Caught by Fate : Barry Lyons and Gary Carter Are Fighting for a Job Again, Much to the Surprise of Both

VERO BEACH, Fla. —  When Barry Lyons and wife Marsha were opening wedding gifts this winter, they came across a unique wine decanter.

The interesting part was the signature on the card that accompanied the gift:

Best Wishes, Gary and Sandy Carter

Yes, that Gary Carter. That dark cloud in Lyons’ baseball career.

For five seasons in the late 1980s, Carter was the loud, energetic starting catcher for the New York Mets.

For four of those seasons, Lyons was his quiet backup.

Carter smiled like a movie star and spoke like a senator. Lyons mostly spoke when spoken to.

Carter has a deep tan and a full head of hair that hangs below his batting helmet. Lyons is nearly bald.

Carter is six years older, but Carter seems 10 years younger.

“They were really different, but they were always stuck together,” said former Met pitcher Bob Ojeda, now with the Dodgers. “Barry could never get away from Gary.”

Last fall, that was supposed to change. Lyons signed with the Dodgers shortly before Carter was released by the San Francisco Giants.

Lyons was finally going to have a job that Carter couldn’t. Lyons would finally be working while Carter was watching.

Many Mets and former Mets who had admired Lyons’ defense and play-calling quietly celebrated.

“It seemed like Barry finally got out of that shadow,” Ojeda said.

But last month, Carter was invited to the Dodger spring camp without a contract. The Culver City native said he was, “returning to my field of dreams.”

On that field, suddenly facing a nightmare, was Barry Lyons.

“The Dodgers opened the door for him, he was thrilled to get the opportunity and then . . . along comes Gary,” Carter said recently, shaking his head. “It’s very, very ironic.”

Carter was speaking from his locker at Dodgertown. It was across the clubhouse from where Lyons dresses.

Two seasons after they thought they would never see each other in the same uniform again, they see each other every day.

“When I first heard he was coming here, I’m not going to say it didn’t throw me for a loop,” Lyons said. “Ever since I broke in, he’s always been there. I’ve always been Gary’s caddie. I’ve never competed with him. Just caddied.”

Lyons shrugged. “But this time, it seems different. It seems our chances are equal. If I do well, if I do what I am capable of, hopefully it will be enough.”

Will it?

Officials want Mike Scioscia’s backup to be able to come off the bench in the late innings and provide an important hit or run batted in. This is why they invited Carter. And that is why he is favored to win the job.

Carter has 1,969 hits and 1,170 RBIs in his career, including several important RBIs for San Francisco last season.

In parts of five seasons, Lyons has 132 hits and 73 RBIs.

“When I came to the big leagues, they said I was a good offensive player who was suspect defensively,” said Lyons, who hit .295 at triple-A Tidewater in 1986. “So I worked hard to overcome that label. And I may have let my offense slide. But I was always told that as a backup catcher, anything you do offensively is a bonus.

“But now, if offense is going to be stressed again . . . “

It probably didn’t help Lyons’ confidence when, at the team’s first full-day workout Wednesday, Carter took batting practice at Holman Stadium with Scioscia and most of the regulars. Lyons was on another field with most of the reserves.

“As long as what happens on the field here is what matters, I can handle it,” Lyons said. “As long as there isn’t already something in place that I don’t know about, then I can accept whatever happens.”

Said Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda, who will keep two catchers: “They will both be given an equal chance. We want our backup catchers to be able to do everything. We will look at them both.”

And so for the next six weeks, they will be forced to look at each other.

“But hey, we don’t hate each other,” Carter said. “It’s not like that.”

They even talk. When they arrived at Dodgertown last week, they sought each other out.

“I told him thanks for the wedding gift,” Lyons said. “We said hello, we talked about things.”

But did they talk about the competition?

“No, I don’t think so,” Lyons said. “But I don’t wish him bad or anything. I just want this job.”

So does Carter, although this 11-time All-Star is approaching it in a much different fashion.

Whether he is entering the clubhouse or the batting cage, everyone knows when Carter is around. He is usually laughing, joking, hugging or mugging for a camera.

“People say I’m old, hey, I’m just 36,” said Carter, who will turn 37 before opening day. “That’s not old. Look at Carlton Fisk and Bob Boone (each 43). Heck, I’m relatively young.”

Well, he does rub hot balm on his surgically repaired knees before taking the field. And his hair is graying at the temples.

And he was let go by the Mets (after 1989) and the Giants because they wanted younger bodies, even though he had nine homers and 27 RBIs in 244 at-bats last year for San Francisco.

“I’m not kidding myself, this could be make or break for me,” said Carter, who had no other offers this winter. “If I don’t get a contract here, who else is going to call me? I’ve got to prove to the Dodgers and myself that if I’m healthy, I can do the job on the field.”

Oddly, replacing Carter as the Mets’ opening-day starter last season was Lyons.

He lasted 24 games before going on the disabled list with a bulging disk in his lower back. He was sent to Tidewater on a rehabilitation option.

When he was ready to return to the Mets’ lineup, management answered his request with two words: “Stay there.”

Mackey Sasser had become the starter, and the Mets reportedly didn’t want Lyons looking over his shoulder. Lyons hated the view from Tidewater even more and was released in September after a sorry season.

“My downfall on the Mets was that the pitching staff liked me,” Lyons said. “From what I understand, Bud Harrelson (manager) and Doc Edwards (coach) didn’t want me there, sitting on the bench where the pitchers could see me and wish that I was in there.”

Lyons said he was upset because it seemed as if the Mets had decided his fate without giving him a chance.

“I think it was predetermined by them that they didn’t want me around,” Lyons said of Harrelson and Edwards. “I was never in their plans. When I got hurt, they didn’t want to see me again. And that hurt.

“After that, I was in a funk. No matter what happened, the rest of my season was going to be bad.”

Despite hitting .238 for Tidewater, Lyons was signed by the Dodgers before the end of last season after his agent, Jim Turner, sent notice of his availability to every team.

Unfortunately for Lyons, Carter came to the Dodgers with a bit more fanfare.

He was invited after being recommended by Lasorda, whose daughter, Laura, had first noticed Carter when they were classmates at Sunny Hills High in Fullerton.

Carter called Lasorda this winter when he was looking for work, and they laughed about that time.

“Back then, Laura had told Tommy that somebody should look at me, but I guess their scout didn’t give me a good report,” Carter said. “When Tommy and I talked on the phone this winter, we brought it up. It’s funny how that works.”

After speaking with Lasorda on three occasions, Carter was invited to camp and accepted.

“That’s the way it is in this game,” Carter said. “You never think something could happen--and it happens.”

On the other side of the clubhouse, in a corner where the light doesn’t seem as good and the traffic is much lighter, Lyons tightened his jaw.

“I had high hopes before he came here, and I still have high hopes,” he said. “I’m on this roster. I expect to make this team. As long as I get a fair shot.”