Young Can’t Escape From His 27th Loss : Dodgers: Met pitcher walks in winning run in 10th inning, then leaves clubhouse before he can be asked about it.

Anthony Young, 60 feet 6 inches separating him from his 27th consecutive loss, had no choice but to let the pitch go.

That, or step off the mound and announce his retirement.

The choices are few when it’s bases loaded, bottom of the 10th, two out, a 4-4 tie and a 3-and-1 count on Dodger pinch-hitter Dave Hansen.

Young threw it, and then Young knew it.

What he prayed would be strike two was called ball four by home plate umpire Bill Hohn, a fastball that did not miss by much.

After the call, only the winners moved. Jody Reed trotted in from third base and touched home, making official the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday before 43,301 at Dodger Stadium.

Young remained frozen for seconds in a crouch in front of the mound, disbelieving the call, his fate, his extending one of baseball’s most dubious records.

His 27th consecutive defeat.

Some of Young’s teammates, too, remained suspended in time, refusing to budge from their positions.

“I guess I stayed out on the field longer than I usually do,” outfielder Dave Gallagher said. “It’s a culmination of a lot of frustration this year for everybody.”

Mostly for Young.

The luckless pitcher eventually straightened up and walked off the mound. Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre offered a quick pat as Young stepped into the dugout.

What else could he do?

“Hang in there” seems to have lost its punch.

The Mets’ locker room remained closed for nearly 20 minutes, which allowed Young to make a quick change and escape. It was the first time this season Young has not faced reporters after a loss.

Met Manager Dallas Green sat in his office chair, his mood alternately swinging from simmer to boil.

“It’s not a pleasant thing for the young man to go through,” Green said, calmly at first.

Then he shifted into rage, lambasting the growing number of writers who crowded in to chronicle the latest stop on Young’s losing express.

Recently, Green moved Young to the bullpen, hoping it might jar him from his slump. Green could pick Young’s relief spots.

The pitcher entered a 4-4 tie in the eighth and pitched two scoreless innings before the fateful 10th.

Reed opened that inning with an infield hit. Henry Rodriguez followed with a slap single to left. Brett Butler put down a perfect sacrifice.

Young then walked Jose Offerman intentionally to load the bases. There was momentary relief when Eric Davis lined out to second for the second out.

But then came Hansen, who worked the walk to force in the game-winner.

“I thought it was a decent pitch,” Met catcher Todd Hundley said.

The loss dropped Young’s record to 0-13 for the season.

Everyone keeps saying how well he is handling this stretch of adversity.

Saturday, Young chose not to speak for himself.

“It’s something I’ve never had to go through,” Gallagher said. “I saw (Chicago White Sox third baseman) Robin Ventura go 42 straight games without a hit. I thought both guys handled it better than I would have. Robin handled it well, and he (Young) has never quit on himself, that’s for sure.”

Even opponents find it difficult to root against Young.

Dodger reliever Jim Gott, matched against Young in the late innings, pitched two scoreless innings for his fourth victory against five losses.

Gott said he feels for the 27-year-old pitcher.

“All of us do,” Gott said. “Everyone has said something encouraging to him over the last couple of years. I mean, I go out, throw two hanging sliders and get guys to hit it in the air for outs. Anthony Young--well, look what happens.

“I went up to him in the outfield yesterday. He’s got a really good attitude. I guess you can’t have a bad attitude. If he did, he wouldn’t be in the big leagues.”

There are plenty of what-ifs in Young’s streak. What if the Dodgers’ hadn’t blown a 4-1 lead Saturday?

Well, Young probably would not have pitched.

The Dodgers seemed to have the game in hand in the sixth after Eric Karros drove in three runs with a two-out double off Met starter Pete Schourek, to put the Dodgers up, 4-1.

But the Mets came back with two in the seventh and one in the eighth.

Young came on in the eighth, and the rest is still major league history.

“He’s done a hell of a job for us, if you really want to get down to it,” Green said. “He’s keeping us in baseball games. The last few times out he’s saved some games (Young has one save, recorded Thursday night against the Dodgers). He’s pitched his butt off for us. That’s all you can ask baseball players to do--give everything they’ve got, and that’s what he’s done.”

A Long Drought

Some key numbers during Anthony Young’s major league-record 27-game losing streak with the New York Mets:

* Streak--27 consecutive losses.

* Previous record--23 consecutive losses by Cliff Curtis of the Boston Braves in 1910-1911.

* Previous Met record--19 consecutive losses by Craig Anderson, 1962-1964.

* Breakdown--14 losses as a starter, 13 as a reliever.

* Last victory--April 19, 1992, a span of 73 appearances.

* Night games--0-19.

* Day games--0-8.

* Home--0-16.

* Road--0-11.

* Most victories by opponent--0-5 vs. Montreal.

* Career record--4-32.

* Scoring--The Mets have been outscored, 139-71, during Young’s 27 consecutive losses.

* BASEBALL/ROSS NEWHAN: With nothing to lose, the Oakland Athletics have turned to a tag-team pitching rotation, with each pitcher limited to 40-60 pitches.