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SD@ARI: Bauer strikes out the side in the first

After going 11-1 with a 2.23 ERA in 16 starts this season against Minor League competition, young D-backs right-hander Trevor Bauer has struggled to make the adjustment facing Major League talent.

The 21-year-old has given up eight earned runs while only pitching 7 1/3 innings combined in his first two starts since being called up.

"I'm disappointed in how I pitched," he said after allowing six earned runs in 3 1/3 innings in his Chase Field debut on Tuesday. "Obviously the fans and everybody were hoping for a better outing so I'll be better next time."

Bauer gets another shot to show the fans why he was selected No. 3 overall in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft when the D-backs host the Dodgers on Sunday in the finale of a four-game series.

"The game will teach you usually, it's a tough league," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "Guys will figure you out, you'll have to make adjustments. This is an adjustment league. If you can't do that, you can't play here. Have to make adjustments or else guys will figure you out."

The young righty will be opposed by Chris Capuano, who has led Los Angeles' staff through the first half of the season. The veteran warranted All-Star consideration after going 9-3 with a 2.62 ERA this year, but he fell short of making the team for the second time in his career.

"Numbers don't lie," Mattingly said when asked about Capuano deserving to go to the All-Star Game. "It's not like this has been a mirage."

Dodgers: L.A. getting by without Gordon
Losing Dee Gordon for six weeks was a tough blow for a Dodgers team expecting to return back from the break with its Opening Day lineup healthy. The emergence of 28-year-old Luis Cruz has helped lesson the pain.

Cruz was promoted from Triple-A Albuquerque on Monday to give Gordon the day off and he has gone 7-for-19 with four doubles, four RBIs and four runs scored.

The infielder, who appeared in 56 games for the Brewers and Pirates from 2008-10, brings versatility on defense, and he has filled in for Gordon since the shortstop dislocated his right thumb.

"He's not going to give us a ton of range, but whatever he catches, he's got a cannon," Mattingly said. "I think he's going to be solid. He was a late bloomer where he's kind of just figuring it out now."

"He had a great spring and was killing it at Triple-A. This guy was as confident as you're going to see coming up here."

D-backs: Kubel impressing on defense
Heading into Saturday's game, left fielder Jason Kubel was leading the National League in outfield assists with 11.

When he was signed this offseason, Arizona was excited about Kubel's bat and the spark he would be able to provide to the team's offense.

His performance defensively has been added bonus halfway through the season.

"I think everybody was thinking about the bat honestly," manager Kirk Gibson said about Kubel's arrival in Arizona. "This is probably one of his better years defensively. He doesn't have a ton of foot speed. He's very studious, almost on every pitch moving around and understanding what's going on. He has great footwork, he gets around the ball properly, you don't see him throw things out of control."

Worth noting
• Bauer pitched at UCLA and played at Hart High School in Santa Clarita, Calif. He is originally from North Hollywood.

• Capuano is 2-4 with a 3.77 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 43 innings against Arizona during his career. He was an eighth-round Draft pick by the D-backs in 1999.

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