Downing Could Get Things Rolling If He Can Stay in the Game : Hit by Pitch Again, Re-Examined Today

The Angels were plummeting in the American League West standings at a rate that would leave them about 65 games out of first place by the time October rolled around, so Manager Cookie Rojas decided it was time to make some changes.

He took one look at his lineup and figured he might as well start at the top. His leadoff hitter, Mark McLemore, had been swinging at some bad pitches of late and his average had dipped to .236. So Rojas moved him out of the No. 1 spot and inserted a guy who was hitting .105 and had spent the last two weeks swinging at mechanically propelled pitches in his back yard batting cage.

Makes sense, huh?

Putting Brian Downing in the leadoff position is hardly a new idea, though. He’s been there a lot in the last couple of years. Last season, the designated hitter was the first Angel to step to the plate in 109 games and he established career highs in runs scored (110), home runs (29) and walks (106).

This year, the Angels’ decided to go with a more conventional leadoff hitter--you know, a guy who can steal some bases and generally drive pitchers to distraction. So McLemore got the job . . . until Downing returned to active duty, that is.

“Brian’s been a spark plug for us in the past,” Rojas said. “McLemore’s been a little anxious at the plate so I thought maybe with Brian back in there we could change our luck.”

Downing, who missed 16 games with a rib injury, had two hits and a walk Saturday night in his first 1988 appearance as a leadoff hitter. And Sunday he added another hit and scored twice as the Angels beat Toronto, 8-1, at Anaheim Stadium.

All of which would be reason to celebrate if not for the fact that Blue Jay reliever Jose Nunez hit Downing in the left forearm with a fastball in the seventh inning. Preliminary X-rays showed no broken bones, but Downing will be re-examined today.

Downing sat near his locker on an overturned bucket and stared down at clubhouse floor, oblivious to the fact that water dripping from the ice bag strapped to his left arm was landing right on top of his untouched hot dog.

What went through his mind when the pitch hit him?

“It’s still going through my mind,” he said grimly. “It looks as if it’s going to be one of those years. It’s been pretty frustrating so far, that’s for sure. It’s not like I was in a great groove or anything, but I was much better off than I was.”

Downing said the ball hit him flush on the ulnar bone. If it had been a few inches lower, and struck him on the wrist, it would have been “see ya later . . . again.”

As it is, the Angels’ new, old leadoff hitter will probably miss at least a couple of days.

“After he (Nunez) got the sign (for the pitch), I saw the center fielder moving toward right-center,” Downing said, “and I figured they were going to throw me a breaking ball away. I’ve been having a little trouble with pulling off some pitches so I really tried to keep my front side in.

“But it was a fastball up and in and I didn’t have a chance.”

Downing’s plate-hugging stance means he’s going to get hit more often than most players and, that’s one of the things that makes him a valuable leadoff hitter. He has reached base 18 times this year via the walk (14) and hit-by-a-pitch route (4) and only 7 times by putting the ball in play safely.

“Basically, I bombed out in the new lineup for the first few weeks,” said Downing, who was supposed to get more opportunities to drive in runs from the sixth spot in the order. “I struggled in the middle. I was hitting .100, but no one mentioned that I was leading the league in walks.

“I’m not going to hit for a great average. I’m not that kind of player anymore. But I still know how to get to first base and that works for the No. 1 spot.”

Downing singled to left in the first inning Sunday and scored the Angels’ first run when Wally Joyner grounded out to second. And he scored again during the Angels’ five-run seventh after being hit by Nunez.

“I knew I couldn’t bat again, because I couldn’t close my hand,” he said. “But you don’t need to be able to make a fist to run the bases. I just want to get on base and it helped us get a big inning, let’s look at it that way. I don’t have to get hits to be happy. If we win, I’m happy.”

Downing’s brand of never-say-die determination is just what the Angels need in these dark hours. The only problem now is how to keep him off the disabled list when pitchers in the American League are using his body for target practice.