Ishii Makes It Count Again

Maybe the Dodgers have finally determined what best motivates pitcher Kazuhisa Ishii: fear.

Ishii has responded with strong performances after almost having been removed from the rotation this month, and he delivered again Sunday in a 10-2 victory against the New York Mets in front of 33,582 at Shea Stadium.

The left-hander worked six efficient innings to earn his team-high 13th victory and helped the Dodgers win the three-game series against the struggling Mets.

“He’s not a guy who folds in tough situations,” pitching coach Jim Colborn said. “He’s a guy who gets better in the clutch.”

The Mets, the National League’s worst fielding team, made two errors in a three-run fourth, helping the Dodgers take a 4-1 lead. Robin Ventura applied a knockout punch in the fifth, hitting his 17th career grand slam.

In that at-bat, the major league’s active leader in grand slams connected on the seventh pitch from Met starter Kris Benson (10-11). The ball cleared the wall in the right-field corner by only a few feet.

“I was trying to get something to the outfield to make sure I scored the guy from third,” said Ventura, tied for fourth on the all-time list for grand slams with Jimmie Foxx and Ted Williams.

“It doesn’t always happen where you get that guy in. It’s nice that it was ... fair, and it’s extra nice that it went out.”

Leadoff batter Cesar Izturis matched his personal best with four hits, Olmedo Saenz hit his sixth homer after replacing Ventura at first base in the eighth and cleanup batter Adrian Beltre got the Dodgers started.

Beltre, among the leading candidates for the NL most-valuable-player award, drove in Izturis with a first-inning double. He is batting .342.

And while the Mets (60-69) flopped on defense in their seventh loss in eight games, the Dodgers continued to shine.

They played flawlessly behind Ishii and two relievers, turning two double plays, and left fielder Milton Bradley nailed Richard Hidalgo trying to stretch a single into a double to end the sixth.

The Dodgers (76-54) improved to 4-3 on a 13-game, 14-day trip, keeping a five-game lead over second-place San Diego and San Francisco in the NL West.

With others starters struggling, Ishii (13-6) has provided stability on a start-to-start basis.

“He has done well in pressure situations,” Colborn said. “In general, he has an ability to concentrate when he needs to.”

Ishii’s focus intensified after Manager Jim Tracy said Aug. 7 that Ishii would be yanked from the rotation because of his erratic performance. However, Ishii got a reprieve when Brad Penny went on the disabled list because of a nerve problem in his pitching arm.

In four starts since rejoining the rotation, Ishii is 3-0 with a 3.70 earned-run average and three quality starts.

“I don’t really have an explanation for it,” Ishii said through an interpreter. “Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I just don’t want to pull down my teammates. I don’t want to pull down the team.”

On Sunday, Ishii gave up four hits and one run on Hidalgo’s 22nd homer in the second. He had two strikeouts and two walks, throwing 46 strikes in 70 pitches. Mild back stiffness prompted Tracy to remove Ishii.

Tracy said Ishii would remain in the rotation and start Saturday against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

“He has stepped up big for us the last two weeks,” General Manager Paul DePodesta said. “But at the same time, he pitched some great games for us at other times during the year ... when there was no danger of roster fluctuation.”

Tracy said he no longer attempts to solve the riddle of Ishii.

“If he reaches the point of consistency like we’ve seen three out of the last four times, which means throwing a lot of strikes,” Tracy said, “then this guy has a chance to succeed an awful lot.”