Dodgers Fumble, Stumble, but Beat Pirates Anyway

The noted Los Angeles art critic Tom Lasorda, who would spend far more time in museums if they weren’t located so close to his favorite restaurants, was posed the following question Tuesday night.

If the Dodgers’ 5-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates were a painting, would Lasorda hang it in his living room?

Lasorda burst out laughing.

“To me,” he said, “it looked like a Leonardo da Vinci.”

To anyone else in the crowd of 30,342 at Dodger Stadium, it looked like the work of Lenny da Vinci, neighborhood spray-paint graffiti artist.

“A guy told me it was an ugly win,” said Dave Anderson, who singled in what proved to be the winning run in the Dodgers’ third win in a row, the first time they’ve done that this season.

“I told him that was better than an ugly loss.”

This was a crazy mural of cheap hits, costly errors, blown rundown plays and daffy decisions, which could only have been decided in the fashion it was.

After the Pirates had taken advantage of catcher Mike Scioscia’s missed tag on a rundown in a three-run sixth that wiped out a 3-0 deficit, the Dodgers won it in the bottom of the sixth when Pirate center fielder Joe Orsulak attempted a shoestring catch of pinch-hitter Cesar Cedeno’s looping liner and missed.

Cedeno wound up on third with a triple, the Dodgers’ first of the year, and Scioscia, who had singled, scored. Dave Anderson followed with a base hit that made it 5-3.

The inning before, the Dodgers had scored two runs on an infield single by Ken Landreaux, Mariano Duncan never stopping on his way from second.

And they scored their first run when Anderson went from first to third on Hershiser’s sacrifice bunt.

“I should have caught it,” said Orsulak about Cedeno’s ball, dismissing the suggestion that the safe option would have been to play the ball on the hop and let Cedeno settle for a single.

“That ball was catchable. I just didn’t get it (his glove) down there to catch it. It’s not a question of playing it safe. I thought I could catch the ball, and I just didn’t keep it in front of me.”

It was up to Ken Howell to keep the Dodgers in front of the Pirates, and that he did, despite Dodger errors at the start of both the seventh and eighth innings.

One error, by Greg Brock, who juggled what would have been an easy toss to first, led to the Pirates’ final run in the seventh, but Howell struck out five Pirates in three innings for his first save this season.

He struck out two Pirates in the ninth, including Jim Morrison to end the game, as he and Dodger starter Orel Hershiser combined for a total of 12 strikeouts.

“My velocity’s there, my curveball’s there,” Howell said. “Now I just have to maintain my composure when I’m out there.”

Hershiser left the game after an inning that would have ruffled even the most stoic pitcher: The sixth, when the Pirates scored their first run on a single by pinch-hitter R.J. Reynolds, a walk to Lee Mazzilli and a broken-bat, ground double down the right-field line by Orsulak.

Hershiser went to 3 and 0 on Johnny Ray, the league’s leading hitter (.410) coming into the game, then Ray hit a sharp comebacker to the mound. Hershiser made a nice backhand stop, faked the runner back to second, then fired to third, where Mazzilli was trapped off the bag.

In the ensuing rundown, however, Mazzilli fell down and Scioscia ran right by him, missing the tag while his momentum carried him toward third. Mazzilli dusted himself off and trotted home, and it was 3-2, with Scioscia being charged with an error on the play.

“I saw him coming at me and I just ducked under him,” Mazzilli said. “There’s no question he missed me. By a lot.”

The next batter, Sid Bream, grounded into a double play, but Orsulak trotted home with the tying run.

That was it for Hershiser, who still got credit for his third win when the Dodgers broke the tie in the bottom of the inning.

“My back stiffened up,” Hershiser said.

Hershiser’s mind momentarily froze the previous inning, when he was caught stealing after dropping a surprise, full-count single for his first hit of the year.

“Let me ask you something,” Lasorda said. “Pretend you’re the manager: Would you have Hershiser going on a hit-and-run? Would you have him stealing?

“Now if you, who has never had anything to do with professional baseball, wouldn’t, then why would I, when I’ve been in the game 40 years?”

Said Hershiser sheepishly: “I misread the sign.”

The Dodgers scored two runs, anyway, flexing their talent for bloop hits against Pirate starter Rick Rhoden, who gave up two bunts, two infield hits, and two bloopers.

“What about mine?” said Anderson, who had singled in the third.

He answered his own question. “Well, I did break my bat.”

Another piece of work.

Dodger Notes

Balvino Galvez, a right-handed pitcher signed at the age of 17 by Dominican scout Ralph Avila, will join the Dodgers today, taking the place of Dennis Powell, who went on the 21-day disabled list, effective today. Galvez, 22, becomes the third Dodger to be from San Pedro de Macoris, joining Mariano Duncan and Pedro Guerrero. Galvez was 2-1 with a 3.96 ERA at Albuquerque after going 10-9 last season at Double A San Antonio. He’ll go into the Dodger bullpen. “These guys should be playing Triple-A, but there’s nothing we can do,” Manager Tom Lasorda said. “On the other hand, it might be beneficial for him, give him a chance to get his feet wet in the big leagues.” . . . Alejandro Pena’s first start for Class A Vero Beach will be Friday night against Winter Haven. Pena is on a 20-day rehabilitation assignment. . . . Bill Russell’s four stolen bases so far match his total in each of the previous two seasons.