Lasorda Plays It Safe and Loses

If it had been an emergency, Terry Whitfield would have been the Dodger catcher in the ninth inning Sunday afternoon. But it wasn’t, according to Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda.

So Steve Yeager ran for himself in the ninth inning, and that was more like a disaster as the Pirates defeated the Dodgers, 3-2, before 17,043 at Three Rivers Stadium.

In the eighth inning, Dodger relievers Tom Niedenfuer and Carlos Diaz combined to walk in the tying and winning runs.

Then in the ninth, after one Dodger catcher, Yeager, batted for the other, Mike Scioscia, and reached base on an infield single to open the inning, Lasorda had the option of leaving Yeager at first or sending in a pinch runner.

Pulling Yeager would have left Lasorda with no catcher but Whitfield, whose next big-league game behind the plate will be his first, although he did catch a couple of spring-training “B” games and warms up the pitchers in the bullpen. To Lasorda, that was no option at all.

“If I put him in there,” Lasorda said, “the players ought to kill me.

“He’s a catcher in an emergency, like an injury, but he’s not going to catch in that situation. No way.”

Instead, Lasorda sent Yeager lumbering toward second on a hit-and-limp, which became a suicide mission when pinch-hitter Bill Russell swung and missed. Yeager’s bad knees were no match for Pirate catcher Tony Pena’s cannon arm. Then John Candelaria quickly disposed of Russell and R.J. Reynolds, and just like that, the Dodgers had lost two out of three to the last-place team in the National League East.

Lasorda, who once played pitchers Fernando Valenzuela and Bob Welch in the outfield to win a 21-inning game in Chicago, could not understand why anyone would wonder about his ninth-inning strategy. “That’s a ridiculous question,” he said.

Not such a ridiculous question was why Lasorda would bring in the left-handed Diaz to face switch-hitting Johnny Ray after Niedenfuer had walked Steve Kemp on four pitches and Joe Orsulak on a full count to tie the score. Lasorda’s reason was based on something less than fact.

“Ray hasn’t played against left-handers,” Lasorda said. “His average against left-handers is brutal. He hits much better left-handed than right-handed.”

That was true--once. Before last season, Ray had a lifetime average of .228 against left-handers. But in 1984, Ray had a higher average against left-handers (.317) than right-handers (.311) and the same is true this season, .273 against left-handers, .266 vs. right-handers.

Ken Howell, who could have come in to pitch, did--but only after Ray walked on a 3-and-2 slider from Diaz to force in the winning run. Diaz’s slider just missed.

“It doesn’t matter if it missed by a couple of inches or a foot,” said Diaz, who came into the game having walked just two batter in 13 innings. “I screwed up.”

The balls Niedenfuer threw to Steve Kemp--who passed on four pitches--and Joe Orsulak--who walked on a full count--were out of radar range.

“It’s happened before and I’m sure it will happen again,” said Niedenfuer, who once walked in the winning run in the 15th inning in Montreal and turned wild here after striking out George Hendrick and Tony Pena while also giving up Jason Thompson’s broken-bat single.

“But to me, it’s worse than giving up a game-winning home run. There’s no excuse for it.”

Just as there was no excuse for the Dodgers not to cash in on a leadoff triple by Scioscia in the seventh, or for Pedro Guerrero to be doubled off first base on a popup to the second baseman with two runners on in the sixth.

Also, the defeat wasted seven strong innings from Dodger starter Jerry Reuss and Mike Marshall’s sixth home run.

And it robbed Scioscia’s bloody lip of its significance. Scioscia was cut in a collision with Orsulak, who tried to score from second on Jim Morrison’s single to right.

The result was what you might expect when a former high school soccer goalie, Orsulak, runs into a former high school linebacker and the world’s greatest plate-blocker. Orsulak caromed off Scioscia’s left shoulder like a header by Pele, although his elbow wound up in Scioscia’s mouth.

I’ll trade a fat lip for an out,” Scioscia said. “I’ve been hit harder.”

Notes Dodger starter Jerry Reuss was lifted after Bill Madlock’s leadoff single in the eighth. Ruess allowed nine hits, walked one and struck out six. Said catcher Mike Scioscia: “Jerry threw the ball great. I was very encouraged by his breaking ball, which is starting to come with more consistency. That’s going to help him a lot. He’s really making progress.” . . . Pirate rookie Joe Orsulak, on Scioscia’s reputation as a plate-blocker: “I’ve heard that. Now I know that.” . . . Al Oliver, who had been benched the last three games, started in left and doubled in an eighth-inning run that briefly gave the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. . . . Reliever Tom Niedenfuer said he has a tendency to overthrow, and Scioscia agreed. “That would account for his wildness high,” Scioscia said. “It’s a tough thing to correct between pitches. You try to break his tempo.”

First baseman Greg Brock was given an injection of cortisone in his right elbow Saturday. “He is sore, there’s no doubt about it,” Dodger trainer Bill Buhler said. Asked if Brock--who has played in just seven of the Dodgers’ 25 games--ought to be placed on the disabled list, Buhler said: “We’re hoping we don’t have to do that. Conservative treatment hasn’t worked and it’s almost eight weeks, which is why we injected him yesterday. There’s no guarantee that’s going to work, either.” Buhler said Brock will be examined again when the team returns to L.A. . . . Scioscia, the team’s player representative, said he has not heard anything from the players’ union about a report that the players will not participate in the All-Star Game if negotiations with the owners do not proceed to their satisfaction.

Mariano Duncan played his first game at shortstop and handled five chances cleanly while turning one double play. “He did a great job, he gave the ball to me just right,” second baseman Steve Sax said. Sax, who just came off the disabled list Saturday, may not be 100% yet. He said his injured right leg bothered him on a force play at second in the fifth. “When I sprung up off the bag, it hurt some,” Sax said. “But I think it’s going to be OK.” . . . Mike Marshall’s second-inning home run was the Dodgers’ 21st of the season, 18th with no one on base.