LOS ANGELES – The Dodgers managed only three hits off San Diego's Dustin Moseley during his seven innings of work. Fortunately for Andre Ethier, he had one of them to keep his hitting streak going at 27 games.
Moseley got his first victory of 2011, and the Padres beat Los Angeles 7-0 on Sunday to win their first series since taking two of three at St. Louis to open their schedule.
Jon Garland (1-2) gave up three runs in five innings. He struck out eight and walked four — one more than his combined total in 20 innings over his three previous starts this season. The right-hander spent last season with the Padres, going 14-12 with a 3.47 ERA in 33 starts.
"Jon's a guy who always seems to find a way to keep himself in the game, and he's always been that kind of guy," manager Don Mattingly said. "If he's struggling with something, he'll just basically almost invent stuff and change what he's doing."
Garland's first walk was to Nick Hundley leading off the Padres' three-run second. Former Dodger Orlando Hudson followed with a single, Cameron Maybin drove in Hundley with another single and Brad Hawpe capped the rally with a two-run single that doubled his RBI total for the season.
"What killed me in that inning was the leadoff walk," Garland said. "That gives them the opportunity to put that hit-and-run on. Then they were able to kind of bloop a couple more hits in there that ended up scoring a couple more. They really didn't hit the ball hard that inning at all."
Six of Hawpe's 12 hits this season have come against the Dodgers in 17 at-bats. He is 6 for 54 against everyone else. The seven-year veteran, who helped lead Colorado to a pennant in 2007 with 29 homers, 116 RBIs and a .291 average, has no homers and just four RBIs in 71 at-bats with the Padres after signing a one-year, $3 million contract in January as a free agent.
An All-Star in 2009, Hawpe has a .352 lifetime average against the Dodgers and a .362 mark at Chavez Ravine — the second-highest ever by a visiting player with at least 120 at-bats here behind Roberto Clemente's .377 mark.
"I don't know why. I've just always enjoyed playing here," Hawpe said. "I just like this ballpark. Obviously, I may like it here because I've had success. The last two series I've felt really good at the plate, even when I didn't get hits. It's just a matter of grinding it out and turning it around."
Ethier kept his streak alive when he led off the seventh with a single up the first base line and off the glove of Hawpe as he tried to backhand it behind the bag. It is the second-longest streak by a Dodger since the club relocated to Los Angeles in 1958, and is five shy of Willie Davis' franchise-record 31-game run in 1969.
"I was just trying to figure out a way to get the job done and get on base — a walk, error, hit anything that gives us a chance to start scoring runs, especially in a ballgame like that where not much offense is being shown," Ethier said.
Moseley (1-3) walked three and struck out six, allowing just two runners as far as second base. The right-hander was winless in five April starts despite a 1.99 ERA, with his teammates getting shut out in each of his first three outings and totaling just four runs for him altogether — including a pair of no-decisions that went extra innings.
"I've been telling people and telling these guys all along that it's going to happen. It was just a matter of time. But I'm glad it happened today," Moseley said after the Padres put together consecutive victories for the first time since the first two games of the season.
Ethier had 40 hits in April, tying the franchise record for that month, which he shared with Mike Piazza and Rafael Furcal. The All-Star right fielder is trying to become the eighth player since the turn of the century with a hitting streak of at least 30 games during one season. That list includes Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Luis Castillo, Albert Pujols, Willy Taveras, Moises Alou and Ryan Zimmerman.
The Dodgers are scheduled to face Cubs starters James Russell, Ryan Dempster and Carlos Zambrano in a series that begins Monday night at Chavez Ravine. Ethier is 0 for 1 lifetime against Russell, 7 for 19 with a home run against Dempster, and 7 for 16 against Zambrano.
Hawpe's clutch hit was the last by the Padres until the ninth, when they broke it open with an RBI single by pinch-hitter Jorge Cantu, a sacrifice fly by Jason Bartlett and a two-run double by Chase Headley against Mike MacDougal. All four runs were charged to Hong-Chih Kuo, who was activated from the disabled list before the game.
Notes: Ethier came in 3 for 3 lifetime against Moseley with a solo home run on April 9 at San Diego. ... Dioner Navarro became the fourth catcher to start in a game for the Dodgers already this season, along with Rod Barajas, A.J. Ellis and Hector Gimenez. They have hit a combined .207 with five homers and 13 RBIs. Meanwhile, departed free agent Russell Martin is batting .293 with six homers and 19 RBIs for the Yankees after deposing Jorge Posada as the No.1 catcher in the Bronx. ... Mike Adams, who has retired all but three of the 45 batters he has faced this season, pitched a perfect eighth to extend his scoreless streak against the Dodgers to 18 innings. ... Moseley and Garland were teammates in 2008 with the Angels.
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