Karros Has Last Word

The Angels had the hot veteran and the cool rookie, but the Dodgers apparently have Troy Percival’s number.

Percival, who had an 0.89 earned-run average since returning from the disabled list May 16, has two losses since his return, both at the hands of the Dodgers.

Two weeks ago, Todd Zeile hit a game-winning homer off the Angel closer and Wednesday night, Eric Karros slammed a ninth-inning shot over the right-field fence to power the Dodgers to a 5-4 victory in front of 34,507 at Anaheim Stadium.

“I’m up there trying to do one thing,” Karros said, “hit a ball out. Fortunately, he threw me a fastball. I’m swinging the bat pretty well, getting lucky right now.”

It was Karros’ ninth homer in the last 19 games and decided a 3-hour 38-minute game that neither team deserved to win. Clutch hitting and routine fielding were pretty much absent until the late innings. Both teams left 11 runners on base. The Angels committed four errors, the Dodgers three.

Rookie right-hander Jason Dickson, who will be the lone Angel representative at Tuesday’s All-Star game in Cleveland, had the chance to show a sellout crowd why he belongs among baseball’s best. Back home in Chatham, Canada, Dickson’s father, Royce, said he and his wife, Ann, were considering making the 17-hour drive to see the All-Star game, but “this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing and we wouldn’t want to make him nervous.”

Certainly nothing could be more nerve-racking for a pitcher than having Dave Hollins playing third base behind you. OK, well maybe having Zeile playing third base behind you. Hollins made two errors; Zeile made two on one play.

The Dodgers took a 4-3 lead in the eighth, fittingly, with the aid of a Tripp. Dodger second baseman Tripp Cromer, playing in place of the injured Wilton Guerrero, drove in Greg Gagne with a single to left.

But Angel second baseman Luis Alicea’s run-scoring single in the bottom of the eighth tied the score again. Gary DiSarcina followed with a single and veteran Tony Phillips, who drove in the first three Angel runs and started a fourth-inning melee, smacked what appeared to be an extra-base hit that would put the Angels in front. But the ball hopped over the right-field fence for a ground-rule double and DiSarcina had to retreat back to third.

Scott Radinsky (3-1) came in from the bullpen to get Darin Erstad on a fly to left to end the inning.

The Angels countered with Percival, who got Mike Piazza on a towering shot to deep center before Karros homered. Ten of Karros’ 19 homers have tied or won a game.

Dodger starter Chan Ho Park left after 5 2/3 innings after giving up four hits and three runs, two of which were unearned. Dickson departed after six, having been slapped around for 11 hits and three runs, two of which were unearned. In the end, it was left to the bullpens, but there was plenty of bumbling and brawling in between.

Dickson, the first Angel rookie selected to the All-Star team since Wally Joyner in 1986, gave up three singles in the third, but escaped without giving up a run when Todd Hollandsworth hit into an inning-ending double play. The Dodgers got three more hits and a pair of unearned runs in the fourth, thanks to a throwing error by Hollins and a fielding error by shortstop DiSarcina, but Dickson remained unruffled.

The same could not be said about Phillips, who took exception to a high inside fastball from Park in the fourth inning that precipitated a bench-clearing brawl . . . well, shoving match, anyway. Let’s just say no one’s ear was bitten off.

The scuffle took about eight minutes and might have added a little spice to a less-than-intense rivalry. Park had already hit Jim Edmonds and Tim Salmon with pitches and Phillips has never met an argument he couldn’t heat up to.

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TONIGHT’S GAME

Dodgers vs. Angels

* Where--Anaheim Stadium

* When: 7 p.m.

* TV--Channel 5.

* Radio--KTZN (710), KABC (790), KWKW (1330).

* Pitchers--Dodgers’ Hideo Nomo (7-7, 4.02 ERA) vs. Angels’ Allen Watson (7-4, 5.22)

* RANDY HARVEY: Joe Torre did the Angels a favor when he chose Jason Dickson as Anaheim’s only representative for next week’s All-Star game. C2