Dreifort Closes Out Pirates,--With Bat : Dodgers: Relief pitcher pinch-hits in the 10th inning, drives in winning run with a single.

Darren Dreifort is only a rookie from Wichita State, but he is already a hero to the Dodgers.

With Mike Piazza and Delino DeShields unable to swing a bat, in the 10th inning Manager Tom Lasorda called on the relief pitcher, who hit 22 home runs in college last year, to pinch-hit.

Dreifort hit a 1-and-2 pitch for a two-out single to drive in the winning run in a 6-5 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates at Dodger Stadium on Friday night.

“It was no accident I sent Darren up to hit,” Lasorda said. “Every time I face him in batting practice, he nails me. I figured if he can hit me, he can hit any left-hander they throw in there.”

The Dodgers had blown a 4-0 lead in the ninth and seemed about to lose when Jay Bell homered in the top of the 10th. But the Dodgers pulled it out when Dreifort’s sharp single drove in Carlos Hernandez from second.

“I can’t last through many more games like this,” Lasorda said. “I’m too old. Things really looked good the way Ramon (Martinez) was pitching. It’s a shame he didn’t get the victory. I don’t know what happened on the fly ball that they let fall for a hit in the ninth.”

Brett Butler and Cory Snyder let a routine fly fall for a base hit by Brian Hunter in the ninth. Instead of Martinez needing one out for a 4-1 victory, the Pirates rallied and tied the score.

“It was my fault,” Butler said. “When I waved my glove, he backed off. I thought I heard a yell, but it must have been from the stands.”

Said Dreifort: “I was a little nervous when I came up, but after a pitch or two I was all right. It was really exciting. I just hope I can continue to contribute.”

Eric Karros, who came out of a slump earlier in the game, had his fourth hit of the night, a single to keep things going in the 10th, and Mitch Webster singled in the tying run before Dreifort became a hitting star.

This Pirate team had been in trouble most of the night.

There are only a few players remaining from the Pirate team of a few years ago that dominated the league. Two of them, Andy Van Slyke and Jay Bell, contributed to the early departure of Pirate rookie Jon Lieber, making his third major league start after beginning the season in the Southern League.

The only mistake the rookie made in the first three innings was on a second-inning pitch to Karros. The first baseman had been in a 15-at-bat slump, but he drilled a Lieber pitch into the left-field bleachers for his sixth home run.

Van Slyke had a chance to get the youngster even in the fourth. But with runners on first and third and nobody out, he took a called third strike. The next two batters popped out.

Bell made a poor play on Raul Mondesi’s grounder in the third inning, and the double set up the two-run fourth that gave Martinez a 3-0 lead.

Jose Offerman opened the rally with a single to right. Bell hesitated on Mondesi’s sharp grounder, then saw it bounce off of his glove into center field. The Dodgers had runners on second and third.

After fouling off several two-strike pitches, Tim Wallach went with the pitch and singled to right-center to make the score 3-0.

It looked like an easy victory and possibly the 14th shutout for Martinez going into the ninth.

But with one out, Van Slyke hit his fourth home run, the first ball hit hard by the Pirates all night.

Then Dave Clark rapped a single to right and Hunter lifted his seemingly harmless fly ball to left center.

When Al Martin walked to fill the bases, Worrell replaced Martinez. One run scored on Don Slaught’s long fly to right.

The weak-hitting Kevin Young, batting only .197, was next.

The Dodgers were so sure Worrell would get the last out, they let Martin steal second without a play.

But Young looped a single into right-center to make the score 4-4.

And the stage was set for a rookie to become a hero.