It’s Cold and So Are Dodgers : After 6-1 Loss, They May Go to Madlock

It probably never got this cold in tiny Etchohuaquila, Mexico, when Fernando Valenzuela pitched. Even if it had, there probably still would have been more fans in attendance than the 3,420 who withstood 40-degree blasts of cold at Three Rivers Stadium Tuesday night to watch the Dodgers play the Pittsburgh Pirates.

But then, there really wasn’t that much to see, at least from the Dodgers, in an unproductive 6-1 loss to the Pirates that might hasten the activation of injured Dodger slugger Bill Madlock.

Valenzuela wasn’t hit hard, but he still gave up three runs and six hits through six innings for his first loss of the season. Meanwhile, the Dodgers managed only one run off Pirate starter Bob Kipper, who earned his second win in four decisions.

Offensive help may be on the way as soon as today for the suddenly cold-hitting Dodgers, who have produced only 1 run and 11 hits in their last 18 innings.

Manager Tom Lasorda and Vice President Fred Claire will meet here this morning to decide whether to activate Madlock, who had arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder and has been out since April 8.

Should the Dodgers take Madlock off the disabled list today, which would be earlier than anticipated, he probably would be used only as a pinch-hitter for a few games because he still hasn’t tested his arm in infield practice. The Dodgers also would have to send a player--most likely either Tracy Woodson or Reggie Williams--to Albuquerque to create a roster spot for Madlock.

“Yeah, we possibly might do it (today),” Lasorda said. “Having his bat available certainly would be a lift. But it’s up to him to say when he’s ready to play.”

Madlock, a two-time National League batting champion with a .307 career average, said he could be available any time.

“It might happen pretty soon,” he said. “I’m close. I could do it whenever they want.”

The only thing Madlock did Tuesday night was shiver on the bench with his teammates.

How cold was it?

Lasorda, noted quipster, was ready with a one-liner.

“I speak to that many people in the men’s room,” Lasorda said.

The unseasonably cold night didn’t make it pleasant for either team, but no one on the Dodgers used it as an excuse.

Valenzuela, in fact, said the chilly wind in San Francisco in his last start--a victory--was more unbearable than the conditions Tuesday. Still, Valenzuela donned thermal running tights under his uniform for the first time in his career, drawing chuckles from teammates before the game.

“No, this was great weather,” Valenzuela said sarcastically . “It was bad, but that was not the problem. They played with the same weather we did.”

None of the Pirates’ three runs came on hard-hit shots. Most of the hits, however, were well-placed.

In the second inning, former Dodger Sid Bream wound up with a triple on a fly ball that bounced over Mike Marshall, who slid in an attempt to catch it on the fly. Junior Ortiz followed with a bouncing single to center, scoring Bream. In the third, Valenzuela gave up a leadoff infield single to Kipper. He then struck out the next two Pirates, but Johnny Ray, Jim Morrison and Mike Diaz all delivered well-placed, if not well-hit, singles. The result was two runs.

“They hit the ball,” Valenzuela said. “Sometimes tonight not so good, but that’s the game.”

Lasorda added: “Lack of runs (not the weather) affected the manager.”

Indeed, after a hot streak in which solid pitching and hot hitting carried the Dodgers to 4 straight wins and 11 in 14 games, their bats suddenly went cold. You couldn’t blame that on the weather, either, since the offensive slump began Sunday at sunny Dodger Stadium, when San Diego’s Eric Show pitched a three-hit shutout.

“We had some opportunities,” catcher Mike Scioscia said. “Not as many as we would like, but we didn’t do anything with them. The thing is, we’ve been playing good ball the last two weeks. If you look at the overall picture, it’s not as bad as it’s looked the last two games.”

After losing to Kipper, a 22-year-old left-hander, the Dodgers are hitting only .228 against left-handed pitching this season. Even Pedro Guerrero and Mike Scioscia, the two hottest Dodger hitters lately, both went hitless Tuesday.

The Dodgers’ only run off Kipper came in the seventh inning, when Mariano Duncan’s double off the fence in left-center scored Steve Sax from first base.

That narrowed Pittsburgh’s lead to 3-1, but the Pirates assured that they would snap their four-game losing streak by nailing reliever Brian Holton for three runs in the eighth inning on doubles by Ray and Diaz and a triple by Ortiz.

Kipper, who came to the Pirates in August 1985 from the Angels in the John Candelaria trade, has been inconsistent this season. After pitching a shutout in Chicago on April 16, he lasted only three innings before getting bombed in his last start against the Mets. Tuesday, he switched back into his shutout form.

“Give the guy credit,” Guerrero said. “Sure, it was cold and we didn’t hit. But it was cold the other night in San Francisco, too, and we win. We got to lose sometime.”

Dodger Notes

Fernando Valenzuela said he cannot remember a major league or minor league game in which he has pitched before so few fans. “It’s really tough for people to come to the park in this weather.” . . . Manny Mota, the Dodgers’ first base coach, missed the first six innings of Tuesday night’s game because his flight from New York was delayed. Mota was attending a meeting of the Baseball Alumni Team. Bullpen Coach Mark Cresse took Mota’s place as first base coach. . . . Bob Welch (2-1) faces Bob Patterson (1-2) tonight at 4 (PDT). . . . Steve Sax went hitless in four at-bats Tuesday, bringing his slump to a 2-for-29 clip. Sax, however, hit the ball hard twice--but right at Pirate infielders. In fact, those outs were better hit balls than several of Pittsburgh’s hits off Valenzuela.