Marshall Hits Pair as Dodgers Win, 14-6

So intense and persistent were the cheers and chants that a seemingly oblivious Marshall eventually had to answer the crowd of 26,943 at Dodger Stadium with a curtain call.

"I didn't even notice it," Marshall said of the crowd's roar. "Somebody finally told me to go out and tip my hat to them."

The gesture was particularly noteworthy, given Marshall's relationship with some Dodger fans. Because of his injury history and well-publicized problems with several teammates last season, Marshall was sometimes subjected to crowd noise of a different kind--boos.

But Marshall, who went 3 for 4 and had 5 runs batted in against poor Pirate pitching, has played in all 23 games this year and, more than once, has been the catalyst in keeping the Dodgers (15-8) in first place in the National League West.

Said Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda: "It's good to see Moose (Marshall) have a night like that. He deserves it. The guy's out there playing every day and doesn't deserve (the boos)."

Said Marshall: "I don't have any problem with our fans. I really don't. When they are unhappy with me, they can boo me and vice versa. All I can do is go out there and do the best I can. I want to play in every game. Fortunately, this year, I've been healthy."

It was distinctly unfortunate for Pirate starter Mike Dunne, who gave up both home runs to Marshall, giving the Dodgers a big lead they later increased.

By the time the night was over, the Dodgers had scored 14 runs (the last 9 unearned) and 16 hits against Dunne, reliever Bob Kipper and outfielder John Cangelosi.

Yes, so desperate were the Pirates in the late innings that they turned to Cangelosi, a short left-hander who lists his hobbies as billiards and pitching batting practice.

Turns out Cangelosi was the most effective Pirate pitcher all night as he pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings. But even Cangelosi could not stop Marshall, who doubled off him in the seventh.

"I might be the stopper now," Cangelosi cracked afterward. "I haven't been on ESPN for a while, and I also wanted to get some ink.

"I was just trying to throw batting practice strikes. I didn't want to embarrass the club or show up any of our pitchers."

The fact is, though, he did just that. Dunne, in his second start since coming off the disabled list, couldn't hold a 3-0 first-inning lead.

The Dodgers struck quickly and decisively in the bottom half of the inning.

With one out, Mike Davis stretched a single into a double and was brought home on Kirk Gibson's single. Gibson then stole second and went to third on catcher Mike LaValliere's throwing error. Pedro Guerrero then singled home Gibson to make it 3-2. Marshall then put the Dodgers ahead, 4-3, when he hit an inside fastball into the left-field seats.

Marshall's second home run highlighted a 5-run fourth inning that buried the Pirates.

"What was really good about tonight is that we bounced right back after getting down three runs," Gibson said. "That's important. What you don't want to do is be timid. We came out and took control the rest of the way."

Dodger starter Tim Belcher, who threw 50 first-inning pitches, gave up 5 runs and 7 hits in 5 innings and earned his second victory.

Most of the Dodger regulars were relaxing in the dugout and perhaps tallying up their suddenly healthier batting averages by the time Cangelosi made his appearance. The 14 runs scored by the Dodgers was the club's most since Sept. 11, 1986, when they beat the Houston Astros, 14-6. Besides Marshall, leaders on the Dodgers' hit list were:

--Davis, struggling all season and 2 for 14 in his previous 4 games, had 2 early hits and launched Dodger rallies. Since being moved from seventh in second in the order, Davis is 3 for 9 and has scored 2 runs.

--Guerrero, who had 2 hits and 2 RBIs and scored 3 runs. It was a routine game for Guerrero, one of the few Dodgers who have hit consistently all season.

--Gibson, who homered in Monday night's win, had a run-scoring single in the first inning and scored 2 runs.

--Steve Sax, who went 2 for 3 and had an RBI on an infield single.

--Mike Scioscia, who went 3 for 4 and raised his average to .381.

--And relief pitcher Tim Leary, who replaced Belcher. Leary responded with a 3-run double to left.

The heart of the Dodger order--hitters 2 through 5--had hit just .207 with 6 RBIs in the club's previous 4 games. But early on, it was evident that would be changing.

Dodger Notes