Feeney Hopes His Formula Works for Padres : New President Is Not Making Promises, Though

Chub Feeney didn’t make any promises Tuesday in his first news conference as the Padre president. But he had the air of confidence of one who has experience in rebuilding downtrodden baseball franchises.

Feeney, 65, is a former National League president who came out of retirement a week ago to accept the Padre job. As a general manager for the New York and San Francisco Giants, he won three pennants and a World Series.

Asked if he planned any immediate changes, he said: “No. I’ll have to sit down with (General Manager) Jack McKeon and discuss what direction we should take. We want to win enough games to be competitive, but at the same time, we want to start building for the future.

“If I think we need restructuring (of the front office) after I’ve been here awhile, we’ll do some restructuring. This team won the pennant in ‘84, so I assume everybody is competent.”

Told that Manager Larry Bowa was concerned about his one-year contract, Feeney said: “I didn’t know that, but I’m not a believer in long-term contracts. I’m sorry Larry is uncomfortable, but I’m not going to give him a long-term contract without having seen him manage. That doesn’t mean I’m going to run out and fire him, either.

“We never gave more than a one-year contract in San Francisco or New York. Everybody would like to have a 26-year contract, but it isn’t very practical.”

Feeney said he came out of retirement because he enjoys San Diego.

“When I stepped down as National League president, I wasn’t retiring from life,” he said. “I wasn’t going stir crazy. I was enjoying retirement, but this is a fun thing to do. If it hadn’t been for Joan Kroc and Ballard Smith and the fact that San Diego is a marvelous place, I wouldn’t be here. I’m not in it for the money. The Padres have nowhere to go but up, so what can I lose?”

Asked if he had a timetable for putting the Padres back together, he said, “I don’t have a timetable of any kind. I don’t believe in five-year plans or three-year plans. I would be foolish to say the club would be back on top in two, three or four years.

“My first order of business is to find out what goes on here. I’m the new guy on the block.”

After the press conference at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, Feeney talked about his days with the Giants.

“When I started with the Giants in 1946, we were where this club (San Diego) is now,” Feeney said. “We were in eighth place on merit, and that’s all the teams there were at that time. By ‘51, we were ready. We started out 2-13, but won the pennant. I don’t think that will happen here--we have to be realistic--but I certainly don’t think this team is as bad as its record.

“After that (’51 pennant), we were hurt a lot by call-ups for military service during and after the Korean War. By ‘57, we were down again.”

Feeney said he needed players so badly that he traded Red Schoendienst, an All-Star second baseman, to the Milwaukee Braves for Bobby Thomson, Danny O’Connell and Ray Crone, all marginal players.

“We had a lot of talent in our farm system then, and some of the kids developed faster than expected,” Feeney said. “Players such as Orlando Cepeda, Felipe Alou, Willie Kirkland, Jim Davenport and Bob Schmidt turned us around almost overnight. From ’58 through ‘67, we had the best 10-year record in baseball.”

The Schoendienst trade helped Milwaukee more than New York, but Feeney had some memorable trades during his tenure with the Giants.

“I’m very proud of the fact that I traded for four 20-game winners,” Feeney said. “I made deals for Sam Jones, Jack Sanford, Johnny Antonelli and Mike McCormick. Incidentally, the trade for Antonelli was the one that sent Thomson to Milwaukee, and Bobby never really was the same after he broke a leg in the spring of ’54.

“I also acquired Billy Pierce and Don Larsen for four players who were either minor leaguers or fringe major leaguers. And getting Alvin Dark and Eddie Stanky from the Boston Braves wasn’t a bad deal.”

Feeney’s trade for Dark and Stanky gave the Giants a superb second base combination for two good outfielders in Willard Marshall and Sid Gordon, an end-of-the-road shortstop in Buddy Kerr and a Triple-A pitcher in Red Webb. After the deal was made in 1949, the Giants went up and the Braves went down.

Does Feeney see a parallel between the current Padres and either of the struggling Giant teams of the past?

“That’s hard to say,” he said. “In the ‘50s, we knew we had a good future in our farm system. I’m not yet familiar enough with what the Padres have in the minor leagues to make a statement in that regard. I know there’s some talent there, but I don’t know just how much.”