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Padres blow 3-run lead and lose to Dodgers 8-6

By WTOP Staff

BETH HARRIS
AP Sports Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ian Kennedy is starting to feel more comfortable after a recent oblique injury. He just didn’t show it against the first-place Dodgers.

The right-hander notched his 11th loss in the San Diego Padres’ 8-6 defeat Tuesday night, allowing six runs — five earned — on seven hits in five innings. He struck out five and walked two.

“The last two starts my oblique’s been feeling really good, but these have been the worst two outings since the oblique,” Kennedy said. “It’s the time of the season where you’ve got to get through it.”

He missed a turn in the rotation with a minor oblique strain last month.

“Ian’s stuff was good, but he ran some deep counts, and from my perspective, he didn’t really have consistent secondary pitches,” Padres manager Bud Black said. “The curve, the slider and the changeup overall weren’t as good as we’ve seen Ian throw.”

On the final play of the game, Black challenged a call that ruled Abraham Almonte out at third on a tag play. Yasiel Puig hit Adrian Gonzalez with the cutoff throw to keep the tying run at first and Gonzalez fired to third as Almonte was diving back to the bag.

“I saw it a little bit late and I stopped,” Almonte said. “It was a close play. It was tough to say from the replay if I was safe or out. When he tagged me, I’m sure my hand was on the bag.”

The Padres led 3-0 in the first on Jedd Gyorko’s three-run homer.

“As hard as we fought and as well as we swung the bats, the mistakes really came back to hurt us and it added up to a tough loss,” Black said. “You look at a couple of ill-advised walks, you look at a couple of misplays, both in the outfield and the infield, and those plays came back to haunt us.”

Carl Crawford hit a two-run homer with two outs in the seventh and Justin Turner drove in two runs and scored another pair to help the Dodgers end a three-game skid.

The Dodgers have won six of their last seven against the Padres, and improved to 8-3 against their NL West rival this season.

Former Padre Kevin Correia (2-0) allowed four runs and eight hits over five innings in his Dodger Stadium debut. The right-hander struck out six and walked one while making his second start since being acquired from Minnesota on Aug. 9. He replaced Hyun-Jin Ryu, who is on the disabled list.

Kenley Jansen pitched the ninth for his 35th save, although his throwing error on a bunt single led to a run.

PADRES MOVES

They optioned pitcher Jesse Hahn to Double-A San Antonio to give his arm a rest. He missed the 2010 season after having Tommy John surgery and has pitched a combined 110 1/3 innings for San Antonio and the Padres this season. He will return when rosters expand on Sept. 1. To take Hahn’s roster spot, the Padres called up pitcher Frank Garces from San Antonio and he made his major league debut in the eighth.

PADRES SCOUTING

The team hired Don Welke as vice president of scouting operations, reuniting him with new GM and longtime friend A.J. Preller. The 71-year-old spent parts of the last eight seasons with Texas, where he was most recently senior special assistant to the GM. He began his scouting career with Cincinnati in 1965.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Padres: Pitcher Andrew Cashner (right shoulder soreness) will be reinstated from the disabled list this weekend and return to the rotation. The right-hander is 2-6 with a 2.36 ERA in 12 starts.

Dodgers: Infielder Juan Uribe, on the disabled list with a hamstring injury, is feeling better and will work indoors for a couple of days. Pitcher Josh Beckett, on the DL with a torn labrum, will let his muscle heal before he starts a throwing program to see if can handle it.

ON DECK

Padres: Left-hander Eric Stults (5-13, 4.64 ERA) takes the mound. He has limited the opposition to a .222 batting average over his last 10 starts since June 17 at Seattle.

Dodgers: Roberto Hernandez (7-8, 3.72 ERA) has faced the Padres once in his career on May 12, 2013, when he was with Tampa Bay. He is 3-5 in 12 career starts against the NL West.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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