Dodgers Waste Chances to Win

How many opportunities can the Dodgers squander in a game?

Manager Davey Johnson pondered that unsettling question Sunday night after his team stranded 13 runners before Marvin Benard’s ninth-inning, leadoff home run capped the San Francisco Giants’ 6-5 victory at Pacific Bell Park.

Benard--the Giants’ left-handed leadoff batter--homered over the right-field wall on a 2-and-2 count against reliever Mike Fetters (3-1) before another sellout crowd of 40,930.

The Dodgers rallied from deficits of 4-1 and 5-3 against the Giants’ shaky bullpen, but still dropped the final two games of the series after winning the opener. San Francisco second baseman Jeff Kent hit two solo homers--Nos. 22 and 23--and reliever Robb Nen (2-3) got the victory on Benard’s game-winning shot.

But the Dodgers said the game was lost before Benard’s timely swing.

“We certainly had our share of chances to break it open,” Johnson said.

“We set the table. We just didn’t get the big hit and break it open.”

They stranded 10 runners in the first five innings, wasting chances to take charge against struggling Giant starter Shawn Estes.

Dodger rookie right-hander Eric Gagne wasn’t sharp either in five innings.

“That’s as dramatic of a win as we’ve had,” said Giant Manager Dusty Baker, whose team improved to 40-38. “They threatened all day, and Shawn was in trouble every inning.

“I keep track of how many times a starter gets in trouble, and I can’t remember marking down a pitcher in trouble every inning. Shawn showed me a lot of heart working out of some jams.”

The Dodgers helped.

They finally capitalized with runners on in the seventh and eighth after Estes’ work was finished, scoring two runs in each inning to tie the score, 5-5, and make the Giants nervous. If only they had done more earlier.

“Nine out of 10 times, [Fetters] is going to get [Benard] out,” first baseman Eric Karros said.

“Fet has been great for us all year, that’s not where the game was won or lost.

“We had a lot of opportunities the first few innings. We had opportunities to score more than one run and we didn’t do it.”

The Dodgers (41-40) had Estes in jams the first three innings.

They had two hits in the first and stranded two runners. They had two hits in the second and stranded two runners.

And, after Estes walked the bases loaded with one out in the third, they stranded all three runners.

“As far as the offense is concerned, we have to recognize when a pitcher is struggling up there,” said left fielder Gary Sheffield, three for four with a run-scoring single.

“We can’t go up there swinging at the first pitch in the count, and wasting chances that come back to hurt us later on.

“We had to recognize, like we were earlier in the year, that Estes was struggling. We had to take some pitches and make him throw, and we just didn’t do that.”

Estes allowed only one run despite giving up seven hits and walking four in five innings. The left-hander would have had his third victory in four starts if the bullpen did its job better.

Fetters has been outstanding for the Dodgers.

He became the primary closer when Jeff Shaw struggled in June, and is the first reliever used in save opportunities with Shaw on the disabled list.

Left-handed batters are only three for 31 against Fetters--but the third hit was big.

“If I had to do it all over again, I’d throw the same pitch,” Fetters said. “I threw a forkball down and he must have been looking for it. He got the one he wanted.

“Of any pitch I throw, that’s the last one I expect to get a home run hit on. That’s the last thing I expected.”

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ALL’S WELL

The Braves and John Rocker left town without incident after 10-2 win over the Mets. Page 9