Dodgers hand Phils third straight loss

By Hal Bodley, Gannett News Service

LOS ANGELES – In a sense, the just completed series with the Dodgers was like the Phillies puzzling season to date.

They roared into Dodger Stadium on Thursday night and edged Jerry Reuss, 3-2, to extend their winning streak to four games.

After that, as Dallas Green has been saying, they went quietly. Somebody turned off the faucet.

YESTERDAY, in the wrapup of competition against the Western Division, the Phils were blown out, 6-0, and their losing streak reached three. They managed just three hits and, after Los Angeles took a 2-0 lead against loser Dick Ruthven in the second, the sunny afternoon became a yawn for the 39,083 customers, not to mention Phillies' fans.

Ruthven, who had won four straight decisions and six of seven, just didn't have it. But Rufus seldom does have it against the Dodgers. The setback left him with a 2-12 lifetime record against them.

When the Phillies took off on this 11-game trip, they had a 66-58 record and were in third place 2½ games behind. As they limped out of Dodger Stadium, they had a 72-63 record and trailed first-place Montreal by one game. Both the Expos and third-place Pittsburgh also were beaten yesterday.

The Phils ended the road trip with a 6-5 record, finished play with the West with a 41-31 log, and left the Dodgers behind having split the 12 games played.

BOBBY COSTILLO, who replaced Dave Goltz in the fourth inning after the starter was forced to leave with a sprained right ankle, allowed the Phils just two of their hits to record his sixth victory in 12 decisions.

"Rufus just didn't have it today," said Green. "He struggled all the way. He couldn't control anything. But we compounded it by not getting any hits. This certainly wasn't one our best games.

"This goes back to what I have been saying all year. We can't let this loss or any of the three losses bother us. We have to put those behind us and go out and get the Pirates tomorrow night (tonight). There is no sense panicking. We have to put everything else out of our minds and go out and get the Pirates."

Green said the lack of hitting, in his opinion, comes from the fact that some of the key players are tired. He mentioned Bake McBride, Manny Trillo, Larry Bowa and Mike Schmidt among others.

"THEY'RE GOING to get some rest, but it's only going to be for three or four innings," said the manager. "Even though we lost three games, we're still in it. It's just an indication of how fouled up the division is."

"You have to give Bobby Castillo a lot of credit the way he came in there today," said Dodger Manager Tommy Lasorda. "He did a fine, fine job. This was a very important homestand. I don't how anybody could expect anything more than we got in these 11 games."

The Dodgers won 10 of the 11 games to move into first place in National League West.

"We are going head-to-head with everybody in our division now," said Green. "That's what we want. To go head-to-head. If we can't do it that way, we don't deserve to win the division, but I think we will."

THE DODGERS wasted little time taking the upper hand, scoring two runs in the first inning.

Ruthven got two quick infield outs before Dusty Baker singled through the middle. Baker raced to third on Steve Garvey's double to right and scored when Ruthven balked with Ron Cey batting. Cey then drilled a single through the middle to score Garvey.

In the third, the Dodgers made it 3-0 with a wild pitch costing Ruthven. Davey Lopes, who had eight hits against the Phils in the series, led off with a single to center. He was forced at second by Rudy Law, and Law was forced by Baker. But Baker moved to second on Ruthven's wild pitch with Garvey batting and scored when the Dodger first baseman ripped a single to right.

Three consecutive singles by Jay Johnstone, Mike Scioscia and Darrel Thomas produced the first of three runs in the fourth and finished off Ruthven.

WITH Scioscia on third and Thomas on first, Green called on sinkerballer Warren Brusstar. Castillo bunted successfully, then Lopes roped a single to left to score Scioscia and Thomas before Brusstar finally retired the side.

The Phils' best early threat came in the second when McBride opened with a single and Greg Luzinski walked. Goltz then retired the next three batters in order.

In the fourth, Schmidt led off with a walk on four pitches and, when the count went to 1-0 on McBride, Goltz had to leave in favor of Castillo, who put out the fire.

Pete Rose led off the eighth with a single and Bob Dernier was sent in to run. The rookie stole second and remained there as Castillo struck out two of the next three batters.

PHIL UPS – The Phils sent Bob Walk home early yesterday afternoon so he can rest for his start tonight at Veterans Stadium against Don Robinson (5-8) and the Pirates... Steve Carlton (21-8) will face John Candelaria (10-13) tomorrow night at 8:15...The Phils, who were 18-11 in September last year, are 4-3 so far this month... Trillo, who was replaced by Ramon Aviles after lining out in the fifth, is hitless in his last 15 at bats...Yesterday's crowd poshed Dodger season attendance to 2,726,606... Attendance for the four-game series with the Phils was 167,961... The Phils hit only two home runs on the trip and both of them, by Schmidt and Luzinski, came on Thursday night against Reuss... Those were the first homers since Aug. 24.

Dodgers Dump Phils Again

Los Angeles 6, Phila. 0

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Dave Goltz and Bobby Castillo combined on a three-hitter as the Los Angels Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-0 Sunday. 

The San Francisco Giants beat the Montreal Expos 6-3, thus saving the Phillies from a two-game deficit in the race for the National League East title. The Phils remain game back. The Pittsburgh Pirates, the third team still in the race, lost another game to the Atlanta Braves, this time by a score of 6-5, leaving the Bucs in third place behind Philly.

Dave Lopes drove in two runs as the Dodgers collected 10 hits off five Philadelphia pitchers. Starter Dick Ruthven, 14-9, took the loss, his 12th in 14 decisions against Los Angeles.

Goltz started for the Dodgers but left in the f fourth, after yielding, only one hit, with a ankle received while covering first base. Castillo, 6-6, took over and allowed only two hits the rest of the way.

The Dodgers scored twice in the first after two were out. Dusty Baker singled, Steve Garvey doubled, Baker scored on a balk by Ruthven and Ron Cey then singled home Garvey. Garvey's single in the third plated Baker with his 95th RBI.

Los Angeles added three more in the fourth on four singles, including a two-run rally-capper by Lopes.

The Dodgers concluded play against East with a 44-28 record, while the Phillies were 41-31 against the West.