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CHC@LAD: Blanton strong over six in Dodgers debut

The Rockies may have a 53-75 record this year, but they sure have come to play in their 14 contests against the Dodgers this season.

Although 16 games separate the two teams in the win column, the Rockies have beaten the Dodgers in eight of their 14 matchups.

"This is where you want to make up your ground," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "It doesn't make sense. The Rockies have more wins against us, but we've played the Cardinals and Braves real well."

At least for the next few days, the Dodgers likely will have to make up ground without center fielder Matt Kemp, who left Tuesday night's game after slamming into the center-field fence. A CT scan on his jaw was negative, but he does have a bone bruise on his left knee. He also sustained a chin gash that required stitches to close.

"With that kind of hit, I expect he'll be out tomorrow for sure," Mattingly said after Tuesday's game.

Right-hander Joe Blanton will take the mound on Wednesday against the Rockies at Coors Field, eager for his first win with the Dodgers and to try to prevent Colorado from finishing a three-game sweep.

Blanton's numbers have been underwhelming since joining the team, going 0-3 with a 7.71 ERA in four starts. However, Blanton thought his last outing against the Giants was his best so far with his new team.

In all, Blanton surrendered four runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings. He also struck out six and walked two for his third straight loss.

"My last start before this in Pittsburgh was just bad," Blanton said after the outing. "I wasn't very good that game and I was just off. Tonight, I felt like I threw the ball well. I thought it was the best I've thrown since I've been here. All singles, ground balls through the hole, bloopers in the outfield."

He'll be up against Rockies left-hander Drew Pomeranz, who is coming off one of his best starts of the season.

Everything was working for the left-hander against the Cubs, tossing his fastball, curveball and changeup for strikes. He held Chicago to two runs on two hits in five innings on Friday, but didn't figure in the decision.

Dodgers: League settling in after fixing flaw
• While reliever Brandon League has had his fair share of difficulties with the Dodgers since being acquired on July 31, he's now begun to find success.

League, who allowed runners to score in four of his first seven Dodgers appearances and gave up a total of nine hits in five innings, has held opponents scoreless and hitless in his last four outings.

That's due in part to pitching coach Rick Honeycutt and bullpen coach Ken Howell spotting a mechanical flaw in League's delivery that he's worked on daily to iron out.

"It's just been a mechanical issue that gets me into position to have more consistency with my fastball, and off the fastball comes the slider and split," League said. "The more I pitch, the more comfortable I'm getting.

"When I'm getting swing-and-misses or foul balls and weak ground balls, that's how I know I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing."

Rockies: CarGo get day off
• Physically and emotionally tired, left fielder Carlos Gonzalez got a much-needed breather on Tuesday, sitting out the team's game against the Dodgers.

Gonzalez entered play on Aug. 6 hitting .327, but after a 0-for-5 performance in Monday night's win over the Dodgers, he was down to .308. He's played in 114 of the Rockies' 128 games this season.

"Finally, I can say this is a day off for me," said Gonzalez, who has gone 15-for-72 (.208) during August. "I can sit back and relax, think about the game. I don't feel the same as I did, but we all have to go through tough moments. That's what's happening with me, but I will get through this, I will get better and I will get back to where I was."

• While rosters expand to 40 on Saturday, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki isn't sure he'll be able to return by then. He hasn't played since the end of May because of a left groin injury that required surgery.

"[Saturday] was the goal from a long time ago, but after playing in these games I'm just not sure what the exact timetable is," Tulowitzki said of his rehab starts at Double-A Tulsa. "These next three days, if I make a lot of progress, that could become a possibility. Each day I get a little bit more confident."

Worth noting
• Outfielder David Dahl, the Rockies' first-round pick in this summer's First-Year Player Draft, was chosen as Player of the Year in the rookie-level Pioneer League.

• The Dodgers are 49-4 when scoring five or more runs this season.

• Blanton is 1-0 with a 5.71 ERA in three career starts against the Rockies.

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