INSIDE PITCH (May 20-26)
Here are a few reasons why Padre righthander Andy Hawkins is 9-0 and, after nine starts, the pitching surprise of the season:
•Delivery. "I was throwing too far across my body," says Hawkins, 25. "About three, four weeks before the [1984] playoffs Doug Gwosdz, our backup catcher, who came up through the minors with me, figured out what I was doing wrong. A little thing, but it made a lot of difference in my control." In 62 innings this season, Hawkins has walked only nine batters.
•Confidence. The Padre starters flunked out in the playoffs and World Series, and, consequently, Hawkins, 8-9 with a 4.68 ERA last year, got to work 15‚Öî innings out of the bullpen, allowing just one run. "If I could do that under the most intense pressure, I figured, 'Why not do it in the regular season?' "
•Galen Cisco. The new pitching coach taught Hawkins a cut fastball this spring and reinforced the confidence of last October. "I've never been around a pitching coach like that," says Hawkins.
•Dame Fortune. The Padres have scored 6.8 runs per nine innings for Hawkins, who has a 2.61 ERA. "In two games I came out with the score tied and we went ahead in the next half inning. It's been fascinating. So many things have gone right."
When we last left the Indians, they were moving Julio Franco, a talented but erratic shortstop, to second base against his wishes in order to accommodate Johnnie LeMaster, the eminently mediocre shortstop they had acquired from the Giants. To the bench went Tony Bernazard, a decent hitter but often indecent fielder, who was leading the team in homers and had committed but one error.
The experiment lasted eight games. Franco, still erratic, is back at short after going 6 for 33 as a second baseman, and LeMaster, after three hits in 20 at bats, is on the bench and hoping he will be traded. "It was a collectively inspired mistake and a collectively inspired remedy," said team president Peter Bavasi, who is said to have learned about the trade after the fact. Said LeMaster: "This is similar to the situation they had in San Francisco, where nobody seemed to know what was going on."
Earlier this year, Cardinal ace Joaquin Andujar looked at his team's lineup of rabbits and proclaimed: "We have Jack Clark and seven leadoff hitters." Well, maybe not.
Second baseman Tommy Herr batted leadoff or second most of '84 and drove in a career-high 49 runs. This year, as a third-place hitter, he might drive in twice as many. Herr is hitting a league-leading .374 and has 35 RBIs already. Herr, busting out after two years of injuries, bats behind two sprinters—outfielders Vince Coleman and Willie McGee—and ahead of Clark.
"I don't think I'm a third-place hitter, but in our lineup maybe I am," he says. "I still have a leadoff hitter's mentality. The other day, there were two outs and the count was 3-1 and I took a strike down the middle. I said to myself, 'Hey, I'm the guy who's supposed to drive in the runs.' " How many? "If I could drive in 75 runs, boy, I'd be ecstatic." Actually, his projection is even higher than that—128 RBIs.
You Can't Tell The Players Without A Scorecard: Royals co-owner Ewing Kauffman was walking around the clubhouse, and he shook the hand of lefty Charlie Leibrandt. "We have a great tradition here," Kauffman told Leibrandt. "We're going to win a lot more titles. You ever pitched in a Championship Series before?"
Leibrandt pitched for K.C. in the final game of last year's Championship Series against the Tigers.
This time they fired the general manager. The Pirates, last in the NL East in '84 and last so far this year, kept manager Chuck Tanner but on Thursday sacked G.M. Harding Peterson. He was replaced by Joe Brown, his predecessor, who says he'll remain on the job only for this year, or until the Galbreaths sell the team.
Peterson knew something was up when club president Dan Galbreath reached him by phone in his private box during the club's game with the Astros and said he wanted to see him the next day. "I could tell by the tone of his voice," said Peterson. It just wasn't Peterson's night. When Galbreath asked Peterson how the game was going, the G.M. was pleased to report, "We're ahead 3-0." But just as he said that, something happened. "Oops," Peterson had to tell the boss, "Kevin Bass just hit a home run. The score is 3-2."
Houston won 5-3 in 10 innings.
The sad-sack Red Sox are reorganizing their pitching staff. Bob Ojeda, a bullpen experiment, is back in the rotation after twice walking home the winning run. Starter Bruce Hurst, 5-12 with a 5.72 ERA since last June 6, moves to the pen for long relief.
Baseball finally had its first rainout on Monday, May 20. In Cleveland, of course.... Futility is when you produce two walks, two sac flies and no hits in your last 25 chances with the bases loaded. Futility, thy name is Boston.... The Cubs' Brian Dayett on his pinch-hit, game-winning grand slam against the Reds: "I still can't remember touching all the bases. For all I know, I didn't touch any."... Dayett and some other Cub sub outfielders will be getting more work for a while. Gary Matthews needs arthroscopic surgery on his knee. He will probably join Rick Sutcliffe (hamstring) on the DL. Two other NL East righthanders on the DL are the Mets' Bruce Berenyi and the Expos' Charlie Lea, and neither is expected back this season after arthroscopic shoulder surgery.... Cardinal first baseman Jack Clark has played in eight parks this year and hit one home run in each of them. That's one homer in 19 games at home and seven in 22 games on the road.... The Phollies continue. The Phillies sent Len Matuszek, a lefthanded power hitter, to the Blue Jays just before the season started and now they're looking for a, well, lefthanded power hitter.
SIX ILLUSTRATIONS
PHOTO
RONALD C. MODRA
PHOTO
JOHN IACONO
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
JEFF REARDON: The Montreal reliever saved four games, giving him 12 saves for the season. In his seven innings against the Giants and Dodgers, Reardon allowed only one hit, no walks and no runs.
BALL PARK FIGURES
These tippers, according to a confidential poll of visitors' clubhouse attendants, are men of exceptional presents:
AMERICAN LEAGUE
1. Buddy Bell, Texas
2. Fred Lynn, Baltimore
3. Frank Tanana, Texas
4. Reggie Jackson, California
5. Billy Martin, New York
NATIONAL LEAGUE
1. Bruce Sutter, Atlanta
2. Terry Forster, Atlanta
3. Bill Madlock, Pittsburgh
4. Rich Gossage, San Diego
5. Keith Hernandez, New York
"I went to the mound to take him out and he told me, 'Good move, Skip,' " Billy Martin said, referring to Yankee righthander Joe Cowley. "In all the years I've been managing, no pitcher has told me that. This is an interesting guy."