After Struggling During First Half, Cardinal Catcher Porter Getting Hot

As far as Whitey Herzog is concerned, Darrell Porter is heating up at the right time.

Porter, a St. Louis Cardinal catcher, struggled throughout the first half of the season. In between two stints on the disabled list, he went 8 for 64, a .125 clip.

Since the All-Star break, however, Porter has hit .318 in five starts. Sunday, he hit a home run and drove in three runs to lead the National League East-leading Cardinals to a 4-2 victory over the Padres at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

Porter’s return to respectability began July 21 with a start against the Dodgers, Herzog said after Sunday’s game.

“A lot of the team was slumping,” Herzog said. “Andy Van Slyke, Terry Pendleton and Ozzie Smith weren’t hitting, and those are my fifth, sixth and seventh hitters. I started Darrell against Jerry Reuss and he did well.”

Porter has raised his batting average to .186 and has four homers and 11 RBIs. If he continues to hit well, he will greatly improve the Cardinals’ chances of remaining atop the NL East, Herzog said.

“When he’s hitting the ball like this, he gives us another dimension--a catcher who can hit,” Herzog said. “Any good team has a catcher who can hit.”

Porter, a 6-foot 1-inch, 202-pound Missourian, said he isn’t sure why he has picked up his hitting recently. He just wants to go with the flow.

“Sometimes I just can’t get the rhythm,” said Porter, 33. “Sometimes it feels so easy, sometimes it’s so hard. It’s always been that way with me.”

Sunday against the Padres, it was easy for Porter. In the first inning, he lined a double to right field off Padre starter LaMarr Hoyt, scoring Willie McGee and Tommy Herr with the first runs of the game. In the fourth, he hit a Hoyt fastball into the right-field seats for a home run that gave the Cardinals a 3-0 lead.

Glory days such as Sunday have been infrequent for Porter in recent years. In 1982, he was named Most Valuable Player of the NL Championship Series and World Series.

However, he has been bothered by injuries since coming to St. Louis in 1981 after a trade with the Kansas City Royals. He spent time on the disabled list in 1981 and ‘82, and suffered several nagging minor injuries as well.

In 1980, Porter had problems of a different sort. He missed the early part of the season while undergoing rehabilitation for drug and alcohol abuse. He came back to bat .249, which was a far cry from his 1979 season that saw him hit .291 with 20 homers and 112 RBIs.

Herzog, who managed Porter for several years in Kansas City, traded for him before the 1981 season.

Early this season, Porter lost his starting job to rookie Tom Nieto. Porter broke a finger on his left hand during a game June 2 and missed the next six weeks. Now, he just wants to stay healthy and fill his niche on the team, he said.

“I feel great, except for a little twinge in the finger when I catch a fastball,” Porter said. “I just want to do what Whitey wants me to do, to do the best I can.”

Herzog, always a big booster of Porter, agreed that Porter has adjusted well to the loss of his starter’s status.

“Darrell knew he was lousy, and he accepted it (when he lost the starting position),” he said. “He’s sensible enough to understand that. I know him. I’ve had him eight years, longer than I’ve had my grandchildren.”

Cardinal shortstop Ozzie Smith, a part of the 1982 world championship team along with Porter, said having veterans such as Porter on the roster makes St. Louis stronger.

“It’s great to have people like Darrell on the team,” he said. “He has come off the bench, he does what’s asked of him. He has been there before. We’ve been there before. He knows what it takes.”

Porter certainly is familiar with pressure situations. He caught for four division champions in Kansas City, including the 1980 American League pennant winners, and also started for St. Louis’ championship squad in 1982.

Porter may not be returning to the bench any time soon, Herzog said.

“He’ll catch every day against right-handed pitchers, as long as he’s hitting,” Herzog said.

And who knows? A veteran such as Porter may find himself starting every day if the players don’t strike and there is a pennant drive in September.