Failures Frustrating Mondesi

Nothing angers Raul Mondesi more than failing in key situations, which he has done often in the first two games against the Atlanta Braves.

The right fielder was disappointed after striking out Monday against Atlanta reliever Kerry Ligtenberg--with runners at first and second--to end the Braves’ 4-2 victory. And things didn’t improve for him Tuesday.

He was hitless in three at-bats, grounded into a double play and struck out twice in the Braves’ 8-3 victory at Turner Field.

Mondesi said that isn’t acceptable.

“I want to help my team, and my team needs me, but that’s not how [I can] help my team,” he said. “I have to hit, I have to get [the] job done.

“You have to play as a team to win, and everyone has to help. I didn’t do anything to help.”

With few exceptions, he said he hasn’t produced when the Dodgers have needed him most.

“It makes me upset when that happens,” said Mondesi, who knocked over cups and slammed his right hand against a cabinet in the visitors’ clubhouse after Monday’s loss.

“I know what I have to do, but I didn’t do it and we [lost]. We have got to win those games.”

Although Mondesi is disappointed in his play, it has been improving. He has batted .333 (19 for 57) in his last 14 games to raise his average to .261 (31 for 119) with four home runs and 11 RBIs.

And he wasn’t alone in the final inning against Atlanta on Monday. Ligtenberg also struck out all-star catcher Mike Piazza.

“That’s just the way it goes sometimes,” Manager Bill Russell said. “Mondy is a veteran, and he’s a guy who you know will get it figured out.”

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Eric Young hasn’t played for Atlanta, but one might think he had by the greeting he received from two Brave players.

The Dodger second baseman received hugs from Atlanta first baseman Andres Galarraga and shortstop Walt Weiss. They once formed three-fourths of the Colorado Rockies’ infield, and have remained close friends.

“Me, Big Cat [Galarraga] and [Weiss] go back a ways, and we went through a lot together,” Young said. “It’s strange seeing them in those uniforms, but it’s always good to see those guys.

“No matter where you go in this game, you always hope to see that your friends are doing well. It’s good that everything is working out for us.”

The Rockies traded Young to the Dodgers for Pedro Astacio last August, and Galarraga and Weiss signed with the Braves as free agents in the off-season.

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It was business as usual with the Chan Ho Park injury watch.

The right-hander said his sore lower back felt better than it did Monday, which isn’t surprising. His lower-back stiffness decreases between starts, and is aggravated when he pitches.

“He said it’s improving again, and that’s what we’ve seen before,” team trainer Charlie Strasser said. “For some reason, he keeps aggravating it when he pitches, so we’ll just keep working on it.”

Park (3-0, 3.96 earned-run average) will be evaluated today after completing his daily exercise program, but he is still expected to make his next scheduled start Friday at Florida.

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Todd Hollandsworth has been struggling, but the outfielder contributed Tuesday night with an impressive defensive play in the seventh inning.

Hollandsworth made a sliding catch near the left-field line on a foul ball hit by Weiss. He remained in the game after grounding out while pinch hitting for starter Trenidad Hubbard in the top of the inning, and struck out looking in the ninth.

He is hitless in his last 17 at-bats with seven strikeouts, and is batting .231 with two homers and 10 RBIs. . . . Third baseman Todd Zeile homered in his third consecutive game.

TODAY

DODGERS’ DARREN DREIFORT (0-1, 2.52 ERA) vs. BRAVES’ GREG MADDUX (3-2, 3.42 ERA)

Turner Field, 10 a.m. PDT

Radio--AM 1150, KWKW (1330).

* Update--Dreifort is seeking his first win in his fourth career start. He is 0-2 with a 9.95 ERA in his career against the Braves.