DODGERS

So who needs chemistry?

Over the last couple of weeks, there has been an awful lot of angst over the difficulty of trying to meld languages, cultures and ethnic differences with balls, bats and gloves on a Dodger team that leads the league in nationalities.

But suddenly, all the differences don’t seem so important. Suddenly, the players seem to be communicating on the field, which is really all that matters.

Amazing what a six-game winning streak can do.

A stormy first half of the season for the Dodgers, a half filled with ugly confrontations, nasty injuries, painful soul-searching, team-wrenching slumps and a corked bat, ended with a ray of sunshine, a streak that moved the club past the second-place Colorado Rockies in the NL West.

Is this the crucial run Manager Bill Russell has been desperately trying to put together or another false start?

It shouldn’t take long to find out.

Just as the Dodgers right their ship, they find the division-leading San Francisco Giants dead ahead on the horizon, ready to kick off a four-game series tonight at Dodger Stadium.

And the Dodgers have a few potentially devastating leaks that could still sink their hopes. Ace right-hander Ramon Martinez remains out because of a small tear in the rotator cuff on his throwing shoulder. Fellow pitcher Ismael Valdes has a pulled hamstring that could land him on the disabled list.

“It’s too early in the season to say this is a critical or crucial series,” Executive Vice President Fred Claire said. “I wouldn’t put that label on it. But at the same time, you’ve got to recognize how important this is. They swept their last series. We swept ours. It’s the Dodgers and the Giants. It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Not many expected it to get even this good for the Giants. The six-game winning streak netted the Dodgers only two games in the standings. They still trail San Francisco by six. June has come and gone and there was no Giant swoon.

There is certainly nothing spectacular about San Francisco. The Giants’ 4.06 earned-run average is eighth in the league, their .256 batting average 10th.

Scan the league leaders and only two San Francisco names stand out--reliever Rod Beck, who has a major league-leading 29 saves, and pitcher Shawn Estes, whose 12-2 record is as good as there is in the majors.

Only two Giants are hitting over .300, outfielder Stan Javier at .311 and catcher Damon Berryhill at .307. Barry Bonds is hitting a most un-Bondslike .275.

But the Giants have won four in a row to give them 51 victories, second only to the Atlanta Braves in the National League.

Should Bonds discover his stroke (he has hit safely in 17 of his last 20 games), San Francisco could soar beyond reach.

Before they toss out the first pitch of the second half, here’s a look back at the Dodgers, and a look ahead:

WHAT WENT RIGHT

It would be easy to say Mike Piazza and Eric Karros simply woke up. And although each of them hates to have the fate of the team put on his shoulders, the reality is that the club’s swings of fortune are geared to their swings at the plate.

The team surged in June after Piazza and Karros started blasting the ball. The Dodgers scored 141 runs last month. Piazza and Karros drove in 50 of those, 35% of the total. At the break, Piazza finds himself in his usual lofty position in the batting race, his .357 average leaving him behind only Larry Walker (.398) of the Colorado Rockies and Tony Gwynn (.394) of the San Diego Padres. With 16 home runs and 51 RBIs, Piazza still projects close to to a 30-homer, 100-RBI season.

Karros’ June charge has moved him into the team lead in homers (20) and RBIs (56). His .270 average is six points above his career mark going into this season.

And don’t forget outfielder Raul Mondesi. Despite nagging injuries, he has carried his share of offense in the first half with 17 home runs, 48 RBIs and a .295 average.

A few of the other things that have gone right:

--When the season began, second baseman Wilton Guerrero was being touted as next in the long line of Dodger rookies of the year.

Instead, Guerrero made a series of rookie mistakes. He got caught using a corked bat, which resulted in an eight-game suspension.

Guerrero remains a solid rookie, if not quite rookie of the year. He is hitting .289, is tied for the league lead in triples with eight and has committed only four errors.

--When the season began, the Dodgers didn’t know what to expect from Brett Butler. He was coming off the worst season of his life, having endured surgery for throat cancer and the frustration of a broken hand immediately upon his return.

At 40, with all he has been through, including a shoulder injury that cost him 24 games this season, an old Butler is not the Butler of old. But he’s still doing the job in center field, hitting .314, contributing his still sizable talents as a leadoff man and providing leadership.

WHAT WENT WRONG

Where do we start?

Russell’s honeymoon as Dodger manager came to a jarring end. He had public confrontations with two of his pitchers, Valdes and Pedro Astacio. There was the Guerrero bat incident. There was a seven-game losing streak by Astacio, who is 5-7 with a 4.07 ERA. There were struggles in the first half for Nomo, who is 8-7 with a 3.81 ERA but hasn’t looked like the dominating pitcher who inspired Nomomania.

“The first half started off with our pitching doing well,” Claire said, “but not very timely hitting on our part. Once we started scoring better and our offense clicked, our pitching left us briefly.”

And there were the injuries, the most crucial being the one to Martinez.

The fact that the Dodgers survived it all and head into the second half with many of their troubles behind them and only the Giants ahead is reason for optimism on their part.

BEST MOVE OF THE FIRST HALF

There have been two:

--Russell’s tough stance in regard to Astacio and Valdes was necessary. After a 20-year reign by Tom Lasorda, the Dodgers needed to know that they now have a new boss. Russell made it clear he is in command and that can only serve him well in the days ahead.

--Keeping veteran starter Tom Candiotti around in the bullpen in case of an emergency. When that emergency occurred with Martinez’ injury, the Dodgers had a proven arm to go to.

WORST MOVE OF THE FIRST HALF

Not addressing the cultural diversity issue earlier. Piazza’s frank remarks about it brought the matter out in the open and seemed to defuse it.

Don’t expect a group outing to the beach in the near future. Nor is that necessary to rack up big numbers in the win column. But all of the recent discussion may have at least increased the players’ awareness of the problems.

A frank meeting earlier in the season, spearheaded by management in a tactful manner, might have achieved the same results.

Yes, the Oakland A’s in the 1970s won championships when they were not busy screaming at each other. But at least they were screaming in the same language.

WHY DODGERS COULD WIN NL WEST

They arguably have as strong a pitching staff as any team in the league. They have the power in the middle of their lineup that other pitching-rich Dodger teams in the past would have killed for.

And the Giants must still prove that all the mediocre individual numbers they are putting up won’t result in a mediocre finish.

WHY DODGERS COULD LOSE NL WEST

If Martinez doesn’t come back, if Valdes doesn’t come back soon, if Butler doesn’t hold up physically, if Guerrero’s inexperience shows up again, if outfielder Todd Hollandsworth hits with the form that sent him back to the minors rather than the form that made him rookie of the year last season, if the tension that caused Astacio and Valdes to explode surfaces again . . .

Well, that’s a lot of ifs.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

ON DECK

* Opponent--San Francisco Giants, four games.

* Site--Dodger Stadium.

* Tonight--7.

* TV--Fox Sports West 2.

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

* Records--Dodgers 45-42, Giants, 51-36

* Record vs. Giants--3-3

TODAY’S GAME

DODGERS’ CHAN HO PARK (5-5, 3.29 ERA) vs. GIANTS’ KIRK RUETER (5-3, 3.80 ERA)

* Update--Both teams come in with a burst of momentum, the Dodgers having won six straight, the Giants four in a row. The Dodgers are coming off a sweep of the San Diego Padres, the Giants a sweep of the Colorado Rockies. What happens on the sidelines before the game, however, may be as important as what happens between the white lines for the Dodgers. They are expected to learn today how seriously starting pitcher Ismael Valdes is hurt. He left last Saturday’s game against the Padres after five innings because of a pulled left hamstring. If he joins Ramon Martinez (torn rotator cuff) on the disabled list, the depth of the Dodgers’ starting staff will be severely tested. This is a brief home stand. After Sunday, the Dodgers hit the road for two against the Rockies, two against the Florida Marlins and four against the Atlanta Braves.

Friday, 7 p.m.-- Dodgers’ Hideo Nomo (8-7, 3.81) vs. Giants’ Keith Foulke (1-2, 6.37).

Saturday, 7 p.m.--Undecided vs. Mark Gardner (9-4, 3.73).

Sunday, 1 p.m.--Undecided vs. William VanLandingham (4-6, 5.11).