Padres Lose but Retain Perspective

SAN DIEGO —  The Padres, Lord only knows, have had their share of zany weeks since the inception of this franchise.

They’ve had managers quitting on the opening day of spring training camps. They’ve had presidents wagging the wrong finger on Fan Appreciation Day. They’ve had son-in-laws come and go as Padre officers. They’ve had owners berating their team on the public-address system. They’ve had players ridiculing owners’ hamburgers. They’ve had players taking out ads in newspapers applying for part-time work. They’ve had. . . .

You get the picture . . . the Padres have not exactly been your quietest, most serene franchise in the baseball world.

So when the Padres say that Saturday night’s 5-3 defeat to the Houston Astros concludes one of the wackiest weeks in their history, man, that’s really saying something.

“I’m not saying it’s the craziest,” Padre right fielder Tony Gwynn said, “but it’s got to rank right up there.”

Where else can you have a team open its week on Sunday by finishing its worst trip on the road (1-10) since 1973, lose again Monday for their 21st time in 24 games, and win as many games (five) in five days as it had in the previous 5 1/2 weeks?

Yes sir, the Padres have been so hot these days that they even have President Bush talking about them.

OK, OK, so he’s actually been talking about the Padres indirectly, instead referring to a certain national anthem singer, but at least the Padres have the country buzzing, right?

The Padres even managed to look good in their defeat Saturday, which snapped their nine-game winning streak against the Astros at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium. The crowd of 22,621 watched the Padres surge back from a 5-1 deficit with solo homers by Joe Carter and Tom Lampkin in the seventh, and then see the drama of Astro reliever Larry Andersen strike out Jack Clark in the eighth with Gwynn on first.

Sure, it goes down as a defeat in the standings, but when your top four hitters go zero for 15, little wonder Padre Manager Greg Riddoch was rather pleased that the game’s outcome remained in jeopardy until the final out.

“I don’t think I’ve seen a quicker about-face than this one,” Riddoch said. “I mean, when you’re laying in bed at night trying to figure out what kinds of things you could do that might have an impact--then realize that there’s only so much you can do--and then see the team turn around like it has, yeah, it’s been a pretty wild week, to say the least.

“It’s sure been hairy, hasn’t it?”

This is a team that went 3-21 over the past four weeks, batting .232. They were outscored 122-68, scoring more than three runs in only five games. And they plummeted 11 games in the standings to the Cincinnati Reds.

Now, they’ve suddenly won five of six games, batting .343 with 14 doubles, two triples and six homers. They’ve scored more runs (39) in the past six games than they accumulated in their previous 14 games. And they’ve made up six games alone this week on the Reds.

“The best thing about ending a streak,” Riddoch said, “is starting another one.”

The Padres’ esprit de corps has reached such levels that even though they still trail the Reds by 16 games, several Padre players have actually said--with a straight face, no less--that perhaps it’s not too late to catch the Reds.

Riddoch, who has heard the talk himself, scoffed at any such notion. He knows that no team in baseball history has ever overcome such a deficit during a course of a season, much less than than one with just two months left.

“Guys have come into my office,” Riddoch said, “and have told me, ‘Say, look, we’re just these many games back.’ I tell them, ‘Hey, come on, those are the kind of things that got us in trouble in the first place.’ ”

But if nothing else, the Padres’ outrageous optimism at least shows a difference in the team’s attitude. It was just a week ago in St. Louis, remember, when first baseman Jack Clark was telling reporters, “Our goal now is just to stay out of last place.”

So what’s the explanation? How can a team look so dreadful for so long, all of a sudden look like the pennant contender everyone anticipated?

Well, you might find this hard to believe, but there’s a few folks in the Padre clubhouse who say that the biggest reason might have been Roseanne Barr, who caused a national furor with Wednesday’s rendition of the national anthem.

Sure, it probably was the worst publicity stunt in baseball since the Chicago White Sox’s Disco Night on July 12, 1979, that caused a near riot and resulted in a forfeiture of a game. And yes, when you have the President publicly criticizing the action, it doesn’t do a whole lot of good for your public image.

But, in the words of Padre starter Bruce Hurst, “I think Roseanne might have been the best thing to happen to us. She took the spotlight off us. It was like all of the pressure came off us, and onto her, bless her heart.”

There, of course, were plenty of other explanations provided for the Padres’ resurgence:

--Hurst’s two-hit shutout Tuesday in a 10-0 victory over the Reds: “We got two runs in the first with two out,” Hurst said, “and I remember saying in the dugout, ‘Come on, now let’s don’t let them back in it. And we didn’t. We just manhandled them.”

--Shortstop Garry Templeton’s diving stab in the first game of a doubleheader Wednesday that preserved the Padres’ 2-1 victory over Cincinnati: “When you make plays like that, it gears teams up, and that’s what happened to us. We took off from there. It was like all of the great qualities of this team came together.”

--The emergence of Jack Clark and Joe Carter: During the past six games, they have combined for five homers and 13 RBIs. “When you’ve got those guys going,” Riddoch said, “you start seeing a big difference.”

It’s unknown now whether the Padres’ surge will have a bearing in the decision-making of Jack McKeon, Padre vice president/baseball operations. He was on the phone all afternoon Saturday talking with at least five general managers, and spent the game talking with Chicago Cub scout Hugh Alexander.

You can be assured they weren’t rating the best and worst National Anthem performances.

“We’ll have to see what happens,” Riddoch said. “Knowing Trader, a lot of things could happen in the next few days.

“Your guess is as good as mine.”

Padre Notes

You think Roseanne Barr had a bad performance at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium? Hey, take a good, hard look at the Astros. Since the start of the 1987 season, the Astros are 7-26 here, and have been outscored, 178-88. Their victory Saturday was their first at San Diego since Aug. 8, 1989 in which they were outscored 69-17. It also was the first time in six games this season at Jack Murphy that the Astros scored more than two runs in a game. They had scored two runs in each of their first five games. . . . Astro starter Mike Scott (8-10) allowed six hits and three runs in seven innings for the victory. Scott, who is in the second year of a three-year, $6.6 million contract, has been rumored for weeks to be headed elsewhere, and with the trading deadline scheduled at 2 p.m. (PST) Tuesday when players must again clear waivers, Scott could be headed to any of the pennant contenders. The biggest stumbling block, however, is that Scott is a five-and-10-year man, and can veto any trade. . . . The Philadelphia Phillies continue to scout Jack Clark, and rumors persist of a possible package that might include Ricky Jordan. Also in attendance Saturday were scouts from Kansas City and the Chicago White Sox. . . . Padre starter Bruce Hurst returned to the team Saturday after spending the past two days at home with the flu. Hurst, who lost seven pounds, was not able to eat solid food without getting sick until Saturday when he had a sandwich. “I’ve been throwing up, and at the same time had diarrhea. It was not a pretty sight.” Hurst still is scheduled to pitch at 1:05 p.m. today in the series’ final against the Astros, but the Padres will not make a decision until today. “I’ll give it everything I can,” Hurst said. “I still think I can go.” . . . Jack Clark was fined by National League President Bill White, but not suspended, for his ejection last Sunday in St. Louis. The amount of the fine was not revealed by the National League office, or the Padres. . . . Hope the boss has a good sense of humor: Manager Greg Riddoch put a sticker on his file cabinet Saturday that reads: “I like this job so much, I’d do it for nothing. (Unfortunately, they know that).” Tom Lampkin, the Padre rookie backup catcher, continues to dazzle the Padre front-office with his skills. He not only is batting .308 (eight for 25) since his arrival July 11, hitting his first career homer Saturday, but has thrown out four of six baserunners attempting to steal. He added Mark Davidson to his list in the second inning, after already throwing out Vince Coleman, Willie McGee and Ozzie Smith of the St. Louis Cardinals. “We’re really been impressed with his ability, and what he’s done for us,” Riddoch said. “He hasn’t been in awe of the situation or surroundings one bit. . . . Padre catcher Benito Santiago--who has been on the disabled list since June 14--might be able to resume playing at the end of the Padres’ next trip on Aug. 12, Riddoch said. “To hurry him at this point would be counter-productive,” Riddoch said. “We’re going to let him go at his pace.” . . . Mark Davis’ problems with the Kansas City Royals continue on. Davis, who won a Cy Young award for the Padres last season before leaving for a four-year, $13 million contract, made his second start of the season Saturday: four innings, six hits, six earned runs, seven walks and a strikeout. . . . Dora Duensing, the wife of Padre assistant trainer Larry Duensing, gave birth this week to their second daughter, Laura Elizabeth. Still on hold are Wendy Parent, the wife of catcher Mark Parent, and Pam Dunne, the wife of pitcher Mike Dunne. Each are scheduled to give birth in the next few days.