Padres Prevail in 10th : Baseball: Dodgers waste 2-0 lead, lose when Fernandez scores on Sheffield’s sacrifice fly.

In defense of their infield defense this spring, the word most often used by Dodger officials was adequate.

When that defense faced its first crucial play of the season Saturday night, adequate looked similar to awful.

The Dodgers blew a 2-0 lead over the San Diego Padres after shortstop Jose Offerman botched a double-play grounder in the sixth inning.

Then the Dodgers lost in the 10th inning, 3-2, when Gary Sheffield’s sacrifice fly drove in Tony Fernandez before 31,155 at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

“This is one of those things that, as a team, we have to eliminate,” Mike Sharperson said of the sixth-inning events. “It’s one of those things where, we have to get out of that inning.”

But they didn’t. That eventually led to a 10th inning, which Fernandez began for the Padres by drawing a walk against losing pitcher Roger McDowell.

Tony Gwynn, one of the few batters who would not be sacrificing in that situation, then fought off a full-count pitch for a hit-and-run single to center field. Fernandez stopped at third, then scored moments later on a fly ball by Sheffield.

“Tony Gwynn doesn’t hit .300 for nothing,” McDowell said after Gwynn completed his fourth multi-hit game in six games this season. “I threw him a 3-and-2 slider that I know he wasn’t looking for, and he still hit it.”

Afterward the fans were treated to fireworks, but the display was probably not as explosive as what was happening inside Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda four innings earlier. “The sixth inning was the difference,” Lasorda said.

Holding a two-run lead with one out and runners on first and third, pitcher Kevin Gross induced Sheffield into what could have been an inning-ending double-play grounder to Offerman.

But the ball bounced past Offerman and into left field, scoring a run and keeping the inning alive.

Fred McGriff then hit a slow grounder to second baseman Juan Samuel. It would have taken brilliance to turn a double play, and he didn’t. Instead he threw to Offerman, who was standing on second base for one out, allowing another run to score to tie it at 2-2.

Finally, Sharperson fielded a grounder from Benito Santiago and threw to first to end the inning.

The sixth inning had started with Fernandez taking second on a single and questionable error call against Eric Davis, who overran the ball as it rolled toward the left-field corner. Gwynn then singled to set it up the rally.

“One of those things--McGriff’s ball was hit too slow, and Sheffield’s ball was hit too hard,” said Davis, who supplied the Dodgers with both runs on a home run and a run-scoring single.

While the Dodgers fell to 2-3 with Ramon Martinez pitching in today’s series finale, things are going even worse for Offerman.

He has more errors (two) than hits (one). He has more strikeouts (four) than either errors or hits. He and Samuel have combined to complete only one conventional double play.

It was all too bad for Gross, who gave up only two unearned runs, with one walk and three strikeouts, in 7 2/3 innings. He threw 91 pitches, only 24 of which were called balls.

“Pitched his heart out,” Lasorda said.

The Dodgers had given Gross the lead against Padre starter Bruce Hurst, thanks to Davis, who knocked Hurst’s second pitch of the fifth into the left-field seats, giving the Dodgers only their fourth ball hit out of the infield at that point.

Davis did it again in the sixth after Brett Butler led off the inning with a walk, was bunted to second by Sharperson and advanced to third by Eric Karros’ bloop single.

Darryl Strawberry struck out on three pitches, but Davis singled inside the third base line.

Davis has eight hits in 18 at-bats, leading the team in batting average (.444), home runs (two) and stolen bases (three).

Not bad for a player who, on the weekend before opening day, was diagnosed with a slightly herniated disk at the base of his neck.

“I feel it, but I learned how to hide the pain,” Davis said. “You won’t see me out there moaning and groaning about it. If I’m going to play, I’m going to play.”