The Daily Closer: LaLaWood Fables

Notes from a day in baseball:

• 1. And Suddenly, Things Go Horribly Wrong. Hey, wasn't life going swell for the Dodgers, like, just a couple of days ago? Weren't they on their hottest streak since the 19th century? Wasn't Barney the dinosaur spotted wearing a comically oversized Dodgers cap? We blinked, and suddenly the Padres are back in the picture in the NL West, just one game back of first-place LA after a three-game sweep. San Diego won on Wednesday 7-2, as Geoff Blum had four hits and three RBI, and Grady Little and Brad Penny were ejected by plate umpire Rick Reed in the fifth inning after a very entertaining series of arguments. At issue was the number of mound visits Little had made to talk with Penny, which turned out to be two. How difficult is it to count to two, or even three? Barney? Can you chime in here? Come on, you big purple bastard; make yourself useful for once.

• 2. It May Not Yet Be Time To Fold Your Socks. Meanwhile, the other Los Angeles team wasn't faring much better, as Boston suddenly remembered it was late August and decided to win, 5-4 over the Angels. But unless someone spots Drew Barrymore at Fenway working on a laptop computer, it may be too late. David Ortiz and Wily Mo Pena each hit two-run homers, by the way.

• 3. The Philadelphia Story. Brett Myers beat pummeled roughed up was victorious over the Cubs as the Phillies improved their wild-card chances with a 2-1 win.

• 4. Sad, Really. The bad news for the Indians: They allowed 10 runs in the first inning. The good news: They were playing Kansas City. Cleveland came back from a 10-1 deficit to beat the Royals 15-13 in 10 innings, with the comedy team of Ryan Garko and Hector Luna connecting for run-scoring singles in the 10th.

• 5. Athletic Achievement. Esteban Loaiza, with whom you should try to avoid vehicular travel, threw his first shutout in three years as Oakland beat Toronto 6-0. We call the AL West for the A's.