Dodgers Need to Get a Grip : Baseball: They commit seven errors, six by infielders, and trail the Expos after eight.

If the Dodgers hope to win the National League West title, they’d be wise to pay more attention to their defense than how they treat Mike Busch.

The Dodgers, who lead the league with 116 errors in 118 games, tied a team record by committing seven Friday night and were trailing the Montreal Expos, 6-5, after 8 1/2 innings before a crowd of 31,895 at Dodger Stadium.

Second baseman Delino DeShields committed two errors on the same play in the fifth inning and shortstop Jose Offerman and third baseman Dave Hansen were also charged with two apiece. Center fielder Brett Butler was charged with a throwing error.

It was the third time in Los Angeles history that the club has made seven errors in one game. The Dodgers also committed seven errors in a game against the Cincinnati Reds on Sept. 4, 1972 and they did it again against the San Francisco Giants on Sept. 13, 1992.

The comedy of errors began in the third inning after Expo first baseman David Segui, who drove in four runs, drilled a two-out, three-run homer to right field against starter Ismael Valdes, who has given up 14 homers this season.

Center fielder Rondell White, batting after Segui, reached first when Hansen bobbled his grounder.

White stole second and went to third when Mike Piazza’s throw went off the glove of Offerman, who was charged with an error. He scored on Butler’s errant throw.

Butler was charged with the error, but Valdes also made a mental mistake by not backing up Hansen.

DeShields was charged with two errors on the same play with two outs in the fifth inning when he bobbled a grounder by right fielder Tony Tarasco and then threw the ball over the head of first baseman Eric Karros, allowing Tarasco to go to second.

Offerman singled in a run in the third to make it 4-1, and the Dodgers scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth on back-to-back two-out RBI singles by Piazza and Karros and a two-run single by DeShields.

Piazza singled in two of his first three at-bats, extended his hitting streak to 13 consecutive games.

Alvarez, who gave up five runs on seven hits, departed with two outs in the fifth after he walked Raul Mondesi to load the bases.

Relief pitcher Greg Harris came in to pitch to DeShields, who singled in Piazza and Karros. But Harris struck out Hansen to end the inning.

However the Expos tied it at 5-5 after Offerman committed his second error of the game in the sixth inning. Offerman threw the ball away trying to double Darrin Fletcher off first, allowing him to advance to third. Third baseman Sean Berry followed with a RBI single to left.

The Expos made took a 6-5 lead after Hansen committed his second error of the game in the seventh inning.

After pinch-hitter F.P. Santangelo led off the seventh with a single to left, Hansen bobbled a grounder by Tarasco, allowing Santangelo to advance to second. He scored when Segui singled to center.

When Busch arrived at his cubicle in the Dodger clubhouse before the game, there were flowers waiting for him.

“A local florist sent them and told me congratulations on being promoted,” said Busch, who received a standing ovation after collecting his first major league hit in Thursday night’s 6-5 victory over the New York Mets. “[Fans] have been great since I’ve been here. Under the circumstances, I don’t deserve a standing ovation, I just got here.”

Busch, who was ostracized by his teammates after being recalled from Albuquerque last Tuesday because he was a replacement player, is encouraged by the support he has received from his family, friends and fans.

“I’ve been on the phone constantly since I’ve been here,” said Busch, who replaced Hansen at third in the ninth inning. “Friends, family and people I went to college with at Iowa State have called me, encouraging me and just wishing me nothing but the best.

“I’m more comfortable. Everybody needs to come here and do their jobs and play together to win and that’s what we’re here for.”

* THE READERS ROAR

The Dodgers have kissed and made up. That’s not necessarily the case for Dodger fans in the wake of the Mike Busch fiasco. C3