Hot Chili Boils Over in Defeat : Davis Directs Anger at Umpire and Miller in 3-1 Loss to Orioles

The bus from New York got into Baltimore at 4 a.m. The longest trip of the Angels’ season had reached the third of four stops. And in the game that followed, the losingest team in baseball, the Baltimore Orioles, played host to an Angel ballclub that only recently was nearing playoff contention.

By the eighth inning of Friday night’s game--which the Angels would eventually lose, 3-1--Chili Davis’ mood had turned from dark to sour to outright ugly at Memorial Stadium.

Already, he had broken a bat over his knee after hitting into a seventh-inning out--the Chili Davis trademark warning signal. And then, he was called out on strikes on a debatable call by home plate umpire Dan Morrison.

Finally, Davis’ temper blew.

Spinning around in the batter’s box, Davis began to dispute the call. First, he said his piece. Then Morrison said his. Point, counterpoint.

More words were exchanged. Voices grew louder.

Then, without warning, Angel catcher Darrell Miller came barreling in from stage right, ostensibly to serve as peacemaker.

Peace breaker was more like it.

Just as Davis appeared to finish his say with Morrison, Miller entered the fray, plowing into Davis as he tried to wedge himself between the two combatants.

Suddenly, Davis was pushing Miller, and Angel Manager Cookie Rojas and third base coach Moose Stubing had to intercede to defuse a potential Angel vs. Angel confrontation.

And what a billing it might have been: Hot Chili meets the runaway catcher.

“Just one of those things that happen this time of year,” Rojas tried to explain afterward. “It’s a tough August ballgame, and the guys were a little tired. They were getting frustrated.”

They were on their way to losing to a 41-80 Baltimore club while managing just four hits against Oriole pitchers Dave Schmidt (6-3), Mark Williamson and Tom Niedenfuer.

When Davis struck out, the score was 3-1 and Wally Joyner was on second base with two out.

“Hell,” Angel designated hitter Brian Downing said. “The game’s on the line, Davis gets called out on a terrible pitch and he blew up. He’s a volatile guy. What’s he supposed to do, tell the umpire, ‘Thank you, sir’ and walk away?

“He had a legitimate complaint, and it was a tense time of the game. Those things were going to happen.”

But Davis’ spat with Morrison was seemingly de-escalating before Miller entered the picture. Rojas believed Miller acted properly--”He did the best he could on behalf of the ballclub to keep Davis from getting thrown out of the game,” Rojas contended--but Stubing said Miller merely served to inflame the situation.

“Darrell overreacted,” Stubing said. “He thought he was going to be a savior, but Chili didn’t know who it was. He caused more problems than he was going to solve.

“Chili didn’t see him, Chili felt him. And he told him, ‘Get the . . . off me.’ And Miller was smart enough to get off him.”

Stubing’s perspective was important, since neither Davis nor Miller talked with reporters.

Rojas did his best to downplay the incident.

“That’s all over between them now,” he said. “I don’t think Davis meant to do what he did to Miller. He was just mad at the umpire.”

Rojas did suggest, however, that Davis could have handled matters on his own.

“At first, they were just talking,” Rojas said of Davis and Morrison. “I don’t think they were getting on each other. You have to give him the chance to speak his mind.”

Said Stubing: “I don’t think it’s anything (for Davis) to apologize for. Hell, Gene Mauch’s pushed me out of arguments before. It happens during the heat of the battle.”

In that brief encounter, the Angels showed more fight than they displayed the rest of the night. Schmidt allowed them a first-inning run--Devon White hit a leadoff double and scored on two groundouts--and then shut them down through the sixth inning.

In the seventh, the Angels loaded the bases on a double by Thad Bosley and two walks, finally forcing Schmidt out of the game. But, at that point, Williamson came on to strike out White to end the threat.

Angel starter Mike Witt (9-12) allowed three runs on seven hits to wind up a complete-game loser.

“Mike pitched a hell of a game,” Rojas said. “It was a tough game to lose.”

Especially for Davis. Especially after that called third strike in the eighth.

And that near run-in between Davis and Miller? Rojas even managed to see something positive in that.

“It’s a long season,” Rojas said, “but when you see players fired up like that, it shows they want to win.”

Angel Notes

Mark McLemore was a late addition to the starting lineup when second baseman Johnny Ray was scratched because of a strained lower back. McLemore immediately made his presence felt defensively, diving to take a first-inning hit away from Mickey Tettleton and hustling behind second base in the second inning to backhand Jim Traber’s sharp grounder and throw him out at first. Ray appeared as a ninth-inning pinch-hitter, flying out against Tom Niedenfuer to end the game. . . . Kirk McCaskill was sent home before Friday’s game. He is expected to undergo examination for his radial nerve irritation early next week.

Dan Petry’s second rehabilitative start with Palm Springs Thursday night was a step backward: 7 runs (6 earned) on 7 hits and 5 walks in just 4 innings against Bakersfield. “He didn’t do too well,” Angel Manager Cookie Rojas said. “His control wasn’t as sharp as we’d like. We’ll have him pitch one more time next Tuesday in Palm Springs and go from there.” . . . With Friday’s victory, the Orioles are no longer in sole possession of the worst record in baseball. At 41-80, they are tied with the Atlanta Braves. It’s the first time the Orioles have enjoyed such company since April 13, when both were 0-8.