DODGERS TURN IT AROUND; PIAZZA, PITCHERS GANG UP ON GIANTS : DODGERS 5, SAN FRAN 1.

Byline: Eric Noland Daily News Staff Writer

In desperate need of a miracle elixir, the Dodgers found one Wednesday night in the form of a 24-year-old San Francisco Giants pitcher who didn't even get his first taste of Triple-A until this year, much less the major leagues.

But the Dodgers, having lost six of their previous seven games, welcomed and savored the remedy that Keith Foulke represented. They piled on the rookie right-hander early, then held on for a 5-1 victory over the Giants before 30,357 fans at Dodger Stadium.

As Mike Piazza launched a 454-foot home run to left field and L.A. pitchers struck out a season-high 14 batters, the Dodgers (28-28) climbed to within four games of the front-running Giants (32-24) in the National League West.

But as satisfying as the night's momentary surge of fortune was for the guys in blue, Wilton Guerrero couldn't help but wear a sheepish expression when it was over. His use of a corked bat, which resulted in an eight-game suspension when he was found out early this week, could prove even more detrimental to the Dodgers in the wake of an injury to Juan Castro Wednesday night.

Castro, who was standing in for Guerrero at second base, injured both legs while sliding into third base after delivering a two-run triple in the second inning. His sprained right knee and bruised lower left leg forced him from the game, which left the Dodgers with only two middle infielders: shortstop Greg Gagne and Castro's replacement, Nelson Liriano.

This was the Dodgers' first look of the season at the unlikely team that has been leading the division since the middle of May. It was not, however, a representative image.

Foulke, who replaced the injured Osvaldo Fernandez in the rotation, brought a 7.94 ERA to his fourth major-league appearance. And longball-hitting second baseman Jeff Kent had to leave the game after 3-1/2 innings when he took a wicked Martinez fastball to the left wrist. (A bruise was diagnosed, but Kent was sent out for precautionary X-rays anyway).

Still, ``it's the Giants, it is our division,'' said Dodgers manager Bill Russell. ``We're trying to gain some ground on them.''

The Dodgers wasted little time toward that end.

The game's third batter, Piazza, got a 2-1 Foulke delivery at the letters and seemed to flick it deep into the left-field bleachers. It was Piazza's ninth home run of the season, and was his 137th as a Dodger, tying him with Mike Marshall for sixth place on the club's all-time list.

An inning later, the Dodgers had two runners aboard (Todd Zeile on a leadoff walk, Todd Hollandsworth on a single up the middle) when Castro fisted a liner down the line in right. Glenallen Hill misplayed it into a triple, but Castro didn't survive it.

As he skidded into third, he attempted a pop-up slide, but Castro's legs appeared to get tangled, and he tumbled heavily to the ground.

Unless Castro can bounce back quickly from the twin injuries, the Dodgers infield could be in perilous straits, since Guerrero won't be eligible to return to the active roster until next week.

Dodgers executive vice president Fred Claire, who hadn't had a player suspended since reliever Jay Howell was caught doctoring the ball during the 1988 playoffs, said in obvious annoyance, ``I hope it's an even longer wait 'til the next one.''

For this game, the absence of two second basemen was masked by Piazza and the pitchers. Piazza followed his home run with a two-out, RBI single in the seventh off Rene Arocha. And Ramon Martinez (5-3) worked seven innings and equaled a season high by striking out nine.

If this was the best the division-leading Giants had to offer, the Dodgers probably didn't have great cause for fear.

San Francisco lost 94 games last year while finishing at the bottom of the division, and it was widely expected to linger in the same vicinity this year, especially after trading off slugger Matt Williams in the offseason.

Against such a backdrop, it's natural to wonder if a slide - if not an outright collapse - is just around the corner.

``But this is a battling team,'' said Giants coach Ron Perranoski, the former Dodgers reliever and pitching coach. ``The thing about them, they get the crap kicked out of them one night and then come back and win two or three in a row.''