Bullpen Blows It for Dodgers, 6-5

NEW YORK — The upbeat Dodgers turned to their dependable bullpen with a two-run, eighth-inning lead Sunday after rallying against the New York Mets.

Then their mood turned.

New York tied the score with two runs in the eighth against Mike Fetters, and capped a 6-5 victory on Tsuyoshi Shinjo’s ninth-inning, two-out, run-scoring single against Terry Adams at Shea Stadium.

On a 1-and-1 pitch, the first-year major leaguer from Japan singled through the middle to drive in Desi Relaford from third with the winning run and complete the Dodgers’ miserable Big Apple experience before 43,404.

Manager Jim Tracy focused on the Dodgers’ impressive rally, but the bullpen’s difficult day dampened his enthusiasm.

“Our ballclub showed tremendous character in coming back the way it did with the five-run eighth inning,” said Tracy, whose team is 10-10 in one-run games. “The thing that hurt our club today was the leadoff walk [to Robin Ventura] in the eighth.

“A leadoff walk in any given situation in a game like that can come back to haunt you. Obviously it did today.”

Fetters agreed.

Ventura drew the walk against him in the eighth, and things got worse for the reliable setup man.

Fetters started the inning after Giovanni Carrara pitched a perfect seventh in relief of starter Chan Ho Park, who worked six innings.

After Ventura walked, Todd Zeile singled and Shinjo sacrificed, putting runners at second and third for Lenny Harris, who was batting for Darryl Hamilton.

Harris tied the score at 5-5 with a two-run single to left--Gary Sheffield threw out Harris at second for the second out--and Adams relieved Fetters with two on and two out.

Timo Perez grounded out to get Adams out of that jam, but Adams created another in the ninth.

Relaford, who walked on four pitches to start the inning, advanced to second on Adams’ wild pitch and third on Mike Piazza’s line drive to right.

After Ventura was walked intentionally and Joe McEwing struck out swinging, Shinjo sent Adams’ slider into center, dropping the Dodgers to 2-4 on the trip.

Fetters said one player cost the Dodgers a victory Sunday.

“It was totally my fault today . . . there’s no one to blame but myself,” he said.

“The guys battled to get back in the game, took the lead and I couldn’t get it done. No excuses. Terry Adams shouldn’t have been in the game.

“If I do my job, we hand it over to our closer [Jeff Shaw] and the game is over. I’m not perfect. Today wasn’t my day and . . . I take full responsibility. It happens. Everyone is going to have days like that.

“Am I bummed? . . . Yeah. We should have won that game. But I’m not going to sit here and dwell on it because I’ve got to try and do it again [today].”

Adams (2-2) also was disappointed.

“It’s tough [to lose that way] any day, whether it’s a comeback or no comeback,” he said. “It’s tough in any situation.

“You hate to beat yourself. I don’t mind losing a game if they beat me, but if you beat yourself [with walks] it makes it extra tough.”

The Dodgers dropped two of three to the Mets despite scoring five runs in the wild eighth inning to take a 5-3 lead and chase Met starter Rick Reed.

The Dodgers had only three baserunners--on three hits--against Reed through the seventh.

The right-hander retired 13 in a row in one stretch and also contributed a run-scoring double in the Mets’ three-run second.

But the Dodgers batted around in the eighth against Reed and reliever John Franco.

Dave Hansen’s double provided the first run, pinch-hitter Marquis Grissom contributed a two-run single, Eric Karros had a run-scoring sacrifice fly and Franco’s wild pitch accounted for another.

Closer Armando Benitez (3-1) pitched a 1-2-3 ninth.

“That’s just baseball,” Grissom said of the defeat. “We can’t come out of here with our heads down.

“We were down, 3-0, and we came back. That’s the positive thing we need to look at.”