SPRING TRAINING ’87 : Padre Notebook : Ticket Holders Hold Out for Raines

The San Diego Padre ticket office estimates that 100 of last year’s season-ticket holders are refusing to renew unless the team signs free agent Tim Raines.

“All we can say is that we hope it happens,” said Elten Schiller, the Padre vice-president in charge of business operations. “It’s difficult to combat something like that. But we’ve heard it from some of the 13,000-plus people who have already renewed too. The first question they ask when they come into the office is, ‘Have you signed Tim Raines yet?’ ”

Sources are saying there is more local interest in Raines than there was when Steve Garvey was negotiating a free-agent contract with the Padre in the winter of 1982. Fans showing up at General Manager Jack McKeon’s talk show have offered to donate money to a “Sign Tim Raines Fund.”

Ballard Smith, who’s negotiating with Raines’ agent, said Tuesday: “My reaction to that is we can’t make our decisions based on the fans or sportswriters. We’ve got to try to do what we feel is best for the club. Some of the people in our organization have said, ‘We’d be able to sell a lot of tickets (if Raines signs),’ but I haven’t thought of it that way. If there’s a way to improve the club, we’ll try to improve it. Both Jack (McKeon) and (Manager) Larry Bowa have indicated that Tim Raines would improve the club, which he obviously would. And if we get a figure that makes sense, we’ll do it.”

All Padres are required to report for a 9 a.m. workout today, as spring training officially begins here. For the last two days, pitchers and catchers have been working out on their own, but the big-name position players have now arrived--Garvey, Garry Templeton, Tim Flannery, etc.

“I’ll tell them what I told the pitchers--no screwing around out there,” Bowa said. “If they want to screw around, they can stay right in here (the clubhouse). . . . I don’t want them to miss signs. I want them to be able to move runners with a man on second and no outs. I don’t care how they do it, but get him to third.

“I’ll tell them, ‘Don’t miss cutoff men, be in the right place, do your work before the game and not be sitting in the lounge watching TV.’ The whole thing is mental preparation.”

Asked how he’d motivate the players, Bowa said he’d remind them that they finished 74-88 in 1986. And he also said: “I’ll let them know what Jack (McKeon) did (with trades) in the winter. If you want to be screwing around, we can get 22 of our 24 players to be young kids. Jack has proven that if you don’t want to work, he’ll get somebody in here who wants to.”

Goose Gossage had a sore neck Tuesday and skipped the workout.

Gossage is expected to practice today.

Who’s who? Catcher Benito Santiago is wearing Graig Nettles’ old number (9), and center fielder Stan Jefferson is wearing Steve Boros’ old number (22).

Santiago said: “How come No. 9? The manager told me to take it.”

Bowa explained: “He wanted No. 10. That’s my number.”

Bip Roberts wore No. 2 last year, but now Sandy Alomar has it. Roberts, a non-roster player this season, is wearing No. 18.

John Kruk, who has a slightly separated right shoulder and isn’t supposed to hit for two weeks, sneaked into the batting cage Tuesday and worked on his bunting.

“He couldn’t keep the bat out of his hand, could he,” Bowa said.

Also, 19-year-old Shawn Abner--acquired from the Mets this winter--took his first cuts in the batting cage. Kevin Mitchell has called Abner “the reincarnation of Dale Murphy,” but Abner is much shorter--about 5-11 or slightly bigger.

“Yeah, but the ball was jumping off his bat,” Bowa said. “When he hits them, they go. He hit a couple that just jumped.”