MILWAUKEE -- Watch the replay of the Dodgers' 7-2 win over the Brewers on Thursday and you'll see things rarely seen.

Like a Dodgers starting pitcher (Chad Billingsley) taking a shutout into the eighth inning. The first game of the year in which Andruw Jones (only his second) and Jeff Kent (his first in a month) homered in the same game. And even a three-run blast by backup catcher Gary Bennett, who drove in four.

Bennett caught because Russell Martin started at third base, because rookie Blake DeWitt became the fourth third baseman on the depth chart to get hurt. DeWitt strained his lower back on defense Wednesday night, hit in the cage Thursday morning, but felt it tighten during pregame stretching and came out of the lineup after the national anthem.

The Dodgers say they are hopeful the injury isn't serious, but after watching shortstop Rafael Furcal wind up on the disabled list with the same problem, there is reason for concern. DeWitt has been nursing the injury for a week, but he noticeably tweaked it fielding a Jason Kendall grounder Wednesday night and throwing across his body to first base.

"It's not an issue, really," said DeWitt, although he insisted Wednesday night that he would play on Thursday. "I was feeling good before the game. It just tightened up. I'll go in tomorrow with the approach that I expect to play and see how it feels before the game."

Manager Joe Torre gave credit for Bennett's presence in the lineup to third-base coach Larry Bowa. Torre, who had already decided that Luis Maza would start at shortstop instead of Chin-lung Hu, would have replaced DeWitt with Hu. But he said Bowa suggested moving Martin to third and starting Bennett.

Bennett still was the most unlikely of heroes. After the home runs by Jones and Kent, James Loney tripled, was singled home by Martin and Luis Maza produced his first Major League hit, a hit-and-run single that sent Martin to third and brought up Bennett.

"I was looking for something up to hit a sacrifice fly," said Bennett, who did a lot better than that and also doubled in a run in the ninth.

"It was huge," Torre said of Bennett's home run, "based on the fact it opened up the game for us. Runs are like gold with [Milwaukee starter] Ben Sheets."

"That was probably my worst inning ever," Sheets said of the six-run seventh.

The Dodgers came into the game expecting three consecutive games of hard work. Sheets came into the game with a 4-0 record, and lined up to face the Dodgers for the Angels on Friday night and Saturday were Joe Saunders (6-1) and Ervin Santana (6-0).

The Dodgers beat Sheets, but it was harder than it looked. The first Dodgers hit was Juan Pierre's single leading off the fourth inning, and they didn't score until Jones tagged a high fastball, triggering a six-run seventh inning.

Meanwhile, Billingsley was outdueling Sheets. Billingsley even flirted with a no-hitter until Sheets' clean line single to center with two outs in the fifth. The Dodgers right-hander was lifted with no outs in the eighth inning after Kendall sliced a triple past right fielder Andre Ethier and Rickie Weeks walked.

"I didn't have my off-speed [pitches], but I just went after them with the fastball," said Billingsley (3-5), who has won three of his last four starts after losing his first four. "I was able to throw it where I wanted it and kept it down in the zone."

Billingsley, who allowed one run on three hits in seven-plus innings, gave Bennett as much credit for his catching as his hitting.

"Benny had a great day," said Billingsley. "He put the game out of reach with the home run and he called a great game behind the plate. He kept their hitters off-balance."

Elevated pitches became Sheets' downfall. Jones tagged a fastball leading off the seventh inning, only his second homer of the season. One out later, Kent slugged his fourth homer of the season and first since April 15. He came into the game 1-for-26 in the last eight games.

Kent said the recent play of the Dodgers -- an eight-game win streak, a five-game losing streak, now two consecutive wins -- is no surprise in its unpredictability.

"In general, we're an inexperienced team, and we won't be as consistent as you would like," he said. "If you look at the club, consistency is the hardest thing to grab. It's a good team, though. We just have to manage the consistency."