IT'S A GREEN HOUSE EFFECT OUTFIELDER PULLS DODGERS OUT OF FUNK DODGERS 5, FLORIDA 3.

Byline: Steve Dilbeck Staff Writer

This is what home should be like for the weary. A place for timely hitting. Clutch defensive plays. A break when it's needed.

And for the Dodgers, some Shawn Green. A lot of Shawn Green.

Coming home after a roller-coaster road trip and carrying four-game losing streak, the Dodgers rallied to drop the Florida Marlins 5-3 on Friday night.

Green was all over this victory, driving in two runs, scoring twice and throwing out a runner at the plate.

Terry Adams (2-1) got the win in relief of an effective Carlos Perez, and Jeff Shaw pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his sixth save.

The Dodgers were down 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh when they scored three times. Devon White singled, was sacrificed to second, and Gary Sheffield walked against Florida rookie starter Brad Penny before the Marlins called on left-hander Armando Almanza to face Green.

But Green lined a doubled down the right-field line. White scored easily and Sheffield was waved in. As Sheffield was charging home, Kevin Millar's relay from first baseman Kevin Millar bounced in front of catcher Mike Redmond and into a camera well. Green took third on the throw and scored on the throwing error.

The Marlins took the brief 3-2 lead with an unearned run in the seventh. Adams opened the inning and was greeted by a David Berg single.

Redmond's bouncer then should have been a double play. Dodgers manager Davey Johnson had elected to rest struggling second baseman Mark Grudzielanek, and instead of starting infielder Jose Vizcaino, gave F.P. Santangelo the nod.

Santangelo fielded Redmond's grounder cleanly, but his throw was wide of shortstop Kevin Elster and sailed into left for an error. Berg came all the way around to score.

In attendance early Friday night was Scott Boras, the important agent who has shortstop Alex Rodriguez ready to become a free agent at the end of the season. But the Dodgers don't need to shell out some $20 million a year for Rodriguez when they have Elster making like Cal Ripken Jr. in his prime.

Elster came up in the fourth with the Dodgers down 2-0 and the bases loaded courtesy of a Green single and a pair of Penny walks. The Dodgers and the bases loaded had not been a happy match lately, but Elster calmly lined a single to left-center to score two and even the score at 2-2.

Elster's six home runs and 15 RBI are both second on the club only to Sheffield (seven, 16).

The Marlins started the scoring with a pair of runs in the second, butit could have been worse if not for Green.

Perez fell into trouble on his own making when he hit third baseman Mike Lowell to open the inning. Kevin Millar singled in front of Gary Sheffield in left, with Lowell stopping at second.

But the Marlins then picked up consecutive RBI singles from the bottom of the order, Berg and Redmond lining base hits to put Florida up 2-0. They tried to make it 3-0 on Redmond's hit to right, Berg being waved home by third base coach Fredi Gonzalez. Apparently, not everyone in the National League has heard about Green's arm.

The right fielder fired home, easily throwing Berg out at the plate.

Despite allowing the two runs, Perez turned in his best performance of the season, and for now anyway, probably cemented his spot in the rotation. He went six strong innings, giving up the two runs on five hits. He walked one, hit a batter and struck out a season-high six before leaving for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the sixth.

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Photo: (color) Dodgers' Devon White doesn't beat the tag by Florida's Alex Gonzalez on a first-inning steal attempt.

Michael Caulfield/Associated Press