21 Hits Are Barely Enough for the Dodgers : They Overcome Cubs With 4 Runs and Chant in Ninth

They were holding hands around the television in the Dodger clubhouse Sunday--the injured, the ejected and the expended--cheering and praying and listening to Cub broadcaster Harry Caray describe the ninth inning, all at the same time.

In the dugout, the loudest Len Matuszek said he’s ever heard, they were chanting, “Dee-fense, Dee-fense.”

“If the Cubs had gotten within field goal range,” Matuszek said, “we were going to switch to, ‘Block that kick.’ ”

And on the mound, Ken Howell, twice battered, twice blessed, was contemplating his teammates’ parting words to him as he prepared for final jeopardy.

“They said to me, ‘Do you think you can get it right this time?’ ” Howell said. “I said, ‘Just give me one more chance.’ ”

The Dodgers had to give Howell four runs in the eighth--three on Matuszek’s home run off Cub relief ace Lee Smith--and four more in the ninth just to make up for the five runs in two innings the Dodger reliever gave back to the Cubs.

But in the end, Howell not only got his chance, he got the decision in a 13-11, 21-hit Dodger win that was at once grandiose and grotesque, gripping and goofy.

“Moose (Mike Marshall) and I were sitting on the bench,” Matuszek said, “and he was saying, ‘This is the most unbelievable game I’ve ever seen.’ That was when we were winning, 9-8.

“Then when they went ahead, he said, ‘If we come back again and win, this is more unbelievable than unbelievable.’ ”

Believe it. This was baseball as imagined by Fellini, acted out before 33,826 enthralled--if ultimately dissatisfied--customers at Wrigley Field who witnessed 10 pitchers, three lead changes in the last two innings, two ejections, two home runs, and one outfield throw for the ages.

“I think the only reason it ended was that both teams ran out of pitchers,” said Howell, giddy with relief after working a 1-2-3 ninth.

Steve Sax, who was on base five times with three hits and two walks, started the winning rally with a single off Cub reliever Frank DiPino. Rookie Reggie Williams, who came into the game when Ken Landreaux sprained his left knee on his first at-bat, followed with a double into the left-field corner.

Rookie Jeff Hamilton, who came into the game when Bill Madlock strained his back in the second, followed with an infield hit to deep short, scoring Sax to make it, 11-10.

Cleanup hitter Franklin Stubbs, 0 for Chicago in a dozen previous at-bats, bunted the runners over, and pinch-hitter Bill Russell, the last non-pitcher left on the bench, was walked intentionally to load the bases.

That brought up catcher Mike Scioscia, whose surprise stolen base had helped set up the run that had given the Dodgers their short-lived, 9-8 lead the inning before.

Scioscia hit a sharp grounder a couple of steps to the right of Cub first baseman Leon Durham, who put his glove down and came up with nothing.

“What it came down to was if he (Durham) picks it, it’s probably a double play,” Scioscia said. “If not, we win.”

Williams scored easily, and so did Hamilton with the go-ahead run when pitcher DiPino inexplicably cut off outfielder Terry Francona’s strong throw to the plate.

“I don’t know what the pitcher was doing there,” said Scioscia, wondering why DiPino wasn’t backing up the play instead of messing it up.

The Dodgers added another run on a fielder’s choice, then Lasorda had no choice but to send out Howell for the last three outs.

All that was left in the Dodger bullpen was Carlos Diaz, who had pitched in each of the previous three games, and Tom Niedenfuer, who said his shoulder was too sore to pitch. They were the only two Dodgers who didn’t play Sunday.

Lasorda didn’t even have a starter left. Alejandro Pena lasted for five outs and six runs, and the other four-fifths of the rotation was used in one inning, the sixth, when Rick Honeycutt pinch relieved, Fernando Valenzuela pinch hit, Orel Hershiser pinch ran, and Bob Welch got pinched.

Welch, along with Enos Cabell, was ejected from the dugout by umpire Bob Davidson, who said Hershiser was tagged out before he reached the plate on Reggie Williams’ single to right. At the time, the run seemed important, since Jeff Hamilton followed with another hit that cut the Cubs’ lead to 6-5.

It actually occurred to Cabell that the Dodgers might need Welch later on. That’s why Cabell tried to convince Pedro Guerrero, who couldn’t do anything more for the Dodgers than model his designer sunglasses in the dugout, to take the rap for Welch.

“He (Davidson) didn’t see the play so he might not have seen who was screaming,” Cabell said.

Guerrero, Cabell said, would have none of it.

“I told him, ‘You’re no good,’ ” Cabell said. “ ‘We can’t use you, but you’re going to stay in the game.’ ”

The Dodgers, who had 10 hits in the first three innings and still trailed, 6-4, appeared out of the game when Durham took Howell to Waveland Avenue with a two-run homer that made it 8-5 in the seventh, a lead that Smith was summoned to protect in the top of the eighth.

But Smith, who had 6 wins and 17 saves, walked Sax on four pitches, and two outs later walked Stubbs to bring up Matuszek.

“I knew he had control problems, and couldn’t walk anybody more,” Matuszek said. “I felt good after taking a couple of his fastballs up and away. They looked hittable. Usually, he’s in the mid-90s, and you’ve got to get him at 90.”

Matuszek got what he wanted, a fastball that he drove into the midst of the same left-field bleacher bums who had been pelting him with verbal abuse for the past two days.

Scioscia then singled, stole second, and after an intentional walk to Greg Brock, scored on Mariano Duncan’s third single of the day. When the inning ended, Smith tipped his cap to loud boos.

“We were down early and ready to get blown out of it,” Matuszek said. “And for an outfielder here, it’s tough to take all that crap from the fans.

“I hope I left ‘em with a little present. That was the sweetest way to do something.”

But even that wasn’t enough, as the Cubs countered with three hits and three more runs in the bottom of the eighth. The last run came home on Ryne Sandberg’s sacrifice fly, which preceded rookie Jose Gonzalez’s throw from right field that cleared the Cub dugout on the fly and landed in the seats.

“Well now we know he has a great arm,” broadcaster Carry observed.

After that, it was left for the Dodgers to prove they had an even greater constitution.

“When the Cubs scored those runs and brought in Lee Smith, everybody thought the game was over,” said Lasorda, too drained to celebrate.

“But the attitude on the bench was that it wasn’t over.”

And just to make sure, Cabell, Welch, Madlock, and Hershiser, among others, joined hands in the clubhouse and chanted.

“We don’t know what we were chanting,” Madlock said, “but we had to do something to get us through the ninth.”

Dodger Notes

The Dodgers came home with a 6-4 record on the trip, their best trip of the season, but still lost a half-game in the standings to the Astros, whom they trailed by eight games when they started. The pitching returns home in battered condition. Dodger starters had a 5.96 ERA on the trip, 7.60 if Fernando Valenzuela’s wins aren’t included. Starters lasted into the seventh only three times in 10 games, Valenzuela twice and Bob Welch once. The bullpen had a 4.78 ERA on the trip, and is worn out after Manager Tom Lasorda used 13 pitchers in the three-game series against the Cubs. And it’s not known whether Tom Niedenfuer--who appeared in five games on the trip--will be available tonight, when the Dodgers open a three-game series with the Giants. “He said his arm was tired; what the hell can you do?” pitching coach Ron Perranoski said. Asked why Niedenfuer was in the bullpen at the start of the game, Perranoski said: “He didn’t have a ticket. The place was sold out.” Niedenfuer said he just wanted to get out of the sun when he left the bullpen for the dugout. “I’ve just been throwing a lot,” Niedenfuer said. “Sometimes you just need a day off.” But the suspicion is that Niedenfuer’s arm is sore as well as tired.