Dodgers, Rafael Furcal make a little noise

The malaise that is this Dodgers season reached its 100th game Saturday night and appeared set to take further hold after only a half inning.

Dodgers starter Ted Lilly had given up two singles, two doubles and three runs to the Washington Nationals

before many fans had found their seats at Dodger Stadium.

But on this night, the Dodgers and Lilly -- who slugged a two-run double and had three runs batted in overall to help his cause -- declined to go quietly and made a game of it.

Shortstop Rafael Furcal, who has struggled at the plate since returning from the disabled list July 3, hit a walk-off double against Washington reliever Ryan Mattheus to score Trent Oeltjen in the bottom of the ninth inning and give the Dodgers a 7-6 win.

That was "was a huge hit for him," Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly said. "He's been down" about his slump "so it's good to see that."

Mattingly also praised his bullpen for keeping the Dodgers (44-56) in the game in the final four innings, adding that "It was a nice win from the standpoint that the guys came back."

Dodgers closer Javy Guerra (2-0), who pitched a scoreless ninth inning, earned the victory.

The Dodgers' seven runs and 14 hits were their most since they exploded for 15 runs and 25 hits against the Twins in Minnesota on June 27.

The Dodgers tied Saturday's game, 6-6, in the seventh inning when pinch-runner Eugenio Velez scored from third base on a wild pitch by Nationals reliever Henry Rodriguez.

Velez had replaced catcher Dioner Navarro, who walked, and then he stole second base and moved to third base when Jamey Carroll grounded out.

Though the Dodgers' sparse run production has been their main concern this season, Lilly's uneven performance over the last two months also raises questions.

In five of his last seven starts, the left-hander has allowed four or more earned runs, and his earned-run average climbed to 5.08 in Saturday's outing.

After Lilly spotted Washington the three runs in the first inning, the Dodgers came back with a run in the first inning when Furcal scored on Matt Kemp's sacrifice fly.

The Dodgers scored again in the second inning when Lilly bunted and a sliding James Loney scored from third base as catcher Wilson Ramos bobbled the throw at home plate.

The Nationals then scored three more times against Lilly in the third inning on a two-run double by Rick Ankiel and a run-scoring infield single by Ian Desmond.

But in the Dodgers' half of the third inning, Kemp doubled, Juan Rivera singled and Kemp tagged and scored on Loney's sacrifice fly.

After Juan Uribe singled, Washington intentionally walked Dioner Navarro to load the bases and get to Lilly. But the pitcher lined his double to right-center field, cutting the Nationals' lead to 6-5. It was only his third hit of the season.

"Fortunately, I was able to help" with the bat because "I put us in a big hole," Lilly said. "We were able to come back, in large part due to the work the bullpen did. Then obviously we got some clutch hits as the game went on."

Texas' Hamilton breaks right arm, out 6-8 weeks

Texas outfielder Josh Hamilton is expected to miss six to eight weeks after breaking his right arm on a headfirst dive into home plate Tuesday, a dash the AL MVP later called "stupid."

Hamilton tried to score from third on a foul pop-up near the Detroit dugout in the first inning. Third baseman Brandon Inge and catcher Victor Martinez both chased the ball, leaving the plate unprotected.

Inge made the catch, then tossed the ball to Martinez, who got back in time to tag Hamilton.

"It was a stupid play," Hamilton said. "The whole time the ball was in the air, the coach was yelling, 'Go, there's no one at home,' and I was thinking, 'I don't want to do this, something is going to happen.'

"But I listened to my coach," he said, referring to third-base coach Dave Anderson. "It was way too aggressive. Maybe if they had both been closer to me, but they had a perfect angle to cut me off, and the only way to avoid a tag in that situation is to go headfirst."

Rangers general manager Jon Daniels defended Anderson's decision to send Hamilton.

"We play an aggressive style of baseball," he said. "The chances of getting hurt on that play are minimal."

The Rangers said Hamilton has a non-displaced fracture of the humerus bone at the top of his arm, just below the shoulder. He isn't expected to swing a bat for a month.

Furcal out: The Dodgers placed shortstop Rafael Furcal on the 15-day disabled list after he broke his left thumb while sliding into third base on a steal in the fifth inning of L.A.'s 6-1 win over the Giants on Monday night. Furcal is expected to miss four to six weeks. The Dodgers recalled rookie infielder Ivan De Jesus from Triple-A Albuquerque.

Briefly: The Nationals put third baseman Ryan Zimmerman on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Sunday, with a strained abdominal muscle and recalled catcher Jesus Flores from Triple-A Syracuse. ... Houston manager Brad Mills had to sit out Tuesday's game against the Cubs as MLB suspended him for his ejection from Sunday's game against Florida. Reliever Aneury Rodriguez was suspended for three games, but is appealing his suspension and may play until there is a ruling on the appeal. Mills and Rodriguez also were fined undisclosed amounts. ... Seattle catcher Adam Moore is expected to miss the rest of the season after knee surgery Tuesday.