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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Chan Ho Park's season is similar to that of
the Los Angeles Dodgers in general -- too little, too late.
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Park won his fourth consecutive start Sunday night, allowing two
hits over eight innings as the Dodgers completed a three-game sweep
of the Philadelphia Phillies 6-1.
Los Angeles has won 11 of 14 and a season-best six straight at
home, but remains seven games behind San Francisco in the NL West
and 6½ out of the wild-card lead.
"You should try to get these kind of winning streaks when it
really counts -- a lot earlier in the season, so that you can put
pressure on teams," said left fielder Gary Sheffield, who had two
run-scoring singles.
"If we were playing like this a lot earlier, we'd probably be
one or two games ahead or behind, and then take our chances from
there. But right now, we've got a lot of work cut out for us."
So does Park (15-8), who has to win his five remaining starts to
become the Dodgers' first 20-game winner since Ramon Martinez in
1990. Park has not allowed more than two earned runs in seven
straight and is 5-1 with a 1.69 ERA during that span.
"Since I've been here, he's been a second-half pitcher,"
Sheffield said. "But that's something we need from April on -- and
that's something every guy in this room has to concentrate on
coming out of spring training."
The Phillies' only hits off Park were Scott Rolen's two-out
single in the first inning and Tomas Perez's leadoff single in the
eighth. The right-hander struck out six, tied a season high with
seven walks and induced three double-play grounders, while matching
his career high in victories.
"I think his concentration is better. He's more locked in, and
he's having fun," manager Davey Johnson said. "Sometimes when
things are going bad, you fight yourself, you lose your focus and
you try too hard. And that was Chan Ho last year. But right now
he's a very confident young man, and I don't think any situation
would bother him."
Park, still looking for his first complete game shutout after
136 career starts, came out after 131 pitches. He has left three
games this season without allowing a run, pitching at least seven
innings each time.
"We knew the first couple of innings it was going to be tough
to see," Phillies manager Terry Francona said of the twilight
starting time. "We've only seen him pitch good. He's always been
tough on us."
Adrian Beltre and Shawn Green hit solo homers for the Dodgers,
who limited the Phillies to one unearned run in the series until
the ninth inning.
The Phillies have lost five straight. They've scored the fewest
runs in the majors, and until the ninth inning, had not scored
since the fourth inning Friday night.
"It's stressful, pitching like that," said loser Robert
Person. "But there's enough stress just going out there pitching
against better teams on the road.
"Once those first few runs come across the plate, we haven't
scored yet, and it gets later in the game, that's when the pressure
gets at a higher intensity for me. That's when I really feel it."
Mike Lieberthal scored in the ninth when Marlon Anderson's
dribbler up the first-base line was mishandled by reliever Terry
Adams. Anderson was credited with an RBI.
Jeff Shaw retired Kevin Jordan with the bases loaded and two
outs for his 24th save in 31 chances, completing the combined
four-hitter.
Beltre, whose eighth-inning solo homer beat the Phillies 2-1 in
the series opener, hit his 16th leading off the fifth for a 2-0
lead. Mark Grudzielanek had an RBI single later that inning and
Green led off the sixth with his 24th homer for a 4-0 margin.
The Dodgers added two more in the seventh against Cliff Politte
with Sheffield's RBI single and Green's run-scoring groundout. Park
ignited the rally with a leadoff single.
Person (7-5) threw a strike on only one of his first 12 pitches.
He walked Tom Goodwin and Grudzielanek, then fell behind 3-0 before
giving up an RBI single to Sheffield on a 3-2 pitch.
"I couldn't get a feel for my breaking ball in the first few
innings and I felt a little cramp in my forearm, which never
happened to me before," said Person, who was charged with four
runs and five hits in six innings.
"I was stretching it out between innings and I regained control
of the breaking pitches later in the game. I mean, it wasn't a big
problem, but for a 'feel' pitch, you've got to have everything
going right."
Game notes
The Phillies did not score an earned run against Dodgers
pitching for 28 consecutive innings. ... The three-game sweep was
the Dodgers' first against the Phillies since August 1997, at
Veterans Stadium, and enabled them to win the season series (5-4)
for the fifth straight year. ... Dodgers pitching coach Claude
Osteen held that same position in Philadelphia from 1982-88, when
the Phillies produced three Cy Young winners -- Steve Carlton, John
Denny and reliever Steve Bedrosian.
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