DODGERS NOTEBOOK : SWEEP WAS JUST WHAT PADRES NEEDED.

Byline: Kevin Acee Daily News Staff Writer

The Padres are the National League West's last-place team. Their season was considered all but lost before they happened upon the Dodgers.

However, they attained something the past three days the Dodgers have been talking about achieving for more than a month.

``Now we're doing the things we thought we could do all along,'' Tony Gwynn said Thursday after the Padres swept three games from the Dodgers to improve to 19-25 and move within four games of their rivals to the north and seven games of first-place San Francisco. At one point last week, the Padres were 10 games out of first.

``The sweep comes at a good time for us,'' Gwynn said. ``The fact that it was L.A., I'm sure our fans are happy. But from our standpoint, the important thing is we're playing well.''

Glass half full: On one hand, Chan Ho Park threw 122 pitches Wednesday night, displayed the lack of control the Dodgers worried about and gave up a game-tying home run in his second-straight disappointing outing.

On the other, he regrouped after a horrendous inning, got stronger as the game progressed and showed further signs he might have grown into a mature pitcher.

``I hope so,'' pitching coach Dave Wallace said Thursday. ``We'll find out in the next few weeks. . . . He made a mistake (on the home run by Chris Jones). He threw a few too many pitches, didn't pitch effectively. But it was a real commendable job. Especially when you're 23.''

Also: Gwynn, whose wife is being sued by Hideo Nomo for unauthorized use of his image in a crossword puzzle, was 3 for 3 against the Dodgers pitcher. . . . Brett Butler played catch for the second-straight day Thursday, reporting only slight pain after throwing for 14 minutes at a distance of up to 70 feet. . . . Reliever Darren Dreifort, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 11 with tendinitis in his left elbow, threw off the mound for the first time Wednesday and reported no pain. Dreifort, who did not throw Thursday, is scheduled to come off the disabled list Tuesday.