Ruben Mateo couldn't quite get to the game-winner in the 14th inning. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Dodgers had to work overtime, but they finally broke the Reds' hex on them in Dodger Stadium.

        The Dodgers won it 3-2 on Adrian Beltre's bloop single in the 14th inning, snapping the Reds' seven-game winning streak in Dodger Stadium. The game ended at 1:58 Friday morning, Cincinnati time.

        “You figured if it went long enough, it would end on some kind of screwy play,” Reds manager Bob Boone.

        Actually, it ended on a series of them. Shawn Green started the 14th with a bad-swing roller up the third base line. He beat it out for an infield single.

        The hit came off Luis Pineda, the Reds' fourth pitcher. But after the hit, Pineda stepped off the mound, bent over.

        The trainers and Boone came out. Pineda left the game, complaining of the dizziness.

        “He wanted to stay in,” Boone said. “But I didn't want to risk it.”

        Scott Sullivan was summoned cold from the bullpen. He did his warm-up on the mound. He got Eric Karros to ground out, moving Green to second. The Reds intentionally walked Marquis Grissom.

        That brought up Beltre, who looped a single that right fielder Ruben Mateo made a dive at but couldn't get.

        “You hate to lose a 14-inning game on that,” Sullivan said. “You'd rather give up a rocket.”

        You couldn't really blame this loss on one hit by the Dodgers. The lack of hitting by the Reds had a lot more to do with it. They only had five hits on the night and none in the last 7 1/3 innings.

        “No offense is going to catch up with you,” Boone said. “We were in a two-run game for 14 innings. They were in the same boat. It wasn't a big blast that got us.”

        The Reds' first six batters in the order were 1-for-31 for the night.

        “Odalis (Perez) is tough,” said Aaron Boone, who was 0-for-4. “Then we had (Eric) Gagne. (Omar) Daal was lights out. But, that said, it's frustrating when you don't swing the bats like you're capable of. It's something you go through in a season. We've got to work through it.”

Los Angeles Dodgers' Mark Grudzielanek congratulates Shawn Green as Green crosses home plate with the winning run in the 14th inning. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        The Reds had won nine of 10 coming in, but they had only scored more than four runs in one of their last eight games.

        Still, they hung in there Thursday. Twice, the Dodgers took one-run leads and twice the Reds came back.

        Given the starters, it was just the kind of game you would have expected.

        Left-hander Odalis Perez started for LA. Perez, 23, pitched a one-hit shutout and faced the minimum 27 batters in his last outing, a 10-0 victory over the Cubs in Chicago.

        Elmer Dessens, the Reds starter, hasn't flirted with a no-hitter this year. But in his last four starts before Thursday, Dessens had allowed only two earned runs over 26 1/3 innings. That's a 0.68 ERA.

        But the Dodgers got to him in the first. Dave Roberts led off with a single, stole second and moved to third on Cesar Izturis' groundout. He scored when Paul Lo Duca dropped a single into center.

        Perez didn't flirt with a no-no this time. Jason LaRue led off the third with a solid single to center. Dessens sacrificed LaRue to second. LaRue stole third. He scored on Barry Larkin's sacrifice fly.

        The Dodgers regained the lead when Lo Duca led off the fourth with his second home run of the year.

        The Reds blew a chance to tie it in the fifth. Mateo doubled. LaRue followed with a single. But left fielder Grissom threw Mateo out by 10 feet at the plate.

        The Reds tied in it the seventh. Adam Dunn led off with a bolt to left center for his sixth home run. It was the seventh consecutive game in which the Reds have homered.

        Both Dessens and Perez were gone after the seventh. Call it a draw. Dessens allowed two runs on six hits. He struck out three and walked none. Perez allowed two runs on eight hits. He struck out five and walked none.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Paul Lo Duca tags out Cincinnati Reds' Ruben Mateo as he tries to score from second on a hit by Jason LaRue during the fifth inning. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        “Elmer was terrific,” Bob Boone said. “All our pitchers were.” The chance to win came in the ninth. Sean Casey led off with a walk against Dodger closer Gagne. It was only Gagne's third walk in 13 innings. Reggie Taylor came in to pinch-run. He stole second. He moved to third when Dunn just missed another home run. Right fielder Green caught it almost against the wall.

        Aaron Boone was then hit by a pitch. Wilton Guerrero popped foul to third baseman Beltre. Mateo hit a shot that first baseman Karros made a nice play on.

        Scott Williamson followed Dessens. He worked two hitless innings. The highlight was striking out Karros with a 98 mph fastball.

        Danny Graves followed Williamson. After a routine 10th, Graves ran into trouble in the 11th. Lo Duca and Shawn Green came up with back-to-back, one-out singles.

        Karros worked the count full before lining to center. The runners were going, Juan Encarnacion easily doubled up Lo Duca.

        Graves worked three innings for the first time since July 14 of last year against Cleveland. He threw 30 pitches, so the Reds may need someone else to close tonight when they open a three-game series in San Francisco.

        But not if Graves can help it.

        “I'll pitch if they let me,” Graves said. “I've thrown more than 30 pitches in one inning before. I said to (tonight's starter Jose) Rijo, "I've got you if need me.' He said, "If you pitch, all coaches and me are fired.”

        The end of the threat in the ninth began a streak of 17 straight Reds going out in order. Pineda followed Graves. He pitched a scoreless 13th before losing it in the 14th.

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