Standup comic: Grace pitches ninth for Diamondbacks

Mark Grace pitched the ninth inning, and what was left of the crowd roared with laughter.

Los Angeles players razzed Grace from the dugout, and the Arizona first baseman mimicked the head-jerking glare of Diamondbacks reliever Mike Fetters to the first batter.

It was an uproarious finish to an otherwise ugly game for the NL West leaders, who lost 19-1 to the Dodgers on Monday night, shrinking their lead over Los Angeles to five games.

"Gracie's the best. He had it going," the Dodgers' Paul Lo Duca said. "That's my dream. I want to get on the mound someday."

It was one of the biggest routs in the Dodgers' 113-year history.

Grace allowed just one hit -- a homer to Dave Ross -- in his first pitching appearance in 14 big league seasons.

"That poor kid is going to get his first home run ball and it's off Mark Grace," Grace said. "I feel sorry for him. I can't believe I gave up a home run. I didn't have a scouting report on him. Obviously he can hit 65 mph fastballs."