Left-handed pitcher Aaron Miller, the Dodgers’ top pick in the June draft, was shut down with an oblique strain and taken off the Arizona Fall League roster.  — Ken Gurnick

Don Mattingly, the Dodgers hitting coach and presumed heir apparent to manager Joe Torre, has declined to interview for the vacant Washington Nationals manager job, according to baseball sources. The development is an indication that Mattingly and the Dodgers are making progress on a new contract that would formalize his succeeding Torre, who has one year remaining on his contract. None of Torre’s coaching staff is signed beyond this year. — Ken Gurnick

Manager Joe Torre has the same eight position players starting Sunday night in Game 3 of the NLCS, but he’s juggled the batting order against Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee from the one he used in Game 1 against lefty Cole Hamels.

He left Rafael Furcal first and Russell Martin eighth, but moved everybody else around. Ronnie Belliard moved from seventh to second; Andre Ethier, Manny Ramirez and Matt Kemp moved down one slot each from second, third and fourth to third, fourth and fifth; and he moved James Loney ahead of Casey Blake, the pair now sixth and seventh.

This gets Belliard, 3-for-8 in the first two games, nearer the top of the order while moving down Blake, 1-for-8. — Ken Gurnick 

Starter Hiroki Kuroda has a herniation of his cervical spine and will not pitch in the first round of the playoffs, Dodgers manager Joe Torre said Friday. Torre said Vicente Padilla will start Sunday’s regular-season finale and will be considered for the starting rotation for the first round of playoffs. He said Chad Billingsley and Jon Garland remain in the mix for the four starters and no decision on who joins Randy Wolf and Clayton Kershaw will be made until an opponent is determined. Kuroda last pitched Monday in Pittsburgh, allowing seven runs, but didn’t complain about neck pain until running in the outfield Tuesday in San Diego. — Ken Gurnick

Left fielder Manny Ramirez was out of Monday’s lineup with a tight hamstring he originally felt Saturday night. Manager Joe Torre said he did not consider the injury serious. However, Casey Blake was sent home to have a lingering tight hamstring examined by Dr. Neal ElAttrache. And Ronnie Belliard missed Monday’s game with a tight groin muscle. — Ken Gurnick

Randy Wolf has been scratched from his scheduled start Friday night against the Giants with stiffness in the back of his left elbow. Wolf was sent to Los Angeles and received a cortisone injection. Club officials believe the injury is not serious. Hiroki Kuroda will start Friday. — Ken Gurnick

Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw will miss his scheduled start Friday night in San Francisco after bruising his right shoulder running into the fence at Dodger Stadium Sunday shagging fly balls during batting practice, according to manager Joe Torre. The Dodgers had announced they were going with a six-man rotation, so Torre said one scenario would be to move everybody up one day. — Ken Gurnick

The Dodgersmade their first wave of promotions Tuesday, bringing left-handed pitcher Scott Elbert, catcher A.J. Ellis and outfielder Jason Repko from Triple-A Albuquerque. Elbert and Ellis have been with the Dodgers earlier this year, Repko has not. — Ken Gurnick

Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti is trying to acquire a run-producing pinch-hitter before Sept. 1, but the market is thin. Any player who joins the organization by Tuesday would be eligible for post-season play. Mark Loretta and Juan Pierre are the Dodgers’ primary pinch-hitters. Loretta is 11-for-51 (.216) with no homers and six RBIs pinch-hitting, only two of those RBIs since the All-Star break. Pierre has shown to be an effective pinch-hitter despite disliking the role (12-for-33, .364), but has no homers or RBIs and is often used to lead off an inning. Of the Dodgers’ four pinch-homers this year, two were hit by regular starters (Manny Ramirez and Rafael Furcal). The others were by Blake DeWitt (expected to be recalled from Triple-A next week) and the disabled Xavier Paul. Doug Mientkiewicz, who had the role until blowing out his shoulder and having surgery, is expected to be activated when rosters expand Tuesday. — Ken Gurnick

To make room for Thursday starting pitcher Vicente Padilla on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers placed Jason Schmidt on the 60-day disabled list, effectively ending his tenure with the club. Schmidt is in the final season of a three-year deal and has hinted he will retire. He went 2-2 in four starts last month, but was placed on the disabled list with recurring shoulder problems. In three seasons with the Dodgers he won a total of three games and had two shoulder operations. The Dodgers also optioned infielder Tony Abreu to Triple-A and he is expected to return Sept. 1 when rosters expand. — Ken Gurnick