ANOTHER DODGERS STARTER FLOUNDERS ON THE MOUND : HOUSTON 11, DODGERS 3.

Byline: Brian Dohn Daily News Staff Writer

Dodgers left-hander Carlos Perez lasted 3-1/3 innings against the Houston Astros, which is indicative of the state of the supposed strength of the Dodgers. On nights Kevin Brown isn't on the mound, the Dodgers starters aren't pitching well, nor are they pitching deep into games.

Before the Dodgers were lambasted by the Houston Astros 11-3 in the first of a three-game series Tuesday at Dodger Stadium, a prophetic manager Davey Johnson talked about just that.

``If you asked me (in March) in the middle of May what would I be worried about, and you said the starting pitching not giving me enough innings, I'd say you were crazy,'' Johnson said. ``We're still young. (Still) outthinking yourself.''

And still pitching poorly.

Perez, the poster child for the Dodgers' struggling starters this season, dug his team a 6-0 hole by the fourth inning that made Raul Mondesi's three-run homer (his 14th) of little help. The Astros' five-run eighth inning against rookie Jamie Arnold only ended the misery a bit early as Jose Lima improved to 7-1 with seven solid innings.

``Carlos wasn't real sharp,'' Johnson said. ``He needs maybe a little regular work. He's been sporadic, between his off days and his injury. He's not in a groove now. He'll get it.''

But can the Dodgers afford to wait for Perez (1-5) to get there, especially with the way they've pitched in May? Starters without the Brown surname haven't thrown a pitch in the eighth inning this month. Only Chan Ho Park finished the seventh inning, which he's done twice.

Ahead of starting pitching on Johnson's spring training checklist was the bullpen, the second slot in the batting order, the health of catcher Todd Hundley's elbow, some golf in Vero Beach and how the fish were biting.

With Brown, Park, Ismael Valdes, Perez and Darren Dreifort in the rotation - not to mention Dave Mlicki as an insurance policy - getting innings out of the starters wasn't a concern. Now, it is the concern.

Brown is the only starter with an ERA under three, at 2.75. Valdes (4-1, 3.40) is off to his best start, but blisters have limited his innings.

Meanwhile, Dreifort (4.61), Perez (6.63) and Park (5.32) have all been hit hard lately. Other than Brown, the Dodgers starters have averaged less than six innings per outing. Perez, who wasn't around to answer questions after allowing six runs on five hits, epitomizes the starter's problems. He can't pitch deep into games, averaging 5-1/3 innings per start.

``Velocity-wise, the last two starts he's had the best fastball he's had in his career,'' Dodgers catcher Todd Hundley said. ``That's what is so frustrating about it. You go fastball away - ball one. Fastball away - ball two. And you have to go to the soft stuff and try to trick the hitter. They were biting early and they made the adjustment.''

Without question, Perez has been the biggest disappointment, a trend that continued against the National League Central-leading Astros. They entered the night feasting on left-handed pitching, hitting .362 against southpaws, and they devoured Perez. It took them only an inning to get their timing on him.

``We know he's going to throw a lot of change-ups,'' Houston catcher Tony Eusebio said. ``He tried to come in one me, but I don't think it was enough. He tried to come inside and he left it down the middle.''

And Eusebio hit it 435 feet for a two-run homer and a 4-0 Houston lead in the third inning. They scored two more in the fourth on an RBI double from Bagwell.

``Early in the game we were pounding them in with fastballs and stayed away from the offspeed stuff,'' Hundley said. ``The second time through they caught onto it.''

About the only good news for the Dodgers is that Brown pitches today.

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1--Color) Dodgers starter Carlos Perez didn't last past the fourth inning in Tuesday's loss.

(2) Raul Mondesi, who later homered, bobbles the ball in the third inning of the Astros' win at Dodger Stadium..

Gus Ruelas/Daily News