Manny Ramirez hit a home run. So did a suddenly spry Nomar Garciaparra. Clayton Kershaw was competent. And the Dodgers clinched a share of the NL West regular-season title by battering the Padres, 12-4, tonight — up four with four games to play.

Which could make for a rather odd “celebration” Thursday.

Second-place Arizona plays at St. Louis at 12:15 p.m. (PDT), so the Diamondbacks will be done long before the Dodgers’ start their game with the Padres at 7:10 p.m.

If Arizona loses, the Dodgers clinch the division title, and a playoffs berth, without breaking a sweat. Perhaps even before they get to Dodger Stadium for the last regular-season home game.

And if that happens?

Gather somewhere and watch the game and celebrate, if Arizona loses? Celebrate as the players straggle in, Thursday afternoon, if Arizona loses? Celebrate after their own game, even if it’s meaningless?

Joe Torre, Dodgers manager, suggested it would be the third option. He said there were no plans for the team to gather to watch the Diamondbacks. And he indicated they would not celebrate before their game with San Diego.

Guys running out for the start of the game while soaked with champagne wouldn’t be quite right.

“It’s going to be improptu,” Torre said of any celebration. “It won’t be planned. When it happens, we’ll enjoy it.”

Well, that’s not exactly what he said earlier … seeming to suggest the Dodgers would celebrate, albeit in a restrained fashion, before the game (if they clinch), and then do the champagne thing, etc., after their night game.

Which would be a little weird had they just lost. But it’s been a weird season.

The Dodgers aren’t assuming anything, even though they need only one victory — or one Arizona defeat — in the final four days of the season.

“We still have a little work to do,” Torre said. “Gotta win one more before the season is over.”

Said Ramirez: “We still got to come back tomorrow and try to win, and we’re going against the best pitcher (Jake Peavy) in the league.” Or the reigning Cy Young winner, anyway.

How the players will celebrate is probably the least of the concerns of the Dodgers brass, considering this team was 65-70 on Aug. 29 — before reeling off 18 victories in 23 games to go a season-high eight games over .500, and take command of baseball’s weakest division.

Barring an unlikely set of circumstances — four consecutive Dodgers defeats, four consecutive Arizona victories and a Diamondbacks victory over the Dodgers in a one-game playoff Monday — the Dodgers are in the playoffs for the third time in five seasons.

All things considered, they would rather clinch while they’re on the field. But as “bumpy” as this season has been, as Torre put it tonight, they would be OK with the Cardinals taking care of things earlier in the day.