Butler’s Script a Winner : He Keys Dodgers’ Victory on an Emotional Night

There were plenty of times during the last four months when all Brett Butler had was his faith and his eternal dream.

It was this dream of playing baseball again, four months after being diagnosed with cancer, that provided this perseverance.

Yet, never in his wildest imagination, never in all of his dreams, could he possibly envision a night so beautiful.

Butler, spending most of Friday simply trying to gather his emotions, found himself in a fairy tale, becoming the hero in the Dodgers’ 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates in front of an emotional crowd of 41,509 at Dodger Stadium.

“If you don’t believe in miracles, you better,” Dodger Manager Bill Russell said, “because Brett just did one tonight.”

Butler, playing for the first time since May 1, scored the winning run in vintage Butler fashion.

He walked to lead off the eighth inning. Then, after drawing at least five pickoff attempts, he stole second base on Todd Hollandsworth’s strikeout, taking third when rookie catcher Jason Kendall’s throw sailed into the outfield.

Pirate pitcher Marc Wilkins intentionally walked Mike Piazza, bringing up Eric Karros. Karros hit a fly ball to right field. Butler tagged and scored ahead of right fielder Mike Kingery’s throw.

Butler jumped up, pumped his fist, and was mobbed by his teammates. He then told Russell he was too tired to go out for the ninth, watched Todd Worrell save his 38th game, and walked onto the field where Worrell gave him the game ball.

“This means more to me than any game I’ve ever played in,” Butler said. “Just the emotions that were going through me the entire game, and the love and affection that was shown. It’s like a love affair with the city.”

It was only fitting that on the night of Butler’s return the Dodgers (77-63) moved into first place in the National League West, one percentage point ahead of the San Diego Padres.

“It was a tremendous feat; it was a miracle,” Russell said. “This is a time of year when we need a guy like this.

“Like he said, he’s not coming back to be a cheerleader. He’s here on a mission, and that’s what we saw here tonight.”

The most memorable moment was when he walked to the plate for the first time, leading off the first inning. The crowd stood, and Butler bit his lower lip, and kicked the dirt with his left foot.

Butler backed out of the box, waved his helmet to the crowd in appreciation, stepped back in, and began what would be the most emotional game of his career.

Butler first started drawing cheers when he stepped onto the field at 6:48 p.m. to start stretching. He received a standing ovation at 6:56 when the starting lineups were introduced. He got another ovation at 7:04 when he ran onto the field to take center field. And then his 45-second ovation at 7:15 when he came to the plate.

In the fifth, he worked the count and stroked a 2-and-2 fastball into the hole in left field.

The crowd stood and cheered for nearly a minute. Butler made sure the ball was kept for posterity.

It was a moment that will forever be cherished not only by Butler, but by his teammates. They wondered in May if they would ever see Butler alive again, much less play. Hollandsworth even cleaned out Butler’s apartment for him, packing his belongings. No one but Butler ever imagined this day.

“I remember the day Fred Claire [executive vice president] told us that Brett had cancer,” Hollandsworth said. “I was devastated. I just lost it. I broke down and started crying. It scared me to death.

“To see him do this today is just amazing.”

It was a key game in the Dodgers’ pennant stretch. Yet the crowd made no secret they came to pay tribute to Butler, the man who refused to succumb to cancer.

“This is what I always wanted,” Butler said. “When I was told I had cancer, I just knew I didn’t want to go out that way. I didn’t know if I’d ever be able to play again, but I didn’t want it to end this way. I wanted to go out on my own terms.”

Butler, who was diagnosed May 6 with cancer of the tonsils, underwent two cancer surgeries and 32 radiation treatments, did all of this simply by putting on a uniform and walking onto the field.

The Pirates even watched in awe throughout the game, and a few conceded they got lost in the moment.

“I was very emotional,” said Jay Bell, who with teammate Kingery visited Butler in Atlanta after his first surgery. “To see Brett Butler go through cancer, and come back and play is incredible. I love the guy.”

* BILL PLASCHKE

After enduring cancer and the treatment that went with it, Butler was thrilled to see his name in the lineup. A1