All Together, Dodgers Lose : Baseball: After closed-door meetings, they fall, 8-6, to Phillies.

The Dodgers spent most of their Monday afternoon caucused behind closed doors. The hitters were scolding themselves in one private meeting. Several of the young pitchers were being nurtured in another.

And, in yet another meeting, Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda exhorted his team into believing it is too talented to keep losing.

Together, the Dodgers took the field at Veterans Stadium with a fresh attitude, revamped lineup and the feeling of invincibility.

Together, they again found themselves several hours later walking dejectedly into the clubhouse searching for answers, losing this time to the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-6, in front of a paid crowd of 27,426.

The Dodgers (13-18) have now lost four games in a row, and 12 of their last 16. They again have fallen to last place in baseball’s worst division, and most alarming, only four major league teams have more defeats.

“We need more togetherness as a team,” left fielder Billy Ashley said. “This team is so young that we need to have that. It’s like we have everyone going their separate ways.

“We need to start talking to one another. If somebody sees that somebody is doing something wrong, say it. We’ve been keeping quiet long enough.”

Reggie Smith, Dodger hitting coach, organized the hitters-only meeting. Smith told them what he thought was wrong, and then listened to the hitters tell one another what was wrong.

The players determined that in their effort to be heroes, perhaps compensating for the loss of all-star catcher Mike Piazza, they’ve often been selfish. Seldom is anyone even worrying about moving the runner over into scoring position for the next batter. The result has been 11 walks and 54 strikeouts the last seven games.

Instead, the players have been too worried about their statistics. Too worried about the way they’re being used. Too worried about the way they’re being perceived.

“I know I’ve been as guilty as anyone,” said Ashley, who has struck out 36 times in 91 at-bats. “Pitchers don’t have to do much, but just let go of the ball against me. Pitchers seem to know me better than I know myself.

“It’s like my mind is blank when I’m up at the plate. There could be pink elephants out there on the field as far as I know. I mean, it’s gotten so bad where my girlfriend will ask how I did in the game, and I’ll say oh for three, and she’ll say, ‘Oh, so you struck out three times?’ ”

This is why Smith decided it was time to talk. The Dodgers are only 3 1/2 games out of first place, but they must be careful not to let this season slip away.

“I wanted to give them a chance to express what they thought,” Smith said, “and what needed to be done about it. The guys who needed to speak up, spoke up, and it went very well.

“It’s healthy to talk about it rather than allowing it to become a benign neglect when nobody says anything. The problems compound themselves. Instead of getting better, they get worse.

“We’re young, but the suffering they’re doing now will make them appreciate the success they’ll later have.”

The Dodgers’ revamped lineup put Delino DeShields back as the leadoff hitter, moved Roberto Kelly to the No. 3 slot, dropped Raul Mondesi to fifth, and left Ashley benched for the first time in favor of Chris Gwynn.

DeShields responded with a home run, but struck out four times; Mondesi went two for four and had his sixth outfield assist; Gwynn hit a double; Ashley, used as a pinch-hitter, drew a bases-loaded walk for his first run batted in in 10 days; and cleanup hitter Eric Karros hit a two-run homer, ending the Dodgers’ skein of 10 consecutive solo homers.

But the Dodgers still lost, enabling the Phillies (22-8) to set a franchise record, eclipsing their 1911 record for going the most games into a season without consecutive defeats.

Dodger starter Pedro Astacio (1-2) never gave his team a chance, yielding nine hits--six for extra bases--and six earned runs in only 3 2/3 innings. Phillie right fielder Jim Eisenreich was responsible for most of the damage, going three for three with a triple, home run and three RBIs. Eisenreich owns a .447 career batting average against the Dodgers, with four homers and 25 RBIs.

“Before it’s all over, the Dodgers will be right there,” Phillie Manager Jim Fregosi said. “But right now, they miss the big guy [Piazza]. It’s just not the same offense. In today’s game, if you lose one of your key players, you’ve got problems.

“You can’t lose a guy like Piazza and expect to be OK.”