Catcher: Dodger Mike Piazza is starting to...

Catcher: Dodger Mike Piazza is starting to show his fatigue, batting only .174 (four for 23) during the home stand. No matter. He still is the finest offensive catcher in baseball, hitting .353 with three homers and seven runs batted in against the Braves this season. Javier Lopez also is a huge threat with 23 homers, but only 68 RBIs. No contest.

First Base: Eric Karros of the Dodgers had a quiet, but spectacular season, hitting a career-high 34 homers and driving in 111 runs. He thrives in pressure situations, batting .500 with two homers and four RBIs in last year’s playoff series. Fred McGriff is one of the steadiest players in the game, hitting 28 homers with 107 RBIs.

Second Base: Delino DeShields finished the season with an 11-for-73 (.151) slide, but he has been steady in the field. There’s nothing special about Mark Lemke, but come playoff time, the guy looks like Joe Morgan. A switch-hitter, he’s much better batting left-handed, batting .266 with two homers and 30 RBIs.

Third Base: Tim Wallach of the Dodgers has been a strong clubhouse influence, and steady defensively, but has worried the Dodgers of late with his offensive struggles. He went only five for 24 (.208) with three RBIs during the home stand. Chipper Jones of the Braves is considered the heart and soul of the team, batting .311 with 30 homers and 110 RBIs.

Shortstop: Greg Gagne of the Dodgers has two World Series rings and is used to postseason pressure. He has been solid in the field and has been a pleasant offensive surprise. Jeff Blauser has been in and out of the lineup because of injuries, and has been erratic offensively and defensively.

Left Field: Todd Hollandsworth may be the finest rookie in the league, but he collapsed the final week, going two for 23 (.087), including a zero-for-16 skein. Ryan Klesko is mediocre, at best, defensively. Yet he is quite a force offensively with 34 homers and 93 RBIs, including three homers against the Dodgers.

Center Field: The Dodgers again will go with a platoon of Wayne Kirby and Chad Curtis. They have proved to be quite adequate. The Braves have Marquis Grissom, who batted .302 against the Dodgers this season and became the first Atlanta player with 200 hits since Ralph Garr in 1974.

Right Field: Raul Mondesi of the Dodgers established himself as the finest right fielder in the game. He has batted .323 since the end of May. The Braves lost David Justice, and have gone to rookie Jermaine Dye, who batted .282 with 12 homers and 37 RBIs.

Starting Pitching: The Dodgers will match their trio of Ramon Martinez, Ismael Valdes and Hideo Nomo against anyone in baseball. Well, almost anyone. The Braves will go with John Smoltz, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine. Considering that Smoltz is a shoo-in for this year’s honor, the trio has combined to win the last six Cy Young Awards.

Bullpen: The Dodgers believe they have the best bullpen in the league, anchored by closer Todd Worrell and his league-leading 44 saves. They also have a solid 1-2 left-handed punch with Mark Guthrie and Scott Radinsky. The Braves have closer Mark Wohlers, who may be the best in the game, but their middle relief is suspect.

Bench: The Dodgers have a versatile bench, but left-handed hitters Dave Clark and Dave Hansen are the only players with experience in the role. Billy Ashley has emerged as their top right-handed pinch-hitter with five homers. The Braves have experienced pinch-hitters Luis Polonia, Dwight Smith, and third baseman Terry Pendleton.

Managers: Dodger Manager Bill Russell has made most of the right moves down the stretch and is adored by the players. Yet, he has never managed a full season, let alone a playoff game. Bobby Cox is the only National League manager to lead his team to five consecutive postseason berths and badly out-managed his peers in the postseason a year ago.

Intangibles: The Dodgers believe it is fate. How else can you explain a team losing center fielder Brett Butler to cancer, Manager Tom Lasorda to a heart attack, and third baseman Mike Blowers to a season-ending knee injury, and still winning 24 of its last 36 games. The Dodgers also won seven of 12 games against the Braves, limiting the Braves to a .221 batting average.

Prediction: Braves in five.

HEAD TO HEAD IN 1996

* April 8 at Los Angeles: Dodgers 1, Braves 0--Hideo Nomo pitches a three-hitter in home opener; Tom Glavine takes the loss.

* April 9 at Los Angeles: Braves 3, Dodgers 1--John Smoltz gets his first win; Mike Blowers has an error and two strikeouts.

* April 10 at Los Angeles: Dodgers 9, Braves 2--Billy Ashley drives in three runs with a homer and a double.

* April 22 at Atlanta: Braves 4, Dodgers 1--Struggling Dodgers lose fourth straight, fall into last place with 8-12 record.

* April 23 at Atlanta: Dodgers 3, Braves 2--Mike Piazza hits a decisive three-run homer in the eighth inning.

* June 13 at Atlanta: Dodgers 6, Braves 3--Roger Cedeno, getting advice from Brett Butler, hits his first career homer.

* June 14 at Atlanta: Braves 3, Dodgers 1--John Smoltz stymies Dodgers for his 13th victory against only one loss.

* June 15 at Atlanta: Dodgers 6, Braves 2--Shortstop Juan Castro, playing for the injured Greg Gagne, keys the first Dodger triple play in 47 years.

* June 16 at Atlanta: Dodgers 3, Braves 2--Mike Piazza homers twice and Dodgers move into a first-place tie with the Padres.

* August 2 at Los Angeles: Dodgers 2, Braves 1--Billy Ashley hits a pinch-hit homer against John Smoltz in the seventh inning.

* August 3 at Los Angeles: Braves 5, Dodgers 3 (18 innings)--In the second-longest game in Dodger Stadium history (5 hours 5 minutes), Ramon Martinez takes loss in relief.

* August 4 at Los Angeles: Braves 6, Dodgers 5--Comment: Three Dodger errors in ninth lead to loss; Braves conclude 17-game road swing because of the Olympics being held in Atlanta.

Dodgers win season series, 7-5