Spring Training / Padres : Marching Through One of the Dog Days

Late March is not the favorite time for either pro basketball players or their brethren in major league baseball.

In the National Basketball Assn., the players can’t wait for the regular season to end so the playoffs can begin.

Meanwhile, in baseball, players can’t wait for the end of spring training so the regular season can commence.

The Padres had one of those days Tuesday. The Oakland A’s amassed 12 runs and 19 hits en route to a 12-6 victory that left the Padres with a 5-11 record and a ho-hum feeling.

Could it be the dog days?

“I think so,” Manager Dick Williams said. “I hope so. I’m certainly not worried about it.”

Most of the damage came against two pitchers, starter LaMarr Hoyt and reliever Tim Stoddard. In between came a semi-respectable couple of innings by Craig Lefferts.

Hoyt was hammered for seven runs and eight hits in three innings, while Stoddard allowed four runs on five hits during his three innings.

“They were getting the ball up,” Williams said, neatly summarizing the problem.

He seemed not at all concerned about Hoyt, whom he likes to compare to Catfish Hunter.

“Catfish used to get lit up all spring, then win 20,” Williams said.

He seemed a bit more concerned about Stoddard, whom he said has not had a good outing this spring. Stoddard, however, said it’s not unusual for him to struggle in the spring. As a matter of fact, he had a terrible time last spring and then came on to win 10 games for the Chicago Cubs.

“I feel strong,” Stoddard said. “My conditioning is good. My release point is not good. That’s a fine point that I will work out in the next two weeks.”

Kurt Bevacqua had a thought on the dog days of spring training.

“This is our tired period,” he said. “It’s like a runner hitting the wall in the marathon. Once you get past this point, it’s clear sailing . . . We’re not just going through the motions, but our primary thing right now is to get in shape. The guys who have jobs locked up know what it takes to be ready for the season opener.”

The A’s collected seven runs in the first two innings against Hoyt. Jim Essian’s two-run homer in the third put the A’s ahead, 7-4.

Hoyt had been effective in his previous two outings, going four innings against the Angels on March 16 and five innings against the Indians on March 21. He allowed only one run in each appearance.

Padre Notes

Looking for a bright spot? The Padres have not committed an error in the last five games. . . . The Padres scored four runs in the first inning, with RBI singles from Kevin McReynolds and Jerry Royster and a two-run triple by Terry Kennedy. . . . Kennedy took over the team lead in RBIs with seven, one more than Al Bumbry.