Dodgers Rally, Then Fall : Baseball: Mondesi is in the middle of disheartening loss to St. Louis as Los Angeles drops two games behind Colorado.

Right fielder Raul Mondesi finished off a plate of food Saturday night, looked up and found himself surrounded by reporters ready to blame him for the Dodgers’ 5-4 defeat to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Mondesi was the one who ruined the Dodgers’ chance of winning the game in the top of the ninth when he refused to abandon his aggressive approach. He popped up with the bases loaded after Tom Henke had just walked three consecutive batters.

Then he tried to make a shoestring catch in the bottom of the ninth. Instead, he allowed Bernard Gilkey’s leadoff fly ball to get past him for a triple, and Gilkey scored a batter later on pinch-hitter Mark Sweeney’s single to right field.

Mondesi was also the one who says he has nothing to apologize for in either situation.

It may have been a devastating loss, leaving the Dodgers (69-62) two games behind the division-leading Colorado Rockies with only 13 games remaining--their largest deficit since Aug. 8--but no one in the clubhouse was about to point any fingers.

“The only time his aggressiveness would be questioned is when he’s not successful,” Dodger first baseman Eric Karros said. “I don’t think that’s fair. His aggressiveness is what makes him an exciting player; you can’t take that away.

“Obviously now, it’s magnified because we’re in a pennant race and every at-bat and every play is magnified.

“But his aggressiveness makes him the player he is. You take that away, and he’s an average player.”

The defeat ruined another zany ninth-inning comeback by the Dodgers when they did little but watch Henke go through a maddening stretch of wildness.

The Dodgers were trailing, 4-3, in the ninth when Henke took the mound. Henke, who has a league-leading 33 saves, opened the ninth by retiring Roberto Kelly on a fly ball to right.

It was a familiar situation for the Dodgers, resurrecting memories of the last time they faced Henke on Aug. 10 with a one-run deficit and one out in the ninth. They never had a chance to find out the outcome. Dodger fans threw baseballs onto the field and a forfeit was called--a loss that still haunts the Dodgers.

This time, Henke gave up a one-out pinch-single to Karim Garcia, who was removed for pinch-runner Roger Cedeno. Brett Butler struck out for the second out.

Then, it happened, a series of calls by home-plate umpire Brian Gorman that left the 22,130 fans at Busch Stadium booing, Henke screaming and Cardinal Manager Mike Jorgensen cursing.

Henke needed only to retire Jose Offerman and the game was over. But he walked Offerman on five pitches, bringing up Piazza.

Henke quickly got ahead of Piazza, 0 and 2, but eight pitches later, he walked him, loading the bases for Karros.

Karros, who is batting .366 with runners in scoring position, took the first pitch, but also fell behind 1 and 2. He worked the count to 2 and 2, and then watched Henke throw sidearm for what appeared to be strike three. It instead was called ball three, Henke became rattled, and soon threw ball four, forcing in the tying run.

“I looked at it on the [replay],” Henke said, “and it was definitely a strike. I should have taken a deep breath and walked way.”

Mondesi, in a four-for-26 slump (.154), walked to the plate with the chance to be the hero. He could wait and see whether Henke would also walk him. Or he could swing away, knowing that Henke would have to throw strikes.

“I know he was trying to throw strikes,” Mondesi said, “and you’ve got to be aggressive and swing the bat. If you don’t swing the bat, you’re not going to hit.”

Mondesi swung and missed. He swung and missed at the next pitch. He swung and hit a pop-up to catcher Danny Sheaffer, ending the inning.

“He went up there swinging,” Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda said. “You can’t criticize a guy for that. Hey, if he got a base hit, there wouldn’t have been one word said.”

Yet, Mondesi was at fault, Lasorda said, for what happened in the bottom of the ninth. Gilkey led off with a sinking fly ball to right field. Mondesi tried to make the catch, and when he realized he wasn’t going to catch it, he stopped, and the ball skidded past him toward the wall.

Gilkey was generously credited with a triple. Lasorda pulled reliever Antonio Osuna and brought in left-hander John Cummings to face Sweeney. Sweeney slapped an 0-1 fastball into right field, ending the game.