$55 MILLION PITCHER FACING TOUGH LUCK.

Byline: Nick Piecoro Staff Writer

As each start goes by in which Darren Dreifort is not a dominant force, doubt grows about his $55 million contract, questions arise regarding his health, and the pressure riding on his every pitch intensifies.

So after Dreifort walked off the Dodger Stadium mound Sunday to a smattering of boos - his 5 2/3-inning, three-run performance just bad enough to give him his fourth loss in his last five starts as the Dodgers fell 6-1 to the Padres - Dodgers pitching coach Jim Colborn let the circumstances leaven his response.

``To me, with the stuff that has been written this week, this was a pretty darn good game,'' Colborn said. ``He pitched a game we could have won.''

For four hitless innings, he was every bit the starter the Dodgers were hoping for when they re-signed him to the five-year contract in December. But, in an outcome indicative of the way things have gone lately for the Dodgers, Dreifort came up a little short. He declined comment after the game.

``Darren Dreifort threw the hell out of the ball,'' catcher Chad Kreuter said. ``They hit good pitches. But that's just the way that it goes. It's seems to be tough luck whenever he pitches.''

Dreifort's fastball appeared sharp in the early innings, registering in the mid-90-mph range as it dived all around the strike zone. Working quickly, he threw his cutter hard on the hands of left-handed hitters, who had been giving him problems lately, moving pitches that appeared to be inside back over the corner. He struck out Cesar Crespo in the second, then Ben Davis in the third, on inside cutters.

But after Mike Darr broke through by lining a fastball into center in the fifth, Dreifort seemed to be unnerved. He had walked two at that point. With Darr on first, he bounced a changeup for a wild pitch sending Darr to second, and two batters later threw behind Davis for another wild pitch.

He got out of that jam, but he couldn't escape the sixth. With one out, he walked Crespo and allowed a single to Ryan Klesko. Then Phil Nevin singled to make it 1-0, Darr walked, and Bubba Trammell followed with a two-run single, hitting a changeup off the end of his bat into left.

Trammell's hit was enough to beat the Dodgers, complete a sweep of the three-game series, and drop Dreifort to 4-7 in a season full of lofty expectations. But the Dodgers are outwardly confident that there is nothing wrong with Dreifort physically, that his results are representative of his performances.

Colborn was pleased with Dreifort's handling of left-handed hitters and with the way he threw his four-seam fastball, a pitch the Dodgers want him to throw more frequently. Colborn has of late tried to shield Dreifort from criticism and he again was not disappointed in the outing.

``I hate to still be trying to stem the tide of your opinions,'' Colborn said. ``I think he pitched really well for five innings. ... It may be hard to see in the gloom of June, but he'll be a better pitcher because of what he's working on.''

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Dodgers pitcher Darren Dreifort, as evidenced by his performance Sunday, hasn't lived up to the expectations of his huge contract.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer