You Have to Listen to What He Doesn’t Say

It’s the time of year when you have to read between the lines if you want to know what’s really going on.

The Baltimore Orioles held an organizational summit last Monday in Chicago and followed it with a press briefing, but the only revelation to come out of the meeting was an optimistic, stay-the-course announcement by General Manager Roland Hemond.

The club had begun to move in the right direction, Hemond said, holding up the recent 5-4 road trip as proof that prosperity was just around the corner. He also pointed to the arrival of Ben McDonald and Curt Schilling from the minor leagues and the impending activation of Phil Bradley, Joe Price and Brady Anderson as signs that the worst finally was over.

He will get no argument on that point here, but there had to be more to that unsolicited, state-of-the-team address than met the ear. So let’s try to read between the lines and figure out in which direction the Orioles are really heading:

What Hemond said: “We’re encouraged in how things are now going. I feel like we’re hot and getting hotter. The past weekend -- when we won the last two games in Chicago -- and on the road trip, things started falling into place.”

What he couldn’t say: “We’re encouraged in how things are now going. Two wins in a row is a real hot streak for us.”

What he said: “We feel the player development department -- with the arrival of Ben McDonald and Curt Schilling, a couple of hard throwers -- has been an added dimension.”

What he couldn’t say: “We’re already building for 1991 and beyond, but we’re not about to admit that we’ve given up on 1990. That would be foolish, because there are still great seats available for the remaining home games.”

What he said: “We knocked the White Sox out of first place this (last) weekend.”

What he couldn’t say: “We’ve already been reduced to a spoiler role, and it’s only July. I never thought I’d miss the White Sox.”

What he said: “The medical advancement of Phil Bradley, Joe Price and Brady Anderson, those are positive signs.”

What he couldn’t say: “We’re finally getting healthy. If only Dr. Silberstein could come up with a cure for the way we hit with men on base.”

What he said: “There has always been somebody missing from the cast. It now appears that we’ll have our best cast out there.”

What he couldn’t say: “With this cast, we could play Broadway and still score only two runs.”

No disrespect intended, of course. The Orioles are doing the right thing by holding true to the course the front office set a couple of years ago. This is no time to do anything rash, because a series of ill-advised personnel moves could harm the club’s long-term future.

Manager Frank Robinson still clings to the hope that his team can compete in the second half, but expectations were too high to begin with. The organization is hoping to develop a solid contender in time to move into the new stadium in 1992. That is a realistic goal. The 1990 pennant is not.

No-hittermania has struck baseball in a big way, and there really is no logical explanation for it. But here’s an attempt to make some sense out of something that doesn’t make any.

The first no-hitter of the year can be explained away by the lockout, because the California Angels’ Mark Langston and Mike Witt combined to no-hit the Seattle Mariners just a couple of days into the season.

The ones thrown by the Texas Rangers’ Nolan Ryan, the Seattle Mariners’ Randy Johnson and the Oakland Athletics’ Dave Stewart need no explanation. They were thrown by by three pitchers with no-hit stuff.

The no-hitters by Andy Hawkins and Fernando Valenzuela defy explanation. They were thrown by pitchers who have had the wrong stuff for most of the season.

The no-hitter by Melido Perez Thursday is the easiest to explain. It came on a rainy night after a three-day break against a New York Yankees team that is a no-hitter just waiting to happen.

The Nasty Boys will have to do without one of their main men for at least the next couple of weeks. Cincinnati Reds Manager Lou Piniella has taken Norm Charlton out of his nasty bullpen and inserted him into the starting rotation.

Why mess with a winning formula? Because the Reds’ second-half schedule features a grueling stretch in which the club plays 27 games (including five this weekend) in 25 days. The Reds do not get a day off until Aug. 6.

They’ll need six starters for at least a couple of weeks, so Charlton will start Monday against the Montreal Expos and figures to stay in the rotation until Jose Rijo comes back from a strained shoulder.

Charlton began his career as a starter, so he’s not complaining, but he has grown to like the bullpen.

“I like relieving,” he said. “I really do. I liked coming to the ballpark every day with a chance to get in the game and make a difference. As a starter, I’ll have to come to the park every fifth day looking to make a big difference.”

The Chicago White Sox held their “Turn Back the Clock” promotion Wednesday, decking out the players in uniforms reminiscent of the club’s 1917 world championship team for a makeup game with the Milwaukee Brewers.

It was a great idea, but there must have been some confusion. The White Sox only turned back the clock to 1989, blowing a six-run lead in the eighth inning before dropping a 12-9 decision in the 13th.

To hear Sparky Anderson talk about them, you might think the Detroit Tigers were eight games in front of the pack in the American League East. But diminished expectations can do that to you.

The Tigers reached the All-Star break with a 41-44 record -- 6 1/2 games out of first place and two games out of sixth place -- but Anderson is gloating big-time.

“From what they wrote about us this spring, it’s like we’re leading the league,” he said. “They said we were a joke and Sparky will be heading home in July. I’m really pleased to have 40 wins at the break.”

Apparently, the 41st victory was just icing on the cake.

More Tiger tales: The Tigers don’t appear to be gearing up for a big stretch run, even though they are not that far out of contention in the East. In fact, they seem to be working on next year already.

The club recently recalled infielder Travis Fryman, who is reputed to be one of the best prospects in the organization, and planted him at third base -- even though Fryman was brought through the club’s minor-league system as a shortstop.

Here’s another “even though.” Regular third baseman Tony Phillips was working on an eight-game hitting streak that featured a .481 on-base percentage when the move was made. He’ll still play every day, but figures to show up at several positions.

No offense to current White Sox GM Larry Himes, but Ozzie Guillen apparently has a soft spot in his heart for Hemond, who traded Cy Young award winner LaMarr Hoyt to the San Diego Padres for him in 1984.

“He’s a great general manager, a great person and his heart is bigger than anyone’s in the game,” Guillen said. “A lot of people in Chicago love him.”

Same goes for Baltimore.

Trivia quiz: Earlier this season, Cal Ripken tied a major-league record when he went back-to-back games without a chance at shortstop. But what Baltimore Orioles first baseman once went an entire game without recording a single putout?

Yankees outfielder Mel Hall doesn’t seem to know whether he’s coming or going anymore. Wasn’t he the guy who said a couple of weeks ago that the problem with the Yankees was that no one cared about each other? Here’s what he said last week:

“We’re terrible (he actually said something worse than terrible, but you’ll just have to use your imagination). They want to get rid of me, and I don’t care. Anywhere I’d go couldn’t be worse than this.”

Judging from his latest comments, the Yankees ought to keep him. He’s just starting to fit in.

The outlook for the Yankees doesn’t figure to get better soon. Pitchers Tim Leary, Jeff Robinson and Dave Righetti will be eligible for free agency at the end of the year. Righetti figures to stay, but the other two probably are already packed.

“You might or might not (lose them),” Yankees reliever Greg Cadaret said, “but you’re sure as hell not going to get anybody to come here playing .300 ball.”

Reds reliever Chris Myers ran up some serious frequent-flier miles over the All-Star break, thanks to a couple of charity commitments he made several months in advance of being named to the National League squad.

Myers flew home to Vancouver, Wash., from Philadelphia last Sunday night to take part in a benefit for his old American Legion team, then flew back to Chicago in time to pitch at Wrigley Field Tuesday night. Then he flew back to Vancouver to appear at a fund-raiser for the city softball program before rushing back to Cincinnati in time to pitch in Thursday’s doubleheader against the New York Mets.

“I probably spent more time in the air than sleeping the last four days,” Myers said, “but I make commitments months in advance. I had to live up to them. I thought it was the right thing to do.”

Trivia answer: If you said Boog Powell, you’ve got the right time frame but the wrong Orioles Hall of Famer. Frank Robinson played first base on July 1, 1971, and tied a major-league record by playing nine innings without a putout.