Bradley Will Stay in No. 3 Slot for Now

Milton Bradley hit his seventh home run Thursday in a 3-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.

That was good news for the Dodgers, because Bradley has struggled as the everyday No. 3 batter.

The homer was Bradley’s first since May 9 and third this month. He has only four runs batted in and eight runs scored in May after producing 18 RBIs and 14 runs in April.

Moreover, Bradley has 22 strikeouts in May and a .326 on-base percentage -- subpar for a No. 3 batter on a contending team. He also leads the Dodgers with 35 strikeouts.

Manager Jim Tracy has made moves in an attempt to jump-start struggling Shawn Green, batting Green second and fifth and benching him for a day on the trip. Bradley has remained locked into the No. 3 spot.

“I will not drastically revamp that,” Tracy said. “We’ve talked about Shawn, but I just don’t want to single out any one individual. It would be totally unfair to do that. We’re not talking about a few guys.

“Milton is also in a little bit of a sorting-out process. He’s coming from the American League. He’s seeing a number of guys for the first time. I know this, his at-bats are very competitive.”

*

The Dodgers are expected to put injured starter Hideo Nomo on the disabled list this weekend to make room for leadoff batter Dave Roberts on the 25-man roster.

Nomo, who suffered a split nail on his right index finger May 19 against the Philadelphia Phillies, probably won’t return to the mound until the Dodgers begin a three-game interleague series June 11 against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Roberts completed a two-day rehabilitation assignment at Class-A Vero Beach, rejoining the Dodgers on Thursday in Milwaukee. Barring an unforeseen setback, Roberts would be activated for the homestand that begins tonight against Arizona.

“We’re kind of in the neighborhood of Boston with Hideo, which means the number of days that he would have spent on the disabled list enables us to create a spot to add a player,” Tracy said. “His nail is getting better, much better. But it needs to get to the point where we feel comfortable that he can go out there and start throwing again and he’s not going to tear it.”

Roberts is eager to return.

“I just want to go out there and do what I do, just try to get on base and make some things happen,” he said. “When we were 22-10, obviously we were playing good baseball and you get things going your way.

“In this situation, you’re not getting key hits, you’re not getting great pitching at times, and you’re not playing together as a team. But we’ve still got to look at it as, up to this point, we’re right [near] the top of the National League West.”

*

Third baseman Adrian Beltre had the day off to rest his sore left ankle.

Beltre might require much more time off as the Dodgers try to nurse him through the season. Beltre is expected to undergo surgery to remove bone spurs in the off-season.

ON DECK

Opponent -- Arizona Diamondbacks, three games.

Site -- Dodger Stadium.

TV -- Channel 13 tonight and Saturday, ESPN2 on Sunday.

Radio -- KFWB (980), KWKW (1330).

Records -- Dodgers 24-21, Diamondbacks 17-30.2003 record vs. Diamondbacks -- 9-10.

Tonight, 7 -- Wilson Alvarez (2-1, 3.27 ERA) vs. Randy Johnson (5-4, 2.44 ERA).

Saturday, 7 p.m. -- Jose Lima (5-3, 3.88) vs. Brandon Webb (2-4, 3.73).

Sunday, 5 p.m. -- Kazuhisa Ishii (5-3, 3.88) vs. Casey Fossum (0-1, 8.00).

Tickets -- (323) 224-1448.