitch at the end of the game. It’s a home run or a double or something and they get a couple of runs.”

The start was likely the second-to-last outing of the season for Zimmermann. The right-hander is in his first full season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2009, and the Nationals have said he will be limited to about 160 innings this year. After going 6 1-3 against Arizona, Zimmermann has pitched 157 innings.

Until Burrough’s homer broke the scoreless tie, the Diamondbacks’ best scoring chance came in the fourth inning. With runners on second and third and one out, Ryan Roberts hit a sharp grounder and third baseman Ryan Zimmerman made a diving stop to throw out Roberts and save a run.

“He’s probably the only guy in the big leagues that catches it,” Gibson said.

Zimmermann hit Justin Upton with a pitch in the fourth, the fifth time Upton has been hit in six games against the Nationals this season. Upton reacted by angrily throwing his bat to the ground before walking to first base.

“I was a little upset about it,” Upton said. “I don’t know if you’re trying to hit me or not, but control your pitches.”

Kennedy hit Michael Morse with a pitch in the fourth, and home plate umpire Marvin Hudson warned both benches.

“You could tell, none of them were on purpose,” Kennedy said.

Upton left in the middle of the fifth inning with a left elbow contusion and was replaced by Collin Cowgill. Gibson said Upton was day to day.

NOTES: The game was delayed 21 minutes because of the earthquake that hit the East Coast Tuesday afternoon. … Nationals manager Davey Johnson said RHP Steven Strasburg will make his next rehab start Saturday for Triple-A Syracuse. … OF Jayson Werth left the game for a defensive replacement in the ninth inning. After the game Werth said he had a mild hip flexor, although Johnson termed it a groin strain. “We’ll see if Davey wants me to play tomorrow,” Werth said. … Washington introduced its top three draft picks — 3B Anthony Rendon, RHP Alex Meyer and OF Brian Goodwin — before the game. Rendon said he is completely recovered from a shoulder injury that hampered him at Rice this season. … Arizona traded 2B Kelly Johnson to Toronto for IFs Aaron Hill and John McDonald. The Diamondbacks placed RHP Jason Marquis (fractured right fibula) on the 60-day DL. … Nationals RHP Livan Hernandez (7-11) will start Wednesday against Arizona RHP Daniel Hudson (12-9).

“I think our whole team is flying under the radar,” Kennedy said, “and I don’t mind it at all.”

Kennedy (15-3) allowed a run on six hits in seven innings to win his seventh straight start and the Diamondbacks opened a three-game series with a 4-3 victory over the New York Mets on Friday night.

Justin Upton homered, Cody Ransom doubled in two runs and Kennedy helped himself with an RBI double as Arizona pulled two games ahead of the second-place Giants, who lost 2-1 at Florida.

“It’s nice,” Upton said, “but a two-game lead in August doesn’t mean anything.”

Jason Bay went 3 for 4 with a double and RBI single in the Mets’ third straight loss and ninth in 12 games. New York stranded nine and was 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position.

Arizona first baseman-outfielder Xavier Nady’s left hand was broken when he was hit by a pitch from the Mets’ Dillon Gee in the second inning.

“X Nady is probably playing the best he has all year,” said Arizona manager Kirk Gibson, who didn’t know how long the player would be sidelined.

The Mets rallied with a run off setup man David Hernandez in the eighth and another off closer J.J. Putz in the ninth but fell just short. Putz got his 28th save in 32 tries.

With their 66th victory, the Diamondbacks topped their win total for all of last season, when they finished last in the NL West for the second year in a row. They have won four straight.

Mets manager Terry Collins said Gee got away from the curve ball after Upton hit one in the seats in the first inning.

“It goes to show what is happening with Dillon and that is if he gets frustrated with something, if he doesn’t make a good pitch, he gets away from things,” Collins said, “and he has to stick with what made him successful.”

Gee (10-4), who gave up four runs on five hits in five innings, fell to 3-4 in his last nine starts.

“I wasn’t really upset about the one run,” he said. “Really it was the next inning that bothers me. I gave up a couple of hits and all of a sudden they score three runs, before you know it.”

Kennedy struck out five, walked three and hit a batter.

“Maybe he didn’t have his best stuff tonight,” Gibson said, “didn’t locate as well as he has in the past, but he found a way through it.”

He has not given up more than three runs in any of his last seven starts and hasn’t lost since July 3. The 26-year-old right-hander came from the New York Yankees in December of 2009 as part of the three-team deal that sent Curtis Granderson from Detroit to the Yankees. His seven straight wins tie the Yankees’ C.C. Sabathia and Detroit’s Justin Verlander for longest streak in the majors this season.

Arizona scored three in the second.

With one out, Nady was hit on an 0-2 pitch but stayed in the game to run the bases before leaving when the inning ended. Sean Burroughs doubled to put runners at second and third, then Cody Ransom doubled down the left field line to score both of them.

That brought up Kennedy, who squared to bunt, but pulled back to swing away, doubling deep into the right-center gap to bring home Ransom and make it 4-0.

The Mets loaded the bases with one out in the fourth on a hit batter, single and walk, but Kennedy fanned Ruben Tejada on three pitches, then struck out Gee to end the inning.

New York broke through in the fifth when Angel Pagan singled, took second on David Wright’s walk, then scored on Bay’s second single of the night.

Bay doubled off David Hernandez to lead off the eighth, took third when Josh Thole lined out to right and scored on Tejada’s groundout to make it a two-run game.

After a foul ball hit a support beam on the Chase Field roof, a very rare occurrence, pinch hitter Scott Hairston doubled off Putz to start the ninth, then took third on a ground out. He scored on Willie Harris’ sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 4-3. But Wright grounded out to second to end the game.

NOTES: Only the AL’s Verlander (17) and Sabathia (16) have more wins than Kennedy. … Kennedy’s three walks match his season high. … Arizona’s Daniel Hudson, coming off perhaps the worst start of his young career, goes for his 12th victory Saturday night. The Mets will counter with Mike Pelfrey, who has a career 0-4 mark with a 9.68 ERA in four starts at Chase Field. … Diamondbacks pitchers have 28 RBIs, by far the most in the majors. … Bay has reached safely in 14 straight games.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

PHOENIX (AP) — Ian Kennedy is tied with Roy Halladay for the most wins in the National League at 15. Kennedy’s Arizona Diamondbacks have taken a two-game lead over reigning world champion San Francisco in the NL West.

It’s a nice story seemingly overlooked on a national scene consumed, among other things, by the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry and the heralded return of the NFL.

“I think our whole team is flying under the radar,” Kennedy said, “and I don’t mind it at all.”

Kennedy (15-3) allowed a run on six hits in seven innings to win his seventh straight start and the Diamondbacks opened a three-game series with a 4-3 victory over the New York Mets on Friday night.

Justin Upton homered, Cody Ransom doubled in two runs and Kennedy helped himself with an RBI double as Arizona pulled two games ahead of the second-place Giants, who lost 2-1 at Florida.

“It’s nice,” Upton said, “but a two-game lead in August doesn’t mean anything.”

Jason Bay went 3 for 4 with a double and RBI single in the Mets’ third straight loss and ninth in 12 games. New York stranded nine and was 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position.

Arizona first baseman-outfielder Xavier Nady’s left hand was broken when he was hit by a pitch from the Mets’ Dillon Gee in the second inning.

“X Nady is probably playing the best he has all year,” said Arizona manager Kirk Gibson, who didn’t know how long the player would be sidelined.

The Mets rallied with a run off setup man David Hernandez in the eighth and another off closer J.J. Putz in the ninth but fell just short. Putz got his 28th save in 32 tries.

With their 66th victory, the Diamondbacks topped their win total for all of last season, when they finished last in the NL West for the second year in a row. They have won four straight.

Mets manager Terry Collins said Gee got away from the curve ball after Upton hit one in the seats in the first inning.

“It goes to show what is happening with Dillon and that is if he gets frustrated with something, if he doesn’t make a good pitch, he gets away from things,” Collins said, “and he has to stick with what made him successful.”

Gee (10-4), who gave up four runs on five hits in five innings, fell to 3-4 in his last nine starts.

“I wasn’t really upset about the one run,” he said. “Really it was the next inning that bothers me. I gave up a couple of hits and all of a sudden they score three runs, before you know it.”

Kennedy struck out five, walked three and hit a batter.

“Maybe he didn’t have his best stuff tonight,” Gibson said, “didn’t locate as well as he has in the past, but he found a way through it.”

He has not given up more than three runs in any of his last seven starts and hasn’t lost since July 3. The 26-year-old right-hander came from the New York Yankees in December of 2009 as part of the three-team deal that sent Curtis Granderson from Detroit to the Yankees. His seven straight wins tie the Yankees’ C.C. Sabathia and Detroit’s Justin Verlander for longest streak in the majors this season.

Arizona scored three in the second.

With one out, Nady was hit on an 0-2 pitch but stayed in the game to run the bases before leaving when the inning ended. Sean Burroughs doubled to put runners at second and third, then Cody Ransom doubled down the left field line to score both of them.

That brought up Kennedy, who squared to bunt, but pulled back to swing away, doubling deep into the right-center gap to bring home Ransom and make it 4-0.

The Mets loaded the bases with one out in the fourth on a hit batter, single and walk, but Kennedy fanned Ruben Tejada on three pitches, then struck out Gee to end the inning.

New York broke through in the fifth when Angel Pagan singled, took second on David Wright’s walk, then scored on Bay’s second single of the night.

Bay doubled off David Hernandez to lead off the eighth, took third when Josh Thole lined out to right and scored on Tejada’s groundout to make it a two-run game.

After a foul ball hit a support beam on the Chase Field roof, a very rare occurrence, pinch hitter Scott Hairston doubled off Putz to start the ninth, then took third on a ground out. He scored on Willie Harris’ sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 4-3. But Wright grounded out to second to end the game.

NOTES: Only the AL’s Verlander (17) and Sabathia (16) have more wins than Kennedy. … Kennedy’s three walks match his season high. … Arizona’s Daniel Hudson, coming off perhaps the worst start of his young career, goes for his 12th victory Saturday night. The Mets will counter with Mike Pelfrey, who has a career 0-4 mark with a 9.68 ERA in four starts at Chase Field. … Diamondbacks pitchers have 28 RBIs, by far the most in the majors. … Bay has reached safely in 14 straight games.