Aside from Jake Peavy flashing the power (above), the big moment in yesterday’s Dodger loss to the Padres happened when Brad Penny and Kenny Lofton squared off in the L.A. dugout. For the LA Times’ DePodesta-hating Bill Plaschke, it was yet another reason to cuddle up with the Paul Lo Duca pillow and blast Penny.
Penny was mad because he felt Lofton lazily played an apparent third-inning single by San Diego’s Dave Roberts into a double.
Lofton was mad because Penny, as usual, decided to air this grievance in public.
Earlier this year, Penny yelled at Little on the mound while being removed after an awful outing in Atlanta.
Then, this month, Penny questioned his teammates’ effort after another awful outing in St. Louis.
And now, this, a tantrum over one base hit in a string of six consecutive base hits against him.
Penny was mad because he thought Lofton, who has struggled defensively, should have held Roberts to a single on a ball that rolled in front of him.
That was probably a fair assessment.
What wasn’t fair is that Penny didn’t get mad at himself for, one batter earlier, allowing a double to .152-hitting Jake Peavy, who later even homered off him.
And he didn’t get mad at himself for allowing a leadoff single to Geoff Blum, he of the .298 on-base percentage.
And he didn’t get mad at himself for putting his poor-hitting team in a hole for the second time in three starts, this All-Star game starter allowing four or more runs in four of his last seven starts.