It Was Braves Turn for Horror Show : Sad-Sacks in San Francisco, Padres Rebound for 11-1 Win

When all else fails, turn the channel. Or, just turn the channel off. Ballard Smith, the Padre president, did so the other night when his team was embarrassed in San Francisco.

But what if you own the channel?

You’re turned off.

So Ted Turner, the Atlanta club owner, who really does own the TV channel that televises Brave games, waltzed into his team’s clubhouse the other day and apparently gave the guys an inspiring pep talk, telling them they were fat, that he was going to hire a team dietician to go with the statistician.

Still, the Braves proceeded to give their opponents fat leads. Cincinnati scored 15 runs on them Thursday, and the Padres scored an 11-1 victory Friday, letting Smith know that his Padres could be a lot worse off.

But Smith, who said Friday that he still wants his team to finish in second place, is not pacified by these recent Padre scoring binges (11 runs Thursday and then Friday’s explosion).

“I was angry the other night in San Francisco,” he said before Friday’s game. “The performance of the team is not acceptable. I’ve been trying to remain calm, but the other night was frustrating. The city’s been great to us. And this shouldn’t have happened, and we have to determine what went wrong. It’s easy to say ‘It’s hard to repeat,’ but in no way has this year been acceptable. We have to determine how to make 1986 like 1984.”

He has begun “Operation 1984,” already. He will talk to players, to coaches, to Manager Dick Williams, to General Manager Jack McKeon.

“We’ll be looking at everyone,” Smith said. “All of us have to sit down, and look at our role. Myself . . . Jack . . . We’ll do that with everyone. We haven’t sat down yet. But if you believed the club that started the season had a chance to win the (National League) West, you wouldn’t think we’d make major changes now. But, it’s not out of the realm that we’d make major changes.

“And by major changes, I mean we might make changes in the starting lineup.”

No surprises here. The other day, catcher Terry Kennedy said: “I think we’ll all be on the line, except maybe three guys. No make that six or seven. (Steve) Garvey, (Garry) Templeton, (Tony) Gwynn, Goose (Gossage), LaMarr (Hoyt). Maybe more.”

But Smith said: “Maybe we’ll determine nothing went wrong and that the ball bounced the wrong way. Whatever’s necessary, we’ll do. Maybe major, maybe minor.”

Naturally, Templeton will be around for Operation 1986. On Friday, he had his second four-hit game in nine games and scored four runs. His 142 hits are his Padre high for a season. If this team votes for its team MVP, he wins, although the Timry Flanster (Tim Flannery, Jerry Royster) combination at second base would do well, too, if it could make the ballot.

Who’s gone? Graig Nettles, who becomes a free agent at the end of the season?

Not likely. Nettles’ agent, Jerry Kapstein, met for five hours Friday with McKeon, continuing negotiations that began last year and have intensified in the last five days. It appears imminent that he’ll sign a one-year contract in a about a week, maybe sooner.

“I feel I made significant progress today, and I’m very optimistic that we can reach an agreement in the near future,” Kapstein said. “We’re much closer to an agreement tonight than we were this morning.”

McKeon said: “I’d have to say we’ve made good progress, but we have for the last eight months. . . . I think he (Nettles) has done a pretty good job for us. Sure, you’d like to have 20 home runs and 85 RBIs (Nettles has 14 homers and 52 RBIs), but you can’t say he hasn’t done the job. That’s what I’m concerned with--doing the job.”

Hoyt would have to be considered an untouchable, based at least on the fact that Atlanta couldn’t touch him Friday. Seemingly recovered from the tendinitis problem in his right shoulder, he went five innings and gave up just five hits, leaving the game early only because he had to sit around and watch his teammates score seven run in the fourth inning.

“With that delay, he (his arm) tightened up,” Williams said.

PADRES AT A GLANCE

Scorecard FIRST INNING Padres--Templeton singled to center. Templeton stole second. Royster flied to right, Templeton tagging and taking third. Gwynn grounded to second, Templeton scoring. Kennedy walked. Martinez forced Kennedy. One run, one hit, one left.

THIRD INNING

Padres--With one out, Templeton singled to center. Royster singled to center, Templeton taking third. Gwynn singled to right, Templeton scoring, Royster taking second. Kennedy singled to right, loading the bases. Martinez grounded into a double play. One run, four hits, two left.

FOURTH INNING

Padres--Garvey walked. McReynolds singled to left, Garvey taking second. Flannery singled to left, Garvey scoring, McReynolds taking second. Hoyt sacrificed the runners to second and third. Templeton singled to right, McReynolds scoring, Flannery taking third. Shields replaced Bedrosian. Royster walked. Gwynn singled to right, Flannery and Templeton scoring, Royster scoring on the third baseman’s fielding error, Gwynn taking second. Gwynn took third on a wild pitch. Kennedy grounded to third. Martinez walked. Garvey singled up the middle, Gwynn scoring, Martinez taking third. Owen, the Atlanta catcher, dropped McReynolds’ pop up, Martinez scoring, Garvey taking third. Flannery struck out. Seven runs (one unearned), four hits, two left.

FIFTH INNING

Padres--Hoyt reached on the third baseman’s fielding error. Hoyt took second on a wild pitch. Templeton singled to left, Hoyt scoring, Templeton taking third on the left fielder’s fielding error. Royster singled to right, Templeton scoring. Gwynn singled to center, Royster taking second. Brown pinch-ran for Gwynn. Dedmon replaced Shields. Kennedy grounded into a double play, Royster taking third. Martinez walked. Garvey grounded to the pitcher. Two runs (one unearned), three hits, two left.

NINTH INNING

Braves--Walter pitching. With two outs, Horner reached on an infield single. Washington walked. Oberkfell reached on the shortstop’s error, loading the bases. Zuvella reached on the shortstop’s error, Horner scoring, the bases still loaded. Owen flied to center. One run, one hit, three left.