National League Roundup : Garvey Goes 4 for 4 in Padre Win

While the Dodgers are having trouble at first base, the fellow they let get away is doing just fine for the San Diego Padres.

Steve Garvey spent more than a decade as the Dodger first baseman, never missing a game once he won the job. But, after the 1982 season, Garvey, a free agent, received a better offer and joined the Padres. Since Garvey departed the Dodgers have tried a number of players at the spot and still don’t have a regular.

Now 36, Garvey is showing no signs of old age and, in fact, is off to one of the best starts in a career that began in 1970.

Garvey went 4 for 4 Tuesday at St. Louis and scored three runs in leading the Padres to a 12-2 romp over the Cardinals. Garvey’s average is .333.

The Padres, who slipped back into first place in the West, also had help from the St. Louis defense. The Cardinals had the best defense in the league last season, and their infield is generally considered outstanding defensively. All four members, including Gold Glove shortstop Ozzie Smith, committed an error to help the Padres score seven unearned runs.

“It was a beauty,” Manager Whitey Herzog of the Cardinals said. “You can’t wait for a game like that to end. I don’t believe I ever saw a game before where every infielder had an error.”

In his first two seasons at San Diego, Garvey hit .294 and .284 after slow starts. Garvey, a lifetime .299 hitter, is thinking about another .300 season.

“I’m feeling great,” Garvey said. “I love this game and I’ve not given a thought to quitting. Mostly, I’m trying to help this team go all the way. We made a big jump last season and now we know what it’s all about.”

Garvey was of particular help to the Padres in the fourth game of the Championship Series with the Chicago Cubs, when he went 4 for 5, including a home run in the ninth that won the game. The Padres won the next game and made it to the World Series, but couldn’t handle the Detroit Tigers.

“With LaMarr Hoyt, Tim Stoddard and Jerry Royster, and with the experience we gained, we’re a better team this season,” Garvey said. “As long as I can help, I’ll stay around.”

San Francisco 5, Pittsburgh 3--The Giants don’t play too well in Candlestick Park, but on the road they are usually even worse. Two wins in a row at Pittsburgh come as a shock, therefore.

Dan Gladden’s triple triggered a three-run third inning, and Gary Rajsich hit two run-scoring singles at Three Rivers Stadium to spark San Francisco. Last season the Giants were 0-6 at Pittsburgh, and they had won only four of their previous 26 road games.

“We won two out of three from the Dodgers and could have swept,” Pirate Manager Chuck Tanner said, “and I thought we were ready to roll. Then we lose these two to the Giants.”

New York 5, Atlanta 3--Montreal fans booed Gary Carter because they felt he didn’t come through in the clutch. For the Mets, he has been at his best in game-winning situations.

In this game at New York, Carter hit a grand slam off premier reliever Bruce Sutter to break a 1-1 tie in the eighth inning and give the Mets the victory. It was the eighth time Carter has homered with the bases full and the fourth time this season he has delivered the game-winning hit.

Carter made a winner out of Ron Darling, who struck out nine in eight innings.

It was the third time in his career that Sutter served up a grand slam. The other two were hit by the Dodgers’ Davey Lopes and Ken Landreaux.

Cincinnati 2, Philadelphia 0--Mario Soto held the Phillies to four hits and struck out six at Philadelphia in seven innings for his fifth victory.

Player-manager Pete Rose had to go to his bullpen in the eighth because Soto walked five and had to keep working out of trouble. Ted Power got the save when he struck out Juan Samuel to end the game with the tying runs on base.

Ron Oester tripled in the first Red run in the fourth and Cesar Cedeno singled in the other in the second.

Houston 3, Montreal 1--The rain in Montreal came too late to spoil the major league record of going the first month of the season without a rainout. All it did was delay the game for almost two hours.

The game was played in near freezing weather. Bob Knepper gave up a run just before play was halted with one out in the bottom of the sixth and when play resumed, Bill Dawley replaced him.

Dawley shut the Expos out the final 3 innings to save Knepper’s third victory. He has not been beaten.

When the game ended, only about 150 of the 11,605 fans were still there.