Padres Can’t Get Anybody Out; Mets Win on 21 Hits : Light-Hitting Santana Homers in 11-6 Victory

Here came the windup, and here came the pitch. . . .

“It’s way back there!” yelled Padre broadcaster Jerry Coleman. “Oh, Kevin McReynolds makes the catch on the warning track.”

So the Padres finally got Rafael Santana out Tuesday night, and it took some doing. Santana--who finally got his batting average above .200 earlier this month --actually hit a home run Tuesday (his first of 1986 and third career) and then almost hit another one. His average suddenly is up to .207 and the New York Mets’ magic number is down to 17 with their 11-6 victory over the Padres.

And another Padre arm bit the dust. Dave Dravecky--whose elbow supposedly was all better--left in the second inning right after Santana’s homer made the score, 3-0. And, no, he didn’t leave because of embarrassment. His elbow again had tightened up on him, and he could not go on. On Monday, Eric Show had left after facing only seven batters, and now Dravecky made it through only eight hitters.

“They shouldn’t have started Dravecky,” Met Manager Davey Johnson said. “He was throwing 70 m.p.h.”

Yet, there was little relief from the bullpen, as Gene Walter gave up four runs and seven hits (and he hit Darryl Strawberry with the bases loaded); Craig Lefferts gave up two runs on three hits; Lance McCullers gave up one run on three hits, and Goose Gossage--who hates to pitch when the Padres trail--gave up a run on two hits. Manager Steve Boros almost had to ask Dane Iorg to pitch, but avoided it when Dave LaPoint volunteered to throw an inning the day after he had thrown five.

Anyway, the Mets finished with a season-high 21 hits. Santana had two himself, and he’s feasting (for him) on Padre pitching this year--7 for 21.

So if San Diego couldn’t handle Santana, how to handle Hernandez and Strawberry and Knight? Or Tim Teufel? Teufel hit a home run Tuesday and had three RBIs, while Ray Knight (four hits) and Keith Hernandez and Strawberry combined for five RBIs themselves. By the seventh inning, the Mets led 10-1. But the Padres hit two homers off Sid Fernandez (15-4) in the bottom of the seventh--Jerry Royster’s two-run shot and Bruce Bochy’s three-run shot. Royster’s was particularly interesting because Met left fielder Kevin Mitchell had robbed him of a home run in the third, and he hit his seventh-inning blast to the very same spot--only Mitchell missed the baseball. Royster wasn’t sure, though, and stood near first base until the umpire signaled him to run. And he ran the bases shaking his head.

So the Met lead was only four runs, but Jesse Orosco kept it that way by pitching the last two innings. And the Mets even added a ninth-inning run, as if they were scared of a Padre comeback.

New York will clinch the division soon--it’s just a matter of where. Walk inside their clubhouse, and they’re already daydreaming about it. Johnson, for instance, says he’ll be sure not to get too excited when it happens, because he remembers 1966 when he was a player with the Baltimore Orioles.

The day the Orioles clinched, there was a big party in the clubhouse, and Johnson nearly drowned.

“By the time I got in the shower, I was pretty drunk,” Johnson explained to Newsday. And he was soon found unconscious in the shower room, lying face down. They picked him up, threw him on the trainer’s table and packed him in ice.

He obviously recovered, but said of the pending Met celebration: “I’ll be careful.”

Johnson also said Fernandez should be careful of his diet. Fernandez tired in the seventh inning and gave up all those home runs, and Johnson reasons that he might be carrying too much weight.

“I don’t care if he starts the season and picks up seven or eight pounds,” Johnson said, “but if he picks up 15, I’m concerned. All he has to do is miss a couple meals. I mean, I hope that’s the reason he got tired, because--otherwise--I wouldn’t have an answer for it. He’s 15-4, so it’s not like I’m bad-mouthing him. It’s just a concern.”

Padre Tony Gwynn collected four more hits to solidify his lead in the race for the batting title (he’s hitting .340), but he isn’t the least bit concerned about it.

“You get a silver bat, big deal,” Gwynn said. “If I win it, great. If I don’t, I won’t fret about it. The bottom line is winning, though. Look at the Mets. They’ve got a lot of guys doing their share. Everyone gets involved.”

Including Rafael Santana.

Padre Notes Met catcher Gary Carter saw Padre pitcher Eric Show Tuesday and asked: “Eric, how’s the elbow?” Show only said: “Bad.” And it’s likely that Show won’t pitch again this season. “I’d say it certainly seems I won’t be able to,” Show said. “One thing I’m definitely concerned about is getting it well. I need it fine for next year.” Assuming Show is through for 1986, Manager Steve Boros said Dave LaPoint would replace him in the rotation, starting Tuesday in Philadelphia. . . . And with LaPoint pitching Tuesday, Ed Whitson pitches Monday (he originally was scheduled for Tuesday), which means his next turn would come in New York the next Saturday. And because Whitson would prefer never to pitch in New York again, he probably won’t have to. “We’ll do all we can to avoid that (having Whitson pitch in New York),” Boros said. “We can always switch (LaMarr) Hoyt and Whitson, so Whit pitches in San Francisco (the following week).” . . . Surprise: Jerry Royster found himself in the starting lineup Tuesday night--leading off and playing second base. “Well, I got a letter from a lady today,” Boros said before the game, “and she said, ‘Don’t go by the book so much. Forget the statistics. Sometimes play a hunch.’ So I’m playing a hunch. Royster’s starting and leading off.” . . . Carter--on the disabled list with a thumb injury--vows to be playing again by Monday. “You can bank on it,” he said.