--RHP Jason Schmidt finally made his first rehabilitation start for Single-A Inland Empire at Lancaster. He threw 12 pitches in a perfect first inning. It was Schmidt's first appearance in an actual game since he underwent shoulder surgery last June.

--3B Nomar Garciaparra, who has been on the 15-day disabled list for the past two weeks with a strained left calf, will accompany the team to Milwaukee and take part in an early workout before Tuesday's game. After that, Garciaparra might be ready to begin a brief rehab assignment, probably with Class-AAA Las Vegas. Torre allowed for the possibility that Garciaparra could simply be activated without a rehab, but that didn't sound likely.

--OF Andre Ethier, starting for the first time in three days and just the second time on the homestand, went 3 for 5, his fourth three-hit game of the season. He had as many hits in this game as he had in his previous five. Ethier is hitting .354 against right-handers this season and .172 against lefties.

--3B Blake DeWitt continues to defy logic. He went 3-for-4 with a double, raising his average to .323 with his third three-hit game of the season. The rookie also scored two runs and continued to make a case for why he should remain in the everyday lineup even after Garciaparra returns from the DL.

--1B James Loney hit a two-run homer in the first inning, and it would have been a three-run blast if Matt Kemp hadn't gotten thrown out trying to steal second with Ethier on third. Loney batted .350 (7-for-20) on the homestand, with that home run and three doubles. He also has a five-game hitting streak.

BY THE NUMBERS
16 -- seasons since the Houston Astros swept a series at Dodger Stadium, something they did over the weekend by holding the Dodgers to a combined six runs over the three games. Of those six runs, half of them scored in innings that started with the Dodgers trailing by at least five runs. The Astros shut out the Dodgers on Saturday night, their first shutout victory at Chavez Ravine since 1993.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"(My) young children were my motivation to continue on. I was at home playing with them, and it struck me: What else can I do? I have to support those kids." -- Dodgers reliever Yhency Brazoban, speaking through an interpreter, admitting over the weekend that he thought his career was over when he went down for the season with a torn labrum last summer, barely a week after he returned from Tommy John surgery.

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