Brooks’ Grand Slam Rocks Padres : Montreal Roll to Victory as Thurmond Fails Again, 8-3

Before the Beach Boys took center stage Sunday afternoon, there were few good vibrations at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

In fact, a song by the Beatles might have been appropriate for the Padres. Remember “Help”?

The Padres could have used some help as they were defeated by Montreal, 8-3, in front of 47,823 fans.

It’s a good thing the concert was afterward, or many fans may have left in the first inning. Montreal, led by a Hubie Brooks grand slam, scored seven runs before the Padres recorded an out.

“Well, I’m glad the fans had a concert to look forward to,” Padre Manager Steve Boros said. “The game was basically over after the first inning. If the fans didn’t have a concert to look forward to, they probably would have been a little hostile.”

The multitudes certainly weren’t pleased when Mark Thurmond allowed the grand slam. Scattered booing became louder booing after successive singles followed the home run. That’s when Boros quieted the boos by removing Thurmond.

But then Boros brought in Tim Stoddard, whose middle name is “Boo” whenever he pitches in San Diego. You can guess what the fan reaction was when Stoddard allowed a two-run double to Vance Law, the first batter he faced.

There were mock cheers when Expo pitcher Floyd Youmans became the first out, bunting a third strike foul. After that, the crowd relaxed until the Beach Boys made their appearance.

Thurmond faced six batters, and allowed a walk, three singles, a double and the grand slam.

In Thurmond’s last two starts, his pitching line is 1 innings, 10 hits, 10 runs, 9 earned runs, 4 walks and 0 strikeouts.

“His velocity is all right,” Boros said. “I wouldn’t say anything is seriously wrong with his delivery. Obviously, there is something wrong. He’s not overpowering. If he’s not real good with his location, he’ll get hurt. Obviously, when you get hit like he has, your pitches are getting too much in the strike zone.”

Though Thurmond’s earned-run average is a staff-high 6.11, Boros is not contemplating any changes. He said he plans to stay with a five-man rotation.

“We need that fifth starter,” Boros said. “As long as we need five starters, he (Thurmond) is going to be one of the five. There’s no one in the bullpen who could be the fifth starter except Lance McCullers. We’re not going to move him back and forth like they did here with Dave Dravecky a couple of years ago. Even when the fifth guy may be struggling, the fact he’s in the rotation and everyone is getting four days rest is why the other four are pitching well.”

Boros is just as concerned with the rest of his lineup as the fifth man in the pitching rotation. The Padres are tied for ninth in the National League in runs scored with 131 through 36 games.

Sunday, after falling behind by seven runs, the Padres appeared as if they might break loose. Terry Kennedy and Kevin McReynolds hit consecutive run-scoring singles with two out in the first off Youmans. However, the Padres did not score again until Jerry Royster’s sacrifice fly in the eighth.

“There are going to be a couple of games where your starting pitchers don’t do well and you simply have to go out and outscore someone,” Boros said. “You need to go out and win 7-6 or 6-5 once in a while.”

Montreal, which has won 12 of its last 15 games, remained three games behind the New York Mets in the National League East. The Mets defeated the Dodgers Sunday.

Brooks, among four players acquired from the Mets in December, 1984, for catcher Gary Carter, leads the league in home runs (10) and RBIs (32). Manager Buck Rodgers said people often ask whether Brooks for Carter would be an even trade. Considering how well Brooks is playing, the Expos might ask for more than Carter in return.

Montreal does not have a Dwight Gooden on its staff, but it does have Youmans, who was Gooden’s best friend in high school. Youmans didn’t exactly have a Gooden-like performance Sunday, but he held the Padres to two runs on six hits in seven innings.

There may have been a good reason why Youmans allowed two runs in the first. After he batted in the inning, he returned to the bullpen to throw because it had been so long since he had warmed up.

“I was loose once I got down there,” Youmans said. “I only had to throw about five pitches.”

Before the game, Youmans had breakfast with his father, Floyd Sr., a high school athletic director in San Bernardino. They drove back to San Bernardino after the game.

There had been plenty of good moments during the game for the Youmans family, but Padre fans didn’t get theirs until it was over.

Padre Notes The Padres have played five straight games decided by more than one run. They have played 21 one-run games, a league high, winning 11 of the 21. . . . Tim Stoddard tied a career high with seven strikeouts Sunday. He had not struck out seven since 1979, when he was pitching for Baltimore. Stoddard pitched five innings Sunday, his longest outing as a Padre. . . . Craig Lefferts made his league-leading 22nd appearance when he shut out Montreal in the final two innings. Gene Walter, who had not pitched in seven days, also worked two innings. . . . Montreal leadoff hitter Tim Raines tied an often-tied record by hitting two doubles in the first inning. The last player to double twice in an inning was Bob Jones of Texas on July 3, 1983. The last National Leaguer to do it was Mike Ivie of the Padres on May 30, 1977. Raines has reached base on a walk or hit in all 34 Montreal games. . . . The Padres are off today before beginning a three-game home series against Philadelphia on Tuesday night.

Padre Attendance

Attendance 47,823 1986 total (19 dates): 562-115 1985 total (19 dates): 633,119 Decrease: 71,004 1986 average: 29,585