On Strange Day, Dodger Slump Ends

If a few things seemed strangely out of kilter during Saturday’s game between the Dodgers and Chicago Cubs, it had to do with the latest act of a desperate manager and an allegedly doctored bat belonging to a Dodger hitter.

Prowling the Dodgers’ third-base coaching box was none other than Tom Lasorda, who benched regular coach Joe Amalfitano. Coaching at first base was Bill Russell, replacing Manny Mota. And, most noteworthy, the starting pitcher was--this is no misprint--beleaguered reliever Ken Howell.

This odd coupling was only the first inkling that it would be an unusual day for the Dodgers, who broke a six-game losing streak with a controversial 7-2 victory over the Cubs before 32,143 fans at Dodger Stadium.

It included a 4-for-4 day by Pedro Guerrero, whom the Cubs accused of using an illegal bat; a one-hit shutout through five innings by Howell, and an array of comical histrionics in the coaching box by Lasorda.

“I’ve tried everything to turn this around,” Lasorda said. “Extra batting practice, no batting practice. Hollering at them, being silent. Feeding them, starving them. Driving a different way to work, sleeping on the other side of the bed . . .”

The Dodgers, 97 games into the season, may have finally found a successful formula. It’s this simple: You go with a manager/cheerleader full of hot air, a slugger’s hot bat allegedly plugged with cork and a downtrodden pitcher accused by critics of having a cork-filled arm.

“That’s incredible,” Lasorda said when the issue of Guerrero’s impounded bat was raised. “They can go ahead and impound all our bats, because we aren’t hitting anyway.” In addition to Guerrero, the Dodgers got offensive production that did not come under scrutiny. Franklin Stubbs and Mike Scioscia each hit bases-empty home runs, Stubbs’ blast to right field starting a four-run fourth inning.

Overshadowing Howell’s first win as a starter in only his second career start, as well as the end of another lengthy losing streak, was the allegation that Guerrero used a doctored bat in his first two trips to the plate.

Actually, the bat in question did not even belong to Guerrero. At the All-Star game last week, Guerrero used the bat of San Francisco outfielder Jeffrey Leonard during batting practice and liked it so much that Leonard sent him three.

But when Guerrero came to the plate in the third inning, after singling and scoring in the first, Cub catcher Jody Davis noticed what he called irregularities in Guerrero’s bat.

“I just happened to notice during his practice swings,” Davis said. “(The bat) was all black except for a circle in the middle that was painted over. It looked funny. I didn’t know for sure if it was corked. I just asked (plate umpire Jim Quick) to check it out.”

Davis didn’t make his cntroversial request until after Guerrero had lined another single to center off Cub starter Bob Tewskbury. Quick impounded the bat, which will be sent to the league office in New York for further inspection.

For the record, Guerrero later lined two more singles with his own bat. That prompted him to sarcastically ask Davis if he would like to check that bat, too.

Guerrero pleaded his innocence but said he, too, was curious about the gift bats from Leonard. So, he said he had a clubhouse attendant cut open one of the Leonard bats after Saturday’s game.

“There was nothing in it,” said Guerrero, presumably meaning nothing illegal. “Today was the first time I used them. They do look funny. I didn’t think there was anything in them.

“I told (Davis) that I don’t need (cork) to hit. Man, when you can hit, you can hit with anything. Wade Boggs can hit with a chicken bone. I don’t care what they say. I’m sure there’s nothing in there.”

It isn’t known when the bat will be inspected. But Davis said he doubts the league will take action.

“That bat will never get to the league office,” said Davis, who two seasons ago asked to have the bat of then-Dodger Candy Maldonado checked. “I just asked the umpire to check it, and Tommy (Lasorda) was screaming that I do it all the time. That’s just Tommy, playing games.”

Lasorda’s latest attempt to motivate his team worked, at least for one afternoon. It seemed to benefit all involved. Lasorda received some national television exposure, and Dodger players got their manager out of the dugout for half the game.

“We did it last season when Joey had to leave us to attend a funeral,” Lasorda said. “We won five games with me coaching at third. I thought it might work today.”

So, Joe Amalfitano is the crux of the Dodger problems?

“Yeah, right,” Lasorda said, laughing.

Finding a fifth starting pitcher has been a constant problem for the Dodgers. Saturday, they turned to an unlikely source: Howell, a major disappointment this season as a short reliever.

Howell pitched impressively for 5 innings, yielding only a fourth-inning single to Ryne Sandberg. He struck out 6 and walked 3. Though this may not lead to a full-time gig as the fifth starter--the club probably will go back to a four-man rotation with an off-day on Thursday--Howell was encouraged by this stretch of solid pitching.

“I like this role, but I’m not going to look at this one start and say, ‘OK, now I’m a starter,’ ” Howell said. “Today, I was able to work on my breaking ball and changeup without being in pressure situations.

“In relief, you’re in there with men on base, and you’ve got to get the ball over. So, (hitters) are waiting for my fastball. Now, instead of just relying on my fastball, I could mix it up.”

After Howell left, the Dodgers’ chance of a shutout quickly disappeared. In the sixth, Brad Havens gave up three consecutive singles--Leon Durham’s RBI hit ricocheting off the first-base bag--to make it 5-1.

But Alejandro Pena, Havens’ replacement, got out of the sixth inning unscathed and pitched two scoreless innings before yielding a run in the ninth on Andre Dawson’s leadoff double and two ground-outs.

Pena earning the save on this illogical day seemed somewhat fitting. He is a former starter relieving Howell, a former (and future?) reliever.

“We all got to help in whatever way we can,” Pena said.

The Dodgers probably will remember this win for a while, but so will the league office. There is a chance the Cubs can protest the game, if anything illegal is found in Guerrero’s bat.

“If they find something, then I sure will protest,” Cub Manager Gene Michael said.

Dodger Notes

Mike Marshall was ejected by plate umpire Jim Quick for arguing a third-strike call in the fourth inning. Marshall, who had a run-scoring single in the first inning, has now hit in five straight games. . . .Manager Tom Lasorda’s idea of coaching third base is not a new one. He has done it roughly once a season. Maybe it was just a coincidence he did it on a nationally televised game. Among other motivational distractions, Lasorda plopped on his stomach twice to warn runners heading for third to slide. . . .Ken Howell had volunteered for Saturday’s starting assignment after Friday night’s game, but Lasorda hedged. Said Lasorda: “I knew it was going to be him, but I wanted him to get a good night’s sleep before that.” But Howell said he sort of knew he would be the starter. “I stayed up last night thinking about what lineup they might use, and how I would pitch to certain hitters,” Howell said. “That helped me prepare.” . . .Pedro Guerrero’s four hits Saturday raised his batting average to .335. . . . The Dodgers’ four-run fourth inning tied their season high for runs in an inning. . . . Center fielder John Shelby’s eighth-inning single broke an 0-for-26 streak. . . .Fernando Valenzeula (8-8) opposes Jamie Moyer (9-7) today at 1:05.