Giants exploit L.A.’s blunders

Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp ran into each other in the outfield.

The ball dropped.

Kemp misjudged the very next ball hit his way.

It sailed over his head.

Then, the death blow: a clumsy flip by Ronald Belisario toward the plate.

Too high and too late.

Not even the high-scoring Dodgers could overcome the series of defensive mistakes they made Monday night, as they fell to the San Francisco Giants, 5-4, at AT&T; Park.

If there was any consolation in defeat, it was this: The Dodgers almost got away with it.

The Giants were able to score their first three runs in part because of the balls that were misplayed by Ethier and Kemp. The Dodgers surged for four runs in the seventh inning and pulled ahead, 4-3, on a run-scoring single by Manny Ramirez.

Belisario, who pitched a perfect seventh inning, was sent back to the mound for the eighth. That’s when trouble reappeared.

Fred Lewis and Edgar Renteria led off the inning with singles to put runners at the corners. Belisario struck out Randy Winn, but the next batter, Rich Aurilia, hit a dribbler down the first base line that he had to reach down to field.

Instead of securing the easy out by applying a tag to the slow-footed Aurilia, Belisario flipped the ball with his glove toward catcher Russell Martin in a futile effort to prevent Lewis from scoring the tying run.

That out proved crucial, as the Giants scored the go-ahead run in their next at-bat. Bengie Molina’s run-scoring groundout would have been the third out had Belisario tagged out Aurilia.

The game ended pretty much the same way as it started for the Dodgers, who lost their second consecutive game but remained 2 1/2 games ahead of second-place San Diego in the National League West.

The Dodgers found themselves in trouble early, something for which starter Randy Wolf could hardly be blamed even though he was charged with three earned runs in the first inning.

A fly ball to right-center field by Renteria dropped for what was ruled a double when Ethier and Kemp collided. The next batter, Winn, hit a line drive to center field that was misjudged by Kemp, who watched the ball sail over his head for a triple.

Winn scored on a double to right field by Aaron Rowand, who was driven in on a single to center field by Pablo Sandoval to increase the Giants’ lead to 3-0.

The runs were the only ones given up by Wolf, who lasted six innings and held the Giants to six hits.

The Giants held the three-run advantage for some time.

Barry Zito was in far better form than he was April 16, when the Dodgers pounded him for six runs over five innings at Dodger Stadium and tagged him with his second loss of the season.

Zito held the Dodgers scoreless through the first six innings, limiting them to three hits.

But the Dodgers stormed back.

A two-run home run by Casey Blake and a pinch-hit single by Juan Pierre forced Zito out of the game.

In came Merkin Valdez, who promptly walked Rafael Furcal. Orlando Hudson singled to center field to drive in Pierre for the tying run.

Ramirez put the Dodgers ahead, 4-3, on a single to left field.

Belisario couldn’t hold the lead, as he fell to 0-2 and was charged with his third blown save.

Closer Brian Wilson struck out the side in the ninth inning to secure the victory for the Giants, who were swept by the Dodgers in a three-game series in Los Angeles this month.

--

dylan.hernandez@latimes.com