Dodgers Receive a Helping Hand From the Reds : Baseball: L.A. gets only three hits but scores two unearned runs in 3-1 victory. Cincinnati’s lead is trimmed to 5 1/2 games.

Those wondering if the first-place Cincinnati Reds have noticed the Dodgers at their heels saw signs of just that Friday night.

The Reds appear bothered, evidenced by a bumbling effort that helped give the Dodgers a 3-1 victory before 47,720 at Dodger Stadium.

In winning for the sixth time in 13 meetings with the Reds, the Dodgers moved to within 5 1/2 games of first place in the National League West.

Friday, the Reds played like a first-place team chasing a second-place team. They had only four hits against rookie Jim Neidlinger and Jay Howell.

“They know we are for real, and they know we want to win,” Lenny Harris said of his former Red teammates. “And they know that the team that makes the most mistakes is going to lose.”

Actually, the Dodgers had more errors, committing four to the Reds’ two. And the Dodgers had only three hits against three Reds pitchers.

But the Reds were hurt more by the mistakes.

The Dodgers scored one run in the first inning on three walks by starting pitcher Jose Rijo and a fly ball.

They scored an unearned run in the fourth on an error by shortstop Barry Larkin and two singles.

They scored another unearned run in the sixth on a walk, a single and an error by right fielder Paul O’Neill.

The Reds made a final effort in the ninth, putting runners on first and third with none out after a single by Larkin and a grounder by O’Neill that shortstop Alfredo Griffin booted for an error.

But Howell relieved Neidlinger and retired the next three Reds hitters on two grounders and a fly ball.

Howell picked up his 14th save, and Neidlinger, in the best performance of his budding career, improved to 4-1 and received a standing ovation while leaving the field.

“That was so great, it was hard to explain,” he said of the applause, which he acknowledged with a tipped cap.

After the Reds’ fourth loss in five games, Manager Lou Piniella refused to discuss the pennant race. And first baseman Hal Morris said he wasn’t worried about the Dodgers.

“I haven’t even been thinking about that,” he said in reference to a Dodger comeback. “That thought hasn’t even crossed my mind.”

The Dodgers’ relaxed atmosphere began Friday when Manager Tom Lasorda canceled batting practice for the second consecutive day. While some of the Reds arrived at the stadium as early as 3 p.m., most of the Dodgers didn’t arrive until three hours later.

“While they were out there taking batting practice and infield and all that, we just came to the ballpark and thought about what we had to do,” Mike Sharperson said.

Batting practice, as you may have guessed, is canceled again today.

“I may never have it again,” Lasorda said.

One of the few Dodgers who arrived early was Neidlinger, who had forgotten about the schedule change. But after not making it past the fifth inning in two of his last four starts, he was glad for the time to sit and forget.

“I got some food and waited for the lineup card,” Neidlinger said. “The biggest thing you can do in this situation is not concentrate too much.

He then allowed only one unearned run in eight-plus innings, also driving in the fourth-inning run with a single up the middle.

Rijo, while allowing only three hits in seven innings, showed much less composure. He walked six, equaling his season high, with a balk. His problems began with the first batter he faced, and he did not settle until his final inning of work.

Rijo walked leadoff hitter Harris on four pitches. After he struck out Kirk Gibson, who is in a two-for-22 slump, Rijo walked Kal Daniels. Harris and Daniels then executed a double steal. Three pitches later, Eddie Murray was walked to load the bases with one out, then Brooks’ shallow line drive to left fielder Eric Davis scored Harris.

The Dodgers scored their second run in the fourth inning in the same unusual fashion. With one out, a grounder by Sharperson was dropped by Larkin for an error. A grounder by Griffin moved Sharperson to second, then a single up the middle by Neidlinger scored him. Neidlinger also had an RBI single in his last start.

The Dodgers scored their third run in the sixth inning after Scioscia drew a leadoff walk. Sharperson singled to right, with Scioscia rounding second and trying for third. Instead of throwing to second base to keep Sharperson at first, right fielder O’Neill tried to throw out Scioscia.

The throw bounced through the infield, underneath the glove of third baseman Chris Sabo and into the Dodger dugout, scoring Scioscia.

Dodger Notes

Eddie Murray was originally out of the lineup because of a sore left wrist that he injured while trying to scoop a potential double-play relay from Jose Offerman Thursday. But after pregame X-rays were negative, Murray arrived at the Dodger Stadium and asked to be reinserted into the lineup. “Aw c’mon Eddie, couldn’t you have gotten stuck in traffic?” said Mickey Hatcher, who was scheduled to replace Murray. . . . Bill Doran, recently acquired by the Cincinnati Reds from Houston, was pulled from the starting lineup because of right lower back sprain. Doran entered the night with seven hits in 14 at-bats as a Red.

Tim Belcher threw for 15 minutes before the game and said his sore shoulder felt no better than when he was placed on the disabled list Aug. 17. He could decide to undergo arthroscopic surgery by next week. “One minute you think you are feeling better, the next minute you realize that your mind was just trying to convince you that you feel better,” Belcher said. “This has been very difficult.” . . . Ray Searage will throw on the side today, then throw a simulated game in San Diego early next week, and could be activated by next weekend. “I’m pretty close,” he said.