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Dodgers P Ishii in recovery

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- The Los Angeles Dodgers received a critical blow to their postseason chances Sunday night when rookie southpaw Kazuhisa Ishii was struck in the head by a line drive and taken from the

field in an ambulance.

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Ishii, who opened his first major league season with six straight victories, suffered a concussion and a small skull fracture after being hit on the left side of his forehead with a

line drive off the bat of Houston's Brian Hunter in the fourth inning.

He never lost consciousness or the ability to move his limbs. Stan Johnston said Ishii's neurological functions and vital signs were normal.

"As soon as I hit the ball, my natural reaction was to say 'heads up,'" Hunter said. "I wanted to run out there and see if he was all right. You hate to see that happen. I'd rather hit into a double play than hit it like that. My thoughts and prayers are with him, his family and the Dodger organization."

"The first thing that I saw was the blood, which scared me to death," said Los Angeles Manager Jim Tracy. "Fortunately, it was just a surface cut, not profuse and he never lost consciousness. I know he could hear voices and he told the trainers that his head hurt real bad. The fact that he was relaying those messages was a good sign."

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The Japanese lefthander, who celebrates his 29th birthday on Monday, lay motionless on the field for nearly 10 minutes before his head and neck were immobilized by paramedics.

"He has a small skull fracture," Tracy said. "He had a CT scan and he will have one later this evening, but he is not in any type of danger. He is doing OK and has been stabilized. He will be out indefinitely, and what I mean by that is he will for certain not make his next start."

"It just made me sick," said pitching coach Jim Colborn, who was close by the fallen Ishii. "The longer he was there, the worse the pain was."

Apparently, the time of day had something to do with Ishii's inability to see the ball coming at him.

"The visibility for a game that starts at 4 was definitely a factor in him not seeing the ball," said Kreuter. "He did not get his glove up. With those shadows around home plate, there's no depth perception. This is scary. It can kill a guy. It's a shame that maybe it has taken a serious injury for them to take a look at late afternoon starting times."

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Ishii took the loss in the game, allowing three runs and five hits in 3 1/3 innings before the injury. It was the eighth loss in his last 11 decisions, and his overall record fell to 14-10.

The Dodgers, who trail Arizona by 4 1/2 games in the National League West, hold a one-game lead over San Francisco in the NL wild-card race. Los Angeles visits the Giants for a three-game series beginning Monday.

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