Astros Rain on Dodgers’ Hit Parade

Dodger officials considered postponing Saturday night’s game against the Houston Astros because of heavy rain throughout the day.

They should have.

The rain stopped shortly before game time, but the team played as though it took the day off, losing, 6-2, before a crowd of 40,037 at Dodger Stadium.

On fireworks night at the stadium, the offense didn’t sparkle.

“Again, we just can’t get our offense going consistently,” Manager Bill Russell said. “We just didn’t get anything going tonight because we still aren’t getting enough big hits, and that’s happening too much.”

Astro left-hander Mike Hampton (2-0) pitched 7 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on seven hits, and Doug Henry pitched 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. He struck out three, including pinch hitter Matt Luke to end the game.

The Dodgers put three runners on base in the eighth against Hampton, and scored their final run on Mike Piazza’s one-out single. But with Eric Young at third and Piazza at first, Henry struck out cleanup hitter Todd Zeile, and Raul Mondesi popped out to end the Dodgers’ final threat.

Houston took command with a five-run fifth inning--highlighted by Jeff Bagwell’s two-out three-run home run against Darren Dreifort (0-1), who was making his first start of the season.

It was a miserable night for the Dodgers--and the weather played only a small part.

“Our offense just couldn’t mount too many opportunities,” Piazza said. “And you also have to give Hampton credit. When he got the lead on us, he went after us aggressively and shut us down.”

Hampton retired the side in order in the third, fourth and fifth with four strikeouts. Todd Hollandsworth’s two-out single in the sixth ended his streak of 12 consecutive batters retired.

Bagwell hit Dreifort’s first pitch approximately 430 feet to dead center. The Dodgers pitched to the Houston power hitter with first base open and Jack Howell, who Dreifort had struck out twice, waiting on deck.

“It was the right call and the right pitch, but it was a bad location,” Dreifort said. “It was a fastball that was supposed to go high and away, but it came back over the plate.”

Dreifort won the fifth starter’s job in spring training, but Saturday’s start is expected to be his only one in the month because of off days in the schedule. He pitched well through the first four innings, giving up two hits with four strikeouts. Dreifort took a 1-0 lead into the fifth--when everything quickly changed for him and the Dodgers.

“I wasn’t tried or anything, I felt strong,” said Dreifort, who gave up five runs on eight hits.

“I felt stronger in the fourth and fifth than I did in the first or second. I just made some pitches I shouldn’t have.”

Carl Everett opened the fifth with a single to center, and Ricky Gutierrez doubled down the right-field line. Everett presumably could have scored on the play, but he was forced to stop at third after slowing down between bases because he had trouble seeing where the ball landed.

But it didn’t matter.

Everett and Gutierrez scored when Brad Ausmus singled to left in front of a diving Hollandsworth. The Astros had a 2-1 lead with none out.

“I asked [Dreifort] how he was doing, and he said he felt pretty good,” Piazza said. “His pitches seemed to have a little zip on them, but I’m sure he made a couple he didn’t like in that inning.”

Hampton popped out and Bill Spiers flied out to center, and it looked as though Dreifort might get out of the inning without further damage. But after Derek Bell doubled to right-center, Bagwell crushed Dreifort’s first pitch for his fourth homer.

Howell then singled, but Dave Clark grounded out to end the inning and Dreifort’s work.

The Dodgers staked Dreifort to a 1-0 lead in the second. Zeile opened the inning with a triple to center, his first triple since 1994 and the 14th in his career. Zeile scored on Paul Konerko’s deep fly ball to center, the first run batted in for the rookie.