Hershiser Leaves Earlier Than Usual but Still Gets Win

Had circumstances been different, Dodger pitcher Orel Hershiser probably would have ignored even something as bothersome as a blister on his finger and tried to push on toward another complete game Wednesday night.

But Hershiser’s devout work-ethic principle clashed with seemingly indisputable logic. He knew it would be best to avoid a potentially hindering injury heading into a stretch this weekend in which the Dodgers will play five games in three days. Especially since Hershiser will be asked to pitch on three days’ rest for the first time this season.

Grudgingly, then, Hershiser handed a three-run lead over the Atlanta Braves to the Dodger bullpen at the start of the eighth inning. But it turned out that he only had to squirm a little on the bench, as the Dodgers held on for a 7-5 win over the Braves before a crowd of 10,154 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

A voice of reason afterward, Hershiser said he was satisfied with Manager Tom Lasorda’s decision and the result. But Hershiser (9-3), who failed to log at least eight innings for the first time in five starts, admitted part of him longed to continue.

“I didn’t want to bail out early; I never do,” Hershiser said. “But the situation dictated it. They wanted to take me out after six (innings), but I wanted to stay in for the eighth. But with the doubleheaders coming up, and the blister I had, it made sense.”

It is seemingly safe to look ahead to future games when playing the Braves. The Dodgers, whose National League West lead over Houston increased to two games, have won 8 of 9 games from the division’s worst team.

They used the the standard formula to beat the Braves: solid starting pitching, consistent hitting and help from the bullpen.

After Hershiser’s departure in the eighth, reliever Jesse Orosco faced three batters and had runners on second and first with one out when Alejandro Pena was brought in.Atlanta scored a run in the eighth and an unearned run in the ninth, but Pena eventually earned his fourth save and the team’s 17th in 60 games. Center fielder John Shelby once again led the offensive attack, which accumulated 9 of 13 hits against Brave starter Tom Glavine. Shelby went 3 for 3 and scored two runs, while Steve Sax, Kirk Gibson and Jeff Hamilton (who had been 0 for 14) each had two hits. One of Gibson’s hits was his 12th home run, a bases-empty shot over the 385-foot sign in right field.

Hershiser even helped himself by knocking in two runs with second-inning single off Glavine. The Dodgers didn’t mind having Hershiser’s bat out of the lineup when they made the eighth-inning decision to replace him. It was his arm--well, specifically, the middle finger on his right hand--that had the Dodgers worried.

Hershiser retired the first 11 batters he faced before Gerald Perry broke through with a single to right. Dale Murphy followed with his ninth home run that cut the Dodger lead to 3-2. Not coincidentally, Hershiser said he first felt the blister forming late in the third inning and first felt tenderness in the fourth. He fended off another Brave uprising in the fifth inning, resulting in another run, and carried a 6-3 lead into the eighth.

Lasorda sent out Hershiser to warm up in the eighth inning, but he had no intention of letting him pitch. The decision to replace him already had been made, but the Dodgers were hoping to lure the Braves into announcing left-handed Ken Griffey as a pinch-hitter for the pitcher, which the Braves did.

That’s when Hershiser pointed to his finger and left the field, and the left-handed Orosco entered. Brave Manager Russ Nixon pulled Griffey and use right-handed hitting Paul Runge against Orosco.

“The situation to use that ploy and go to the bullpen presented itself, and we had to do it,” Hershiser said. “I know that. It worked.”

Hershiser, usually hesitant to talk about injuries, admitted that the blister affected his pitching. He said he had to all but abandon his sinking fastball after the third inning because it aggravated the blister, which was located on the inside part of his finger.

“I continued to pitch, but I didn’t want to rip (the blister open) open,” Hershiser said. “I went mostly with breaking balls and changeups, because the ball comes off the outside of my finger on those pitches. On the sinker, it comes off the inside of the finger.”

Bad things for the Dodgers happened the few times Hershiser tried to throw his sinking fastball after the onset of the blister.

“Murphy’s home run was a sinker that didn’t sink,” Hershiser said. “That wasn’t myself out there on that pitch. I knew I sort of had to stay away from the sinker after that. I was able to get by.”

Following Wednesday’s win, Hershiser’s third in the last four starts, he is 10th among National League pitchers with a 2.55 earned-run average. Had he finished the final two innings, however, Hershiser would have moved into second place in the league for complete games.

But . . .

“The key was getting as many innings out of me tonight going into these doubleheaders,” Hershiser said. “Tonight, it was the difference of either putting a strain on the bullpen or having my blister maybe get worse. They made that decision.

“It’s also going to be strain on our pitching staff (with doubleheaders against San Diego both on Friday night and Sunday). Hopefully, we’ll come out of it with a few wins.”

Fortunately for the forward-thinking Dodgers, they came out of Wednesday’s game with another win over the Braves.

Dodger Notes

Ken Howell, who arrived in Atlanta Wednesday night, will make his first major league start this season tonight against the Braves. Because of double headers against San Diego on Friday night and Sunday, the Dodgers figure to keep Howell and go with a six-man starting pitching rotation for a week. Howell, coming off shoulder surgery over the winter, was 2-0 with a 2.40 earned-run average for the Dodgers’ Triple-A team in Albuquerque before his promotion. . . . As expected, outfielder Jose Gonzalez was outrighted to Albuquerque following Wednesday night’s night to make room for Howell. Gonzalez did not have an auspicious send-off. Sent into the right field as a defensive replacement in the ninth inning, Gonzalez overran a routine fly ball and turned into a three-base error that accounted for the Braves’ fifth run. . . . The Dodgers’ win over Tom Glavine, who allowed 9 hits but only 3 earned runs in 5 innings, improved their record to 9-10 against left-handed starters. . . . Mickey Hatcher’s groin injury improved enough that he could start at first base Wednesday night. Hatcher said he experienced no serious discomfort during the game. . . . Alfredo Griffin, who returned to the Dominican Republic on personal business for a week during his stay on the disabled list with a broken bone in his right hand, returned Wednesday. Griffin will be examined on June 22 and may have the cast removed at that time. Dodger trainers still say there is no set time for Griffin’s return. . . . From John Shelby, who has 7 hits in his last 10 at-bats: “I feel comfortable at the plate. Very confident. I’m in a groove. I just hope I stay in it. The most important thing is to be relaxed at the plate and stay within myself.”