CHICAGO – Brad Penny earned his 15th victory, Matt Kemp had four hits and the Los Angeles Dodgers spoiled Steve Trachsel’s return to the Cubs, beating Chicago 6-2 Tuesday night.

The Cubs lead in the NL Central was reduced to a half-game over Milwaukee and a game over St. Louis, both of whom won.

The Dodgers, who won for the seventh time in nine games, were in third place in the NL West, four games back.

Rebounding from a rough outing in his previous start against the Nationals when he gave up eight hits and six runs in five innings (a no-decision), Penny (15-4) got his first victory since Aug. 15. He allowed seven hits and two runs – one earned – in seven innings.

Trachsel (0-1), acquired in a trade from Baltimore last Friday for the final month stretch run, made his first outing with the Cubs since 1999.

He allowed three runs and seven hits in six innings.

The Dodgers bunched four straight two-out hits in the fifth for a 3-1 lead that could have been larger if not for a great throw – the first of two on the night – from Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano.

Penny started it with a double into the left fielder corner, just beating the throw with an awkward slide into the bag.

Rafael Furcal singled him to third and Juan Pierre followed with an RBI single to right. After Pierre stole second, Kemp singled to left to score Furcal, but Soriano’s one-hop throw was in time and on line to get the speedy Pierre as Jason Kendall blocked the plate.

Chicago cut it to 3-2 in the sixth when Aramis Ramirez’s grounder went through Dodgers’ third baseman Andy LaRoche for an error.

Daryle Ward then drove a double over Pierre’s head in center and Ramirez scored with a head-first slide, just avoiding a sweeping tag by Russell Martin.

Mark DeRosa followed with a single but Penny escaped by getting Jacque Jones on a double play grounder.

The Dodgers reached reliever Kerry Wood for two runs and a 5-2 lead in the seventh as James Loney led off with a single and LaRoche hit an RBI double.

LaRoche got to third on a grounder and scored on Pierre’s bunt single to first.

Will Ohman, recalled from the minors on Saturday, left to boos and with the bases loaded and none out in the eighth after a single by Gonzalez, double by Martin and an intentional walk. Rookie Kevin Hart, in his major league debut, walked Ramon Martinez on four pitches to force in a run and make it 6-2.

Soriano then saved another run by catching Furcal’s fly to left and throwing out Martin at the plate.

Luis Gonzalez hit a two-out RBI single in the fourth, scoring Kemp, who’d singled and stole second, to build a 1-0 lead.

The Cubs tied it in the bottom half on singles by Ward, DeRosa and Jones’s RBI fielder’s choice grounder.