One Gets Away From Candiotti, Gott and Dodgers : Baseball: Walton’s hit drives in Fernandez with ninth-inning run as Cincinnati wins, 3-2.

The ball flew over Cory Snyder’s head on its way to the wall in left field, and Snyder simply stood there. All he could do was tilt his head up, say goodby to the game, and along with the rest of his teammates, walk slowly into the dugout at Riverfront Stadium.

The Dodgers lost, 3-2, to the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night when Jerome Walton, an outfielder with 15 at-bats this season, drove a Jim Gott fastball. It was Walton’s first run batted in, but it wasn’t exactly his line drive that cost the Dodgers only their second loss in the last 11 games.

The game was lost earlier in the inning when Gott, who relieved Tom Candiotti to pitch the ninth inning, gave up a leadoff single to Tony Fernandez, who went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Bret Boone and to third when Gott bounced a wild pitch in the dirt. With only one out, just about anything could have scored Fernandez.

“I’ve had great success pitching against (Fernandez),” Gott (5-2) said. “I’ve always struck him out on a curveball or slider on the outside part of the plate. But he hit me tonight, and he’s the first guy up. I can’t let him on.”

Mike Piazza, scheduled for a rare night off, was hoping for a blowout of some sort so he wouldn’t be pressed into duty as a pinch-hitter. But he said that, about the third inning, with Candiotti and Red starter Jose Rijo throwing well, he had a feeling the respite wouldn’t last. He went into the clubhouse, had trainer Charlie Strasser stretch his legs and was at the plate in the ninth inning, hitting for Candiotti, who left with the score tied, 2-2.

Piazza faced right-hander Johnny Ruffin (3-0), who, along with left-hander Tim Fortugno, had combined to hold the Dodgers hitless since Rijo departed after the sixth inning. Jose Offerman, who had drawn a one-out walk, was on second after a stolen base. Piazza flied out.

Brett Butler walked before Delino DeShields hit a line drive to right fielder Reggie Sanders, who, until then, had been shading DeShields toward center field.

“I thought that was the hit that killed us,” Manager Tom Lasorda said. “I thought it was a cinch hit when it came off his bat, and I said, ‘Where the hell is (Sanders) playing him?’ ”

For two teams leading the league in offense, runs were few and far between. The Dodgers scored two in the second inning and held a 2-1 lead into the seventh, when pinch-runner Walton, running for Brian Dorsett, who had walked with two out, scored on a single by Barry Larkin.

Jose Rijo was trying for his 100th victory, but after 122 pitches through six innings he called it a day. He left after pitching out of jams in every inning but the first.

The Dodgers had left four runners in scoring position.

“He uses all of his stuff and always keeps his team in the game,” said Tim Wallach, who doubled and scored in the second inning on a groundout by Raul Mondesi.

Rijo was tough, but the Reds’ bullpen was tougher. In the last 13 games, the bullpen has an 0.92 earned-run average, having given up only four earned runs in 39 2/3 innings. Seven Dodgers were retired in order until Ruffin, who had started the eighth inning, walked Offerman in the ninth.

In the bottom of the ninth, Piazza was catching, having replaced Carlos Hernandez, and had a good view of the Reds.

Fernandez was on first.

“We were pitching (Boone) inside, so if he tried to bunt, it would pop him up. We were throwing right at him,” Piazza said. “I didn’t expect him to bunt it that well, and he laid it down perfectly down the first base line and we have a guy on second with only one out.”

Boone’s thoughts were about the same as Piazza’s.

“I know that if I don’t get the bunt down, we are in extra innings,” Boone said. “Even if Kevin Mitchell is at bat, you’ve got to bunt.”

Then, Gott threw Walton a curveball in the dirt that Piazza tried to block, but to no avail.

“I can’t second-guess it. I make a living throwing a ball in the dirt,” Gott said. “It just got away.”

So did the game, when Walton hit a ball over Snyder’s head.