Two Out of Three Is Bad for Frustrated Dodgers

The team chairman is concerned, the general manager is frustrated and the manager is on the hot seat.

So much for harmony at Chavez Ravine.

The Dodgers are in an unhappy place again, and a 6-2 interleague loss Saturday afternoon against the Angels made things worse.

The club with baseball’s second-highest payroll dropped to 45-44 after losing before 42,726 at Dodger Stadium.

They began the second half losing two of three against the other team in town, seemingly not the way to spark a postseason run.

Chan Ho Park--their second-best starter--matched his career high with seven walks for the third time this season, though one was intentional.

The Angels took a 3-0 lead against Park (9-7) in the second inning, and the Dodgers had a long day ahead.

It was especially frustrating for Gary Sheffield.

The hot left fielder homered for the fourth time in the series. Sheffield moved into the major league lead with 31, but he could only do so much.

The Dodgers are stuck in fourth in the National League West after the Angels (49-42) outplayed them again.

Third baseman Troy Glaus continued his impressive performance with his third homer in the series. He leads the Angels with 28.

Leadoff batter Darin Erstad reached base three times and scored. Rookie right-hander Seth Etherton (4-1) worked six solid innings for his fourth victory in a row, and his rookie batterymate, Bengie Molina, had three runs batted in, including a two-run single in the sixth inning.

“Any time you go on the road and win two of three against a good ballclub, you’re happy,” said Angel Manager Mike Scioscia, successful in his return to Dodger Stadium. “Our pitching really did a good job this weekend. Seth is a guy that has a lot more upside too. He continues to go out there and make pitches in tough situations.”

The Angels took four of six in the season series, and that’s not what Dodger Chairman Bob Daly expected after approving a $90-million payroll.

General Manager Kevin Malone believes the Dodgers are talented enough to lead the division, and Manager Davey Johnson has become the focus.

The Dodgers weren’t supposed to travel this road after another expensive off-season make-over--but here they go again.

“Any time you lose, things are not good,” first baseman Eric Karros said. “Am I feeling tense? Are the guys feeling tense? I don’t know about that. Does everybody want to win, and would we like a better situation, sure. But it’s not because of lack of effort or lack of desire.

“Obviously, you would like to have some stability. And change for the sake of change, I don’t know if that’s the answer. But the bottom line is that we’re not winning. You have to do it on the field, and we haven’t done it.”

Park didn’t do enough Saturday.

The right-hander worked five shaky innings, throwing only 62 strikes in 109 pitches. The Angels took a 2-0 lead in the first inning after Park walked three.

“Chan Ho obviously had some command problems,” said Johnson, who used four relievers after removing Park.

“He threw almost 60 pitches in his first two innings. He settled down somewhat, but it was a struggle.”

Park figured it would be after his first pitch.

“From the beginning, I felt I didn’t have my good stuff,” said Park, who has two losses and two no-decisions in his last four starts. “I couldn’t find my balance today.”

Many Dodgers are having similar problems, but not Sheffield.

He hit a two-out, solo shot to left against Etherton in the third. Sheffield, batting .338, hit four homers in nine at-bats in the series, with five RBIs and four walks.

Sheffield was the exception for the Dodgers, who had only 17 hits in the three games and batted .175 against Angel pitchers.

Sheffield is focused on other numbers.

“We have a long way to go to catch up [in the division], we’re not just chasing one team, and that’s the bad thing about the situation,” Sheffield said.

“The other teams are going one way, and we’re going the other way. We’re not playing with a lot of fire. We’ve gone back to the way we were playing in the first half, waiting for something to happen.”

And if things don’t improve, Daly might make something happen soon.