Another Surprise From the Dodgers: First Win of Year

Yes, another startling development took place at Dodger Stadium Saturday afternoon, though this was not quite as surprising as some of the events that happened earlier in the week.

Saturday’s news: The Dodgers finally won a game, exorcising the demons of an 0-5 start by beating the San Francisco Giants, 5-1, behind the complete-game pitching of Orel Hershiser and a solid offensive effort.

It’s not as if the Dodgers were never going to win a game, but perhaps they and the 31,000 in attendance Saturday might have wondered when they would do so.

“I don’t think we had any pressure,” said Pedro Guerrero, whose leadoff home run in the second innning off loser Mike Krukow started the Dodgers on the road to their first victory. “I didn’t think we were going to lose 162 in a row. Now, if we had lost 20, then it’s a problem. But five in a row, that could happen to anyone.”

But it happened to the Dodgers in the same week that they attracted national attention in the wake of the Al Campanis debacle. So, maybe it was fitting that the Dodgers waited until a national appearance on NBC before putting together a nearly flawless game.

Another loss would have given the 1987 Dodgers the distinction of having the worst start since the club moved to Los Angeles. The 0-5 merely leaves them tied for that distinction.

“It was just the timing of it,” Hershiser said. “We all know that the Dodgers are going to lose five in a row at some point, and we’re going to win five in a row. The 0-5 would have bothered us a lot more if it happened in the middle of the season in a big series.”

Hershiser’s assumption that there will be some important series for the Dodgers by the middle of the season seems plausible should the Dodgers continue to play as they did in disposing of the Giants Saturday.

It was a good afternoon all around for the Dodgers, who tastefully celebrated the 40th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s breaking of baseball’s color barrier before the game and joyfully celebrated their liberation from the ranks of the winless afterward.

“That’s the way it’s supposed to happen,” catcher Mike Scioscia said. “We’re supposed to be in control.”

Hershiser, whose shutout bid was ended in the ninth when Candy Maldonado singled home Chili Davis, showed good control. He gave up 7 hits, struck out 9 and walked 1.

The Dodger defense showed some self-control, as the infield was error-free, only a few hours after commiting four errors in an 11-inning loss. Steve Sax’s throwing problems apparently only had a one-game return engagement, because he handled five chances without incident. Sax and Duncan also turned two double plays, Duncan adding another by himself.

Offensively, five of the Dodgers’ eight hits went for extra bases, the big shots being second-inning solo home runs by Guerrero and Scioscia. Rookie third baseman Tracy Woodson had two hits--an RBI single in the fourth and a double off the center-field wall in the sixth.

Even Hershiser contributed offensively, leading off the third inning with a ground-rule double, advancing on a sacrifice bunt by Sax and scoring on a sacrifice fly to right field by Mike Ramsey.

Anyone who said that, offensively, Hershiser couldn’t hold Guerrero’s bat, was proven wrong, since Hershiser shared the same bat with Guerrero Saturday.

“I used to use (a bat) three inches shorter and lighter, but Fernando (Valenzuela) kept kidding me that I was a Punch-and-Judy hitter, so I thought I’d try a bigger bat,” Hershiser said.

Hershiser did not look at all like a lightweight on the mound and said afterward he thought he threw just as well against the Giants as he had in a 4-3 loss in his first start against Houston. The difference this time was that he did not make many bad pitches and the comfortable lead enabled him to take more chances.

“It’s really nice to have a cushion of runs,” Hershiser said. “When you have a five-run lead, your selection of pitches can go by how you feel, not what the situation dictates.”

Before the ninth inning, Giant runners had reached second base only three times. That was to the credit of Hershiser and the defense.

“That’s the key to the game--defense, not beating yourself, pitching and scoring enough runs,” Hershiser said.

Guerrero, who made only his first start Friday, said he did not consider his home run a trend-setter for the rest of the offense Saturday. But he was happy to take it.

“I spent most of the spring working on swinging down at high fastballs,” Guerrero said. “I don’t think it’s a good pitch to hit, a fastball up and inside. But that’s exactly what I hit today.”

Krukow, a 20-game winner last season who now has a loss and a no-decision this season, did not make it past the fourth inning.

Asked afterward if the extended ceremony honoring Robinson affected his pitching in the early innings, Krukow said:

“No, I wasn’t worried about their ghosts. I’m more concerned with the living members of the team.”

The Dodgers resembled a house of horrors in the first five games, but they foreclosed on many of those problems with Saturday’s win.

“Geez, it’s good to win the first one,” Manager Tom Lasorda said. “We’re 1-5, but we could just as easily be 4-2 with all the close games we’ve had. But that’s the way it goes.”

Dodger Notes

Mariano Duncan’s five-year experiment as a switch hitter, which was the idea of former Dodger Vice President Al Campanis, is over. But Duncan said it’s only a coincidence that the change happened in the aftermath of Campanis’ ousting. Earlier in the week, Duncan approached Manager Tom Lasorda and said he no longer wants to bat left-handed against right-handed pitchers. Duncan, a natural right-handed hitter, had an infield hit in the eighth inning Thursday in his first time hitting right-handed against a right-hander. Friday, Duncan had a double in the 11th inning against right-handed Mark Grant. Duncan was 0 for 2 Saturday with a sacrifice fly. “It was a decision I’ve wanted to (make) for a long time,” Duncan said. “I don’t want to hit left-handed any more. Campanis wanted me to hit left-handed. The last two years, I’ve worked on it and had no improvement, so with or without Campanis here, I want to stop.” Lasorda gave Duncan hi blessing, but he still thinks the switch-hitting experiment could have worked, saying: “He could have been and should have been a good left-handed hitter. If I only had the wages per hour that (hitting coach) Manny Mota put in. . . . He ws hitting the ball in the air too much, and that defeats the purpose. You can’t use your speed if you pop the ball up.” . . . Pitcher Alejandro Pena, who threw his hat to the ground in the seventh inning Friday night after Steve Sax’s throwing error kept the Giant rally alive and later resulted in three unearned runs, apologized to Sax for his actions. “I was angry a little but it’s over,” Pena said. “Nothing to worry about.” Said Sax: “He was mad. I don’t blame him.” Said Lasorda: “(Pena) felt bad. I don’t think you should do what he did. All you’re doing is showing up a player. . . . Bill Madlock arrived at Dodger Stadium early Saturday to begin rehabilitation on his right shoulder, after arthroscopic surgery Friday to trim a piece of torn cartilage from the back of the socket. Madlock said Saturday that had Dr. Frank Jobe found that the rotator cuff was torn, he would have asked Jobe not to repair it. “I’m too old to go through two years of rehab for a rotator cuff, so that either would have been it or maybe I could have been a DH (designated hitter),” Madlock said. “Fortunately, that didn’t happen.” . . . On teammate Pedro Guerrero’s expressed belief that Madlock was out of line for criticizing Campanis for his racial comments, Madlock said: “It’s not a problem. I can understand the way he feels about Campanis. He was close to him. But he’s Dominican. Unless you are black, you don’t know what kind of statement (by Campanis) it was. . . . There’s really nothing for Pete and I to talk about. I don’t know the backgrounds of Dominicans. He doesn’t know the background of black Americans.” . . . Mickey Hatcher, on his return to the Dodgers after being cut by Minnesota at the end of spring training: “My goal all along was trying to do the best I could (in Minnesota) so one day the Dodgers would have interest in me and I could finish my career here. It’s so tough to tell you how I feel, because it’s so tremendous to be back here.” . . . Fernando Valenzuela (0-0) will pitch against the Giants’ Mike LaCoss (1-0) today at 1:05 p.m.