The Pittsburgh Pirates had one hit and only four baserunners in eight innings. Belcher struck out eight. He retired 12 of the last 13 he faced.

And he supported his teammates by throwing an inside pitch that cleared both benches in a near brawl.

But citing a tired arm, he would not pitch the ninth.

In case Belcher forgot what sort of bullpen he was dealing with, Pat Perry and Jay Howell soon reminded him. They blew a 5-1 lead in the ninth, and the Pirates won, 6-5, before 26,171.

The Dodgers were within one out of extending their season-high five-game winning streak and still leading, 5-3, when Howell gave up a bases-loaded single by Jose Lind that skipped beyond the reach of a diving Eddie Murray and into right field.

Bobby Bonilla and Gary Redus scored, and a surprised Don Slaught raced home when Hubie Brooks' bouncing throw from right field eluded catcher Mike Scioscia and rolled to the backstop. Howell, in only his fourth appearance since 27 days of inactivity after knee surgery, was late in backing up home plate.

It was a vivid example of why the Pirates lead the National League East--and why the Dodgers will be exposed as pretenders in the West until they stop pretending everything is fine in their bullpen.

"A bad, bad loss," Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda said. "We needed just one more out and couldn't get it. We had it won. We should have won. Bad loss."

And a bad game. Players were attempting to hit each other with baseballs, fists and threats. A feud resurfaced that dates to July 24, when Dodger Tim Crews hit Gary Redus in the face with a fastball. There were no punches thrown Monday, but many warnings were issued.

"There is bad blood here, period," said Jim Gott, the Dodger reliever who played for the Pirates last season. "And it will stay that way, no question."

The Dodger bullpen did nothing to ease the tension for Lasorda. Dodger relief pitchers have lost six games the team led in the sixth inning or later.

The Dodger bullpen is 4-6 with a 4.70 earned-run average. It is last in the National League with seven saves. So why would Belcher hand the bullpen the game by telling coaches in the seventh inning that he could pitch only one more inning?

"I had been scuffling with my arm strength all month, I was finally getting that strength back . . . and I didn't want to leave it out there," Belcher said. "I threw what, 120 pitches? OK, 110. The way my arm has felt, that's plenty.

"And we had a four-run lead, didn't we? I guess it was just one of those unfortunate days for the bullpen."

Said Lasorda: "He told us in the seventh that he could go one more inning. I have to believe what he tells me."

Belcher is considered one of the toughest players on the team. However, he was also the most outspoken Dodger after Orel Hershiser's reconstructive shoulder surgery earlier this spring.

Because Hershiser's problems were considered a result of too many innings pitched, Belcher said that he would begin using "better sense" when it came to his right arm.

Monday marked the second time in four starts since Hershiser's surgery that Belcher has removed himself from a game. In an eventual rainout May 13 in New York, he would not return to the mound after an interruption of more than two hours.

"After a game like this, I wonder if he'll still feel the same way," one Dodger said.

Perry, who gave up three singles, a walk and a wild pitch to his six batters, was making his fourth appearance since returning from last winter's shoulder surgery.

Howell, who walked Slaught and then gave up the winning single to Lind, said he is not ready for pressure situations. He has lost two of his four post-surgery appearances and refused to finish another game because of shoulder stiffness.

"It (arm strength) wasn't very good, I don't think," he said. "I'm not where I should be, physically. And it is disturbing. You've seen it. What have I done out there?

"There will have to be discussions, because I don't know if I can continue pitching my way into shape under conditions like this."

Said Lasorda: "I didn't get word of that before the game, but if he tells us that, then we'll have to do something about it. He's the guy who knows about his arm."

The Pirate ninth overshadowed the bitterness of the series. In addition to Crews hitting Redus last season, the Pirates cite a Belcher pitch that nearly hit Bonilla in the head in Los Angeles May 1. The Dodgers believe Randy Kramer retaliated by hitting Belcher in the left hip in that game.

Monday's trouble began in the fifth inning, when Hubie Brooks was hit in the left elbow by a Bob Walk fastball. Belcher's first pitch to the Pirates' first hitter in the fifth, Slaught, sailed behind Slaught's back. Slaught righted himself, threw up his arms, and began shouting at Belcher as benches cleared.

With the exception of Gott grabbing Bonilla and then engaging in a shoving match with Andy Van Slyke, there was more shouting than pushing.

In the Dodger sixth, Kramer spun Belcher around with an inside pitch that barely missed hitting him, and the Dodger bench nearly cleared again. Only Lasorda's exhortations stopped an angry Kal Daniels and Mickey Hatcher from charging Kramer, who was ejected from the game along with Pirate Manager Jim Leyland.

"Everybody in the ballpark knew Belcher was throwing at Slaught. I don't think we started anything," Leyland said.