Dodgers’ Streak Is Over at 1 : Baseball: One day after ending a 10-game skid, they lose again, 8-4.

After wrapping up the worst trip of more than 10 games in Los Angeles history with an 8-4 defeat at the hands of the San Diego Padres Tuesday, the Dodgers dressed quickly and somberly.

As bad as the last 11 days seemed, they realized their most athletically challenging moment was yet to come.

When they take to the Dodger Stadium field for the start of a 22-game home stand Thursday, they know they better be ready to duck.

“More than anything else, we’re going to hear boos,” Brett Butler said. “And we’re going to keep hearing boos until we win back the fans’ confidence.”

And how does the team that has gone 1-10 since leaving home do that?

“Hopefully, we start playing major league baseball,” Tom Candiotti said.

The inference was that such was not the case Tuesday, when the Dodgers followed their first victory in 11 games with their 16th defeat in 20.

Some of the 22,915 fans at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium were still locking their cars when Gary Sheffield got his first hit in 15 at-bats against Candiotti, a three-run homer during the first inning.

“That was the game right there,” said Candiotti, who couldn’t get his knuckleball to move much in the early innings after starting the game on three days of rest.

Actually, the outcome was probably determined seven innings later, after the Dodgers closed to 6-4. Jim Gott threw two wild pitches and gave up two singles during a two-run seventh inning.

Randy Myers struck out three in two innings to end the game, sending players such as Mitch Webster, one of his victims, back to Los Angeles muttering.

“Weak effort,” Webster said. “Just a real weak effort.”

It didn’t help the Dodgers’ moods that they were beaten by a team that was using its third-string first baseman, Tim Teufel; third-string manager, Bruce Kimm; second-string shortstop, Craig Shipley, and a rookie pitcher, Frank Seminara.

“We have no other choice but to go up,” Lenny Harris said. “We’re already on the bottom.”

The Dodgers agree that the home stand, which includes four doubleheaders from July 3-8, is the perfect chance to change their image.

But they also agree it is the last chance.

“Either we are going to get back in the race, or we are going to get blown out of the race for good,” Eric Davis said. “There isn’t any in between. If we play .500, we’re blown out.”

There was no in-between for Davis Tuesday when he leaped for a fly ball by Teufel during the sixth inning with the Padres leading, 6-1. If he hadn’t caught it, the ball would have been a home run.

But he extended his arm over the fence and snatched the ball for the most spectacular Dodger catch in many seasons.

“And nothing happened,” he said glumly. “They still took the air out of us.”

The Dodgers did benefit briefly from the inspiration, scoring three runs during the seventh on Dave Hansen’s run-scoring double and Harris’ two-run single.

But Gott gave up a single to Shipley to start the seventh. After Shipley was bunted to second, Tony Gwynn was walked intentionally with two out.

Then, while Gott was pitching to Darrin Jackson, who homered earlier, Shipley scored on a wild pitch. Jackson singled, driving in another run.

Although Gott has given up earned runs in only three of his last 14 appearances, the bullpen went 1-3 on the trip with a 4.59 earned-run average and two blown saves.

The Dodgers batted .236 on the trip and had a 4.17 ERA.

“This home stand is as important as that first road trip we took after the All-Star game last year,” Bob Ojeda said. “Remember how the (Atlanta) Braves were down 9 1/2 games and it didn’t mean anything?

“If we play well on this home stand, it’s a great opportunity to get back to within 5 1/2 or 6 games and everything will change.”

And if not?

“We do not want to take a three-day break in the middle of July knowing that we have no chance,” Todd Benzinger said. “If we continue to flounder, it could get ugly.”

Assuming, of course, that it isn’t already.