Howe Says He Needs Break; Reds Don’t Get One : Reliever Refuses to Discuss Absence; A Drug Test Is Said to Be Negative

Dodger pitcher Steve Howe surfaced Monday after missing the Dodgers’ game with the Atlanta Braves the previous afternoon, but no explanation for his absence was given publicly by either Howe or the Dodgers.

Howe voluntarily submitted to a drug urinalysis test Monday afternoon after meeting with Dodger officials that morning, and results were negative, according to Howe’s attorney, James Hawkins.

But Howe remains indefinitely on baseball’s restricted list, which makes him unavailable to play until the Dodgers request that he be reinstated by the commissioner’s office. A Dodger executive said Monday that he “is incapable of handling his assignment as a member of the Dodger team” and that the team would act accordingly.

Earlier in the day, the Dodgers had summoned pitcher Dennis Powell from Albuquerque to take Howe’s spot on the 25-man roster.

Howe was at his home in Agoura during the Dodgers’ 8-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds Monday night at Dodger Stadium. He answered the door himself when a reporter went to his home.

“I’m all right,” said Howe, who was having dinner with his wife, Cyndy, their 2-year-old daughter, Chelsie Leigh, and attorney Hawkins. “You can see that. I don’t want to discuss what happened. I just need some time off.”

Howe refused to disclose his whereabouts on Sunday, and cut short the interview when an another reporter approached.

Hawkins, who spoke to reporters in front of Howe’s home, said that he “would not go into it (Howe’s absence) at this time. But hanging over this were the drug incidents. We had to put that to bed first.

“As far as we’re concerned, the single big issue that for the public had to be answered has been answered,” Hawkins said.

In the past, Howe has acknowledged a cocaine dependency and has been suspended three separate occasions for drug-related incidents. The most severe penalty was a one-year suspension for the 1984 season by then-commissioner Bowie Kuhn. That suspension was lifted last June in a negotiated settlement with the commissioner in which Howe agreed to remain on the inactive list and continue rehabilitation.

Hawkins refused to comment any further regarding Howe’s whereabouts on Sunday, other than to say that Howe had called him after arriving home some time after midnight. Howe did not require medical attention of any sort, Hawkins said.

“There’s a question in my mind of how far you go into a man’s private affairs,” Hawkins said. “That is his business.

“He called me and told me he went home. He also made a number of phone calls to friends, and we immediately notified the Dodgers.”

The Dodgers, in a prepared statement, said that at the request of Hawkins and Howe, they would not comment on the reasons Howe gave team officials for his absence.

“Steve’s account of his actions shows that he is incapable of handling his assignment as a member of the Dodger team,” Fred Claire, the Dodger executive vice president, said in a prepared statement.

“In view of this, we must focus our attention on our obligations to the members of the Dodger team and to our fans and to act in the best interest of all concerned.”

Claire refused further comment.

Said Dodger publicist Steve Brener: “Basically it’s been a long day, and we’re still trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together.”

Howe, as part of last June’s settlement, has been taking urine tests twice weekly for the Dodgers. He volunteered to take the test Monday, according to Brener.

“They volunteered and we acknowledged it was a good idea,” Brener said.

“Because of confidentiality, we do not give out the results of tests, but we do not contest it (the result of Howe’s test),” Brener said.

The test was not administered at Dodger Stadium, Brener said, but would not confirm that the test was administered at the West Covina clinic of Dr. Forest Tennant, the Dodgers’ drug consultant. A spokesman for Tennant’s office said that he was referring all calls to the Dodgers.

The Dodgers can keep Howe on the restricted list indefinitely, according to Richard Cerrone of the commissioner’s office. But they cannot trade him until he is first reinstated.

The Dodgers refused to clarify their plans for Howe in the future. Dodger owner Peter O’Malley did not attend the meeting with Howe on Monday, Hawkins said.

“We’re not into an adversarial relationship at this time with anyone,” Hawkins said. “We’re just working on this one day at a time.

“We’re refusing to get off a pragmatic approach to a solution to this problem.”

So, for the fourth time in Howe’s six seasons with the Dodgers, he is not able to pitch for the club for reasons other than injury. When--and whether--he will pitch again for the club is a question that remains unanswered.