Bullpen Failings Sink the Dodgers

The Dodgers hear the clock ticking louder each day, and wasted opportunities are particularly disturbing now.

That explained the somber mood in the clubhouse after the Dodgers squandered a late lead Tuesday night in a 7-5 loss to the Montreal Expos at Dodger Stadium.

A crowd of 30,107 watched the Dodgers lose for only the second time in 55 games when they held a lead after seven innings.

Usually rock-solid reliever Paul Quantrill (1-4) failed to preserve a 5-4 advantage in the eighth, getting pounded for three hits and three runs in a two-thirds-of-an-inning appearance. Wil Cordero continued to thrive against Quantrill, providing the big blow with a two-run double to give Montreal a 6-5 lead.

The Dodgers (64-60) squandered an opportunity to pull within four games of first-place Philadelphia in the National League wild-card race. They also dropped 10 games behind first-place San Francisco in the NL West.

The surging Expos (66-60) won their sixth in a row, and moved ahead of the Dodgers in the wild-card chase. Reliever Luis Ayala (8-3) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings, and closer Rocky Biddle worked a perfect ninth for his 30th save.

There are five teams ahead of the Dodgers for the wild-card berth, and they acknowledge it’s getting very late.

“It’s a frustrating loss,” said right fielder Shawn Green, who hit a controversial home run in the seventh to give the Dodgers their 5-4 lead. “We gave them a few runs early on, and then they got the lead late. They got that big hit, and that obviously was the final nail in the coffin.”

With runners on first and second and two out in the eighth, Montreal Manager Frank Robinson turned to Cordero to bat for Vladimir Guerrero, who had been ejected in the seventh for arguing after umpires had ruled that Green homered into the right-field corner.

Cordero went 11 for 19 in his previous at-bats against Quantrill and delivered again, driving Quantrill’s first pitch to left-center. Orlando Cabrera singled to right-center to provide an insurance run.

“I made a bad pitch,” Quantrill said. “I paid for it and the team paid for it. It was an awful pitch and it cost us the game.”

Said Manager Jim Tracy: “We knew Cordero was there on the bench. He’s a guy who we know has had tremendous success against both of our late-inning pitchers [Quantrill and Eric Gagne]. He’s the guy we were trying to avoid.”

The Dodgers believe they haven’t had their fair share of breaks this season. They couldn’t complain about that, however, after Green’s home run in the seventh gave them a 5-4 advantage.

With one out, Green hit a shot into the right-field corner off Montreal left-handed reliever Joey Eischen. The ball bounced back into play after it appeared to hit off the padded wall on the Expos’ bullpen door, but first-base umpire Steve Rippley, who raced down the line to make the call, ruled it a homer.

Robinson initiated a lengthy argument with Rippley, the crew chief, and Expo right fielder Guerrero was ejected for arguing. TV replays clearly showed that the ball went between the hands of a fan seated in the corner next to the bullpen -- who had leaned into the playing field -- and off the side padding of the bullpen.

It was not clear whether the fan had touched the ball, which would have given Green a ground-rule double, but it certainly didn’t appear to a homer. After huddling to discuss the situation, the umpires ruled that Green had hit his 12th homer, and first since July 21.

“It was doubtful,” Green said. “I just saw the fast-motion replay, where it looked like the fan interfered. It happened pretty fast, so I really couldn’t tell.”

The Dodgers had a 4-3 lead beginning the seventh, but Brad Wilkerson hit a two-out solo homer (No. 15 overall) against reliever Guillermo Mota. The blast to center ended Mota’s scoreless streak at 17 1/3 innings.

The run assured Dodger starter Kevin Brown of another frustrating no-decision.

The right-hander wasn’t particularly sharp by his standards (he gave up nine hits in six innings), but errors by left fielder Jeromy Burnitz and first baseman Robin Ventura led to two unearned runs.

In his last 10 starts, Brown is 2-5 with three no-decisions despite a 2.69 earned-run average.