Dodgers get mad, Diamondbacks get the victory, 5-4

The Arizona Diamondbacks probably are going to the playoffs while the Dodgers finish the season just trying to stay at .500, but that doesn’t mean the Dodgers are willing to let Arizona show them up.

So the Dodgers didn’t appreciate how the Diamondbacks’ Gerardo Parra momentarily stood at the plate to admire his solo home run against Dodgers reliever Hong-Chih Kuo that tied Tuesday night’s game at 4-4 in the seventh inning.

Parra, for his part, was annoyed Kuo had thrown an earlier pitch near his head. But Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis barked at Parra as he crossed the plate, other Dodgers hollered from the dugout and the umpires warned both benches against further hostilities.

But in the 10th inning, Parra and Arizona got in the last word as Dodgers closer Javy Guerra walked Chris Young with the bases loaded, Parra scored from third base and the Diamondbacks won, 5-4, at Dodger Stadium.

Guerra had saved 18 games in 19 chances and “it was kind of uncharacteristic for Javy to walk a couple of guys there,� Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly said. “I’m sure Javy is going to learn from it and bounce back.�

The Dodgers earlier made sure that Arizona’s Ian Kennedy would have to work that much harder to become a 20-game winner.

Kennedy (19-4) left after six innings trailing 4-3 after the Dodgers jumped on the Huntington Beach native for four runs in the first inning.

In doing so, the Dodgers might have helped the cause of their ace, Clayton Kershaw, who’s vying with Kennedy for the National League Cy Young Award. Kershaw (18-5) pitches Wednesday night against Arizona, which held an 81/2-game lead in the National League West entering play Tuesday.

The Dodgers’ early runs definitely helped another of their pitchers, Chad Billingsley, who gave up three runs in the first three innings but then held the Diamondbacks scoreless for the next 31/3 innings.

Billingsley (10-10) largely has struggled in recent weeks and was coming off his shortest start of the season; the right-hander lasted only 21/3 innings against the Washington Nationals on Thursday.

Billingsley has not picked up a victory in more than a month; he’s had no decision in six of his last seven starts.

Billingsley said it was his best outing in several starts. “I was able to make adjustments and corrections [during the game] and I’m just going to build on it,� he said.

Billingsley was roughed up in the first inning when Miguel Montero hit a two-run home run to the right-field pavilion after Parra had singled.

The Dodgers came back in their half of the inning when Dee Gordon led off with a double, moved to third base on Justin Sellers’ single and scored on Matt Kemp’s sacrifice fly.

One out later, James Loney doubled to score Sellers, Aaron Miles singled to score Loney and rookie Jerry Sands doubled down the left-field line to score Miles.

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