Questions, but Little Turmoil : Padres May Still Surprise, but Spring to Be Mellow

Granted, we could be talking a major trade and a major position change. If a fan of the Padres lies down Sunday and takes a 42-day nap, he could wake up to find Dale Murphy in his outfield and Carmelo Martinez as his third baseman.

But before further explaining what might happen to the Padres this spring training, in their first steps toward trying to fulfill all those skyscraper expectations, it is more important to note what will not happen.

There will be no daily two-mile run (meaning there will be no veterans disappearing in the middle of that run to get sick).

There will be no fines for excess weight (meaning there will be no pitchers starving themselves into throwing Lean Cuisine fastballs).

There will be no workouts that last longer than Senate confirmation hearings (meaning there will be no players who wish the manager dead).

There will be real competition for only a couple of jobs (meaning a veteran might even offer a rookie a ride back to the hotel, perhaps later even speaking to him).

What there will be, beginning at 9 a.m. Sunday at the Ray A. Kroc Baseball Complex in Yuma, Ariz., and continuing until camp breaks 42 days later, is common sense baseball. It is Manager Jack McKeon’s trademark and will serve as his first testament as he runs a big-league spring training for the first time in 11 years.

“I believe in quality time--get the players in, get them their work and get them out,” said McKeon, doing this sort of thing for the first time since 1978, when he directed the Oakland A’s. “Our job is to get them in good condition, mentally and physically, and that’s it. There shouldn’t be any pressure here.

“These guys don’t need to prove anything but that they can be ready for the start of the season. That’s what we’re here for. Not for the spring, but for the start of the season.”

Larry Bowa infused Yuma with a different sort of atmosphere the past two years--”creative tension” is a nice way to describe it--and promptly led them to five consecutive losses to open each of the past two regular seasons. McKeon watched both camps from outside the door of his general manager’s office and decided that if he ever moved around the corner and into a uniform, things would be different. So they will be.

Workouts will not exceed 3 1/2 hours. Players will rarely be standing around, making use of as many as four diamonds at once, even if it cramps the minor leaguers. Players will know their roles and be asked only to prepare for those roles, not to justify them.

“I’m not going to tear my hair out and raise hell over a lost exhibition game,” McKeon said. “I’m not going to go nuts over some kid who is impressive in the spring because he’s been playing all winter. I’m going to let everybody get tuned up gradually.”

This theory is easier to implement because he knows who “everybody” is going to be. Of the 42 players in camp, at least 21 have the 24-man squad made.

“I ain’t running a tryout camp,” McKeon said. “I know what my guys can do.”

The following synopsis of his guys could change radically if McKeon is able to pick up the one hitter his club needs to move from National League Western Division contenders to favorites. The Padres hoped to have a deal this winter, but other teams apparently want to see how catcher Sandy Alomar Jr., last season’s minor league player of the year and top commodity, has survived August’s arthroscopic knee surgery.

Look for Alomar Jr. to get sufficient playing time, and look for any deal to happen in the middle of March, after the Padre complete their annual tour of the Phoenix-area camps and many clubs have had a peek.

The leading candidate for acquisition is still Atlanta’s Dale Murphy, which would cost the Padres Alomar Jr., outfielder John Kruk and couple of prospects. Failing that, McKeon might settle for Seattle’s power-hitting third baseman, Jim Presley, or even work a deal for Mariner pitcher Mark Langston and top young outfielder Mickey Brantley.

But at this point, barring McKeon’s next miracle, here’s how the roster looks:

Nine of the 10 pitchers have it made. The five starters will be Eric Show, Bruce Hurst, Ed Whitson, Dennis Rasmussen and Walt Terrell. Four of the five relievers will be Mark Davis, Dave Leiper, Greg Booker and Mark Grant.

The battle will be for the fifth reliever spot, between rookie right-hander Greg Harris and newly acquired left-hander Pat Clements. The inside track belongs to Harris, who went 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in three big-league appearances late last year. He would begin as a long reliever and become a starter if any of the five falter.

“We know Harris can pitch in the big leagues, why should he have to go back to triple-A?” asked Pat Dobson, the pitching coach. “Even if he doesn’t pitch a lot right away, he will be of more use to us in the big leagues. Look at Candy Sierra.”

Last year, Sierra came from double-A to make the team by surprise, and even though he didn’t pitch well, the Padres were able to use him to acquire Dennis Rasmussen from Cincinnati.

“You think we would have gotten Rasmussen if Sierra were still in triple-A?” Dobson asked. “No way.”

Left-handed Clements was 6-7 with a 2.75 ERA last year with triple-A Columbus, the New York Yankees farm team. In just six appearances in New York, he was racked for a 6.48 ERA.

There will be another staff battle between Mark Grant and Greg Booker. The winner will start the season as the right-handed set-up man for Mark Davis and be the right-handed stopper when Davis falters. The loser will be a mop-up man, a role held by Booker last year before he made two fine starts at the end of the season, allowing just two runs in 11 1/3 innings.

“I think Grant is ready for a good relief role; last year he finally had an idea of what he was doing,” Dobson said. “But then, late in the year, Book also got the job done.”

Benito Santiago will be the starting catcher, and either Sandy Alomar Jr. or Mark Parent will be his backup, depending on whom is traded. McKeon wants to make this clear before Santiago, who is sometimes insecure, begins looking over at Alomar Jr. and forgetting about playing.

“Benny is my catcher, period,” McKeon said. “There should be no problems there.”

Said Santiago earlier this winter from his home in Jauca, Puerto Rico: “I know Sandy will be there, but I can’t let that be my concern. I know what I have done. All I must care about is the start of the season. I have matured too much to worry about anything else.”

Three-fourths of the infield is set, with Jack Clark at first base, Roberto Alomar at second and Garry Templeton and triple-A star Mike Brumley platooning at shortstop. McKeon tried all winter to get a power-hitting third baseman but, despite entering the spring with the platoon of Randy Ready and Tim Flannery, may try something else there.

As in last year’s left fielder Carmelo Martinez. He has played left, right, first base . . . but never third.

“He will play a few games there, yeah,” McKeon confirmed. “He has good infielder skills, and if he gets comfortable there, who knows?”

Martinez took ground balls at third during many batting practices last year and was as impressive as he is at first, where he possesses one of the quickest gloves in the league. But then he would have pitched batting practice if they let him. As of a month ago, he had no idea what McKeon had in mind.

“I haven’t heard anything about third base, but I try to be ready there, everywhere, just so I can get into the lineup,” Martinez said earlier this winter from his home in Dorado, P.R. “I like Jack, I will do what he says. If if gets me more swings, great.”

If Martinez does make the switch, both Ready and Flannery would still be valuable role players. There may be another backup infield spot open, for which minor league stars Bip Roberts or Joey Cora would be candidates. But both may be traded by then.

The outfield contains Tony Gwynn in center, John Kruk in right and, at least for now, Martinez in left. Marvell Wynne will return as a backup.

This leaves one, maybe two open spots, depending on what happens to Roberts, whose value increases because he also plays the infield. The leader for one spot would be Shawn Abner, whom McKeon feels has never had a steady big-league chance. Another candidate would be Gerald Clark, who could be the camp’s surprise; he showed flashes last September, hitting a double with three RBIs in his first 15 big-league at-bats.

The real outfield battle might be for comfort; Gwynn must get used to being an everyday center fielder, and Kruk will be rehabilitating his left knee, which he injured jogging last month. Although he should be ready in a couple of weeks, Kruk still has a slight limp.