Gott Can’t Save Dodgers in the Ninth : Baseball: Candiotti leaves with a lead, but Anthony’s three-run homer gives Astros a 5-3 victory.

Tom Candiotti’s 3-5 record does not reflect the way he has pitched recently. In his last four outings, his knuckleball has defied physics, becoming even crazier than it was before.

But after Wednesday night, it’s Candiotti who should be going crazy.

Candiotti left the game against the Houston Astros in the ninth inning with a 3-2 lead and a runner on first base. But by the time he got settled in to watch the ending, Eric Anthony had hit a three-run homer off reliever Jim Gott to give the Astros a 5-3 victory over the Dodgers and Candiotti another no-decision.

The Dodgers had some dramatics left. Astro starter Doug Drabek walked Eric Karros to lead off the bottom of the ninth, and Mike Piazza, four for four off Drabek in his career, pinch-hit for Carlos Hernandez, giving hope to what remained of the Dodger Stadium crowd of 52,203.

But Drabek (6-7), who had held the Dodgers to six hits, was pulled for reliever Brian Williams. And Piazza lined a bullet that first baseman Jeff Bagwell short-hopped and turned into a 3-6-3 double play. Lenny Harris grounded out and Williams earned his third save.

Candiotti, who struggled early in the season because of a cracked fingernail, has been pitching well since his complete-game victory May 31 against St. Louis, but he has only a loss and three no-decisions to show for it.

“It’s really disappointing,” Candiotti said. “I’ve pitched a lot of good games and haven’t gotten many rewards. By the same token, Drabek threw really well tonight. I’ve been up against some good pitchers. That’s the way it goes.”

Candiotti cheered from the dugout when Karros hit a 1-0 pitch off Drabek into the left-field seats in the seventh inning for his eighth home run, tying the score, 2-2.

The Dodgers took the lead in the eighth. Jose Offerman hit a one-out single to left, and with Offerman running, Eric Davis followed with another hit to left. Left fielder Luis Gonzalez threw the ball to second baseman Craig Biggio instead of the cutoff man, and Offerman kept running. Biggio relayed a bad throw to the plate for an error, but Offerman was safe and the Dodgers were ahead, 3-2.

Candiotti left the game in the ninth after he walked Steve Finley, but it wasn’t because he was faltering. With only a one-run lead, Candiotti’s knuckleball gave Finley too much of an advantage to steal.

“As a manager sitting in the dugout, it’s not a good sign when a pitcher walks a batter opening the ninth inning,” Candiotti said of being relieved. “You walk the guy, the guy has a chance to steal, and there’s always the possibility of a passed ball or a wild pitch, because that’s when I turn up my knuckleball.”

With Finley on first, Gott struck out Bagwell. With one out and Finley running, Ken Caminiti hit a line drive to short right that Cory Snyder, playing Finley deep, almost caught. It would have been a game-ending double play, but almost doesn’t count, and the single put runners on first and third. That set the stage for Anthony, who hit Gott’s 1-and-2 pitch into the right-field seats for his fifth home run of the season.

“I thought he was going to catch it,” Candiotti said of Snyder. “Another half-foot and the game’s over.”

The Dodgers had a chance for more runs in the eighth, but Davis was caught stealing third on the front end of an attempted double steal--only his second time caught in 24 tries this season--and Snyder struck out.

Tim Wallach was back at third base after missing a day with a bruised shoulder, but that doesn’t mean he felt much better. His shoulder was still sore and aches after he swings, but Wallach said he wants to play through it. “We can’t afford (to have him and Jody Reed out) right now,” Wallach said. “Not that the other guys can’t do the job, but because that’s too many guys not out there who are normally there.”

Wallach said the only way his shoulder would be affected in the field was if he had to dive and make a backhand play.

So what happened?

In the third inning, Biggio grounded a two-out double inside the third base bag that Wallach dove for. He paused a minute and trainer Bill Buhler went out to tend him, but Wallach stayed in the game. Finley followed with a bloop single that dropped into short left to score Biggio and put the Astros ahead, 2-0.

Gott didn’t feel good, either.

“This is the second time I have blown a save for Tom,” Gott said. “This is the worst part of the job.”