Fighting-Mad Dodgers Win One : Baseball: Benzinger and several relievers scuffle before 7-5 victory over Pirates.

PITTSBURGH —  The Dodgers finally lost their temper Sunday, displaying some long-awaited combativeness.

Then they played the game.

A 7-5 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates was overshadowed by an early afternoon shouting match between Todd Benzinger and several relief pitchers, led by John Candelaria, in the back of the visiting clubhouse at Three Rivers Stadium.

According to witnesses, it lasted no more than five minutes, and no punches were thrown. It ended after Manager Tom Lasorda walked out of his office and calmed things down.

Many were surprised such an outburst among members of a frustrated team did not happen two months ago.

But after that, the Dodgers left the clubhouse together and proceeded to come back from a 4-1 deficit, winning a game after trailing through six innings for only the seventh time this season.

“We certainly went out on the field fired up,” Benzinger said.

The dispute began when several relievers took objection to Benzinger’s published quote after the bullpen, with help from his botched grounder, blew a two-run lead to the Pirates in the bottom of the ninth inning here Friday.

Benzinger, who had given the Dodgers the lead in the top of the ninth with a pinch grand slam, said: “Nothing against any of our pitchers, but when we went out there in the ninth inning, I had the feeling that there were going to be guys on base.”

The relievers read this quote in copies of Los Angeles-area newspaper stories that were faxed to the team. When the team arrived at the clubhouse Sunday, according to witnesses, Benzinger was angrily confronted with his words.

Witnesses said when the shouting reached a crescendo, Brett Butler walked to the end of the clubhouse to stick up for Benzinger. “He hasn’t said 10 words all year, leave him alone,” Butler reportedly said. Butler then became involved in an argument before Lasorda intervened.

Jay Howell, the veteran leader of the bullpen, said the release of tension was necessary.

“You need to get stuff that like that taken care of, you can’t let it sit around and get worse,” said Howell, who later picked up his second save.

Howell said that the relievers were angry because they believed that Benzinger should have kept his feelings to himself: “That kind of stuff has to take place in the clubhouse and not end up (in the newspaper). . . . I think we squared it away.”

Benzinger said he certainly understands it. “I didn’t mean it the way it sounded, and I shouldn’t have said it at the time,” he said. “When I started the quote by saying I didn’t have anything against our pitchers, I meant exactly that.

“I just meant that the way things have been going for us, I knew the last inning wouldn’t be easy.”

Benzinger said he would have never say anything disparaging about the pitchers, because they could easily turn the tables.

“A lot of times this year, pitchers could have said, ‘Nothing against the hitters, but I knew we couldn’t come back,’ ” Benzinger said.

Said Lasorda: “Just a misunderstanding between a couple of guys, no problem whatsoever.”

After the fight, the Dodgers became the epitome of teamwork.

Mike Piazza, rookie catcher, lost two of Tom Candiotti’s knuckleballs in the first inning, when the Pirates scored two runs.

But Candiotti called him to the mound, calmed him down, then they worked well together for the next six innings as Candiotti won for only the third time since June 7.

With the Dodgers trailing, 4-3, in the seventh inning, Dodger rookie Rafael Bournigal was patient enough to draw a leadoff walk against veteran Danny Jackson.

After Bournigal was bunted to second, pinch-hitter Lenny Harris hit a check-swing single up the middle to tie the score. Then with bases loaded, Eric Karros gave the Dodgers the lead with a full-count double against Danny Cox.

“This was a good win because everybody contributed,” Karros said. “That’s the way it should have been every day around here.”