‘Hawk’ Visits His Therapists : When He Feels Down, Dawson Seeks Out the Padres

Inevitably, the talk in the Padre clubhouse Thursday turned to the awesome hitting of Chicago’s Andre Dawson.

The man called “The Hawk” had just pummeled Padre pitching for the second time in less than 24 hours, adding two triples and two singles to the home run and triple he hit Wednesday night. He had scored all but one of the Cubs’ runs in a 4-0 victory that gave them a sweep of the two-game series.

Tony Gwynn, the Padres’ three-time batting champion, said, “He has just worn us out the last two years.”

Jack Clark, Dawson’s slugging counterpart with the Padres, said, “When their big stick starts doing the job like that, it inspires everybody else.”

Both Gwynn and Clark made significant points. Dawson habitually mistreats the Padres, and as he goes, so go the Cubs.

Consider these numbers:

In 1987, Dawson’s first season with the Cubs, he batted .350 against the Padres, with eight home runs. Last year, he batted .340 with five home runs. Now he is off to a .524 start in five games against San Diego, with only one home run but three triples.

Aside from his 11 hits in 21 at-bats against the Padres, Dawson is hitting just .211--16 for 76. His season average is .278.

When the Cubs arrived, Dawson was in the throes of a slump in which he had only six hits in 35 at-bats. Take away his five for 13 against the Padres, and he was one for 22.

As for his point about how much Dawson means to his team, Clark could well have had his own situation in mind. He was fresh from a disastrous day that included two double plays and a game-ending strikeout.

When Dawson wasn’t hitting, the Cubs were averaging two runs and usually losing. Now they have won four of five games from the Padres and, with their pitching suddenly getting hot, six of eight overall.

Amazingly, Dawson has hit 14 of his 28 career home runs against the Padres since joining the Cubs. That’s as many in two seasons and a month with the Cubs as in 10 seasons and a month with Montreal.

Dawson has taken a particular liking to San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, batting .310 with 16 home runs here.

“I don’t have a definite answer for it,” he said. “But I see the ball well here. It’s a good park to play in, and it has a good atmosphere.”

For two weeks, Dawson had rarely hit a ball hard. Against the Padres, he crushed just about everything he swung at.

“I’ve been struggling to get my rhythm,” he said. “The trouble was, I was laying back and hitting the ball where it was pitched instead of being aggressive. I was just feeling for the ball, and I have to attack it to be effective.”

Asked if he felt the pressure of having to carry the Cubs, Dawson said, “Not really. It’s a 24-man team, not one individual. If somebody isn’t hitting, the others have to pick each other up.”

Dawson was the National League’s most valuable player in 1987, hitting 49 home runs and driving in 137 runs.

“In spite of what I did, we finished in last place,” he said. “That tells you what I mean. No one man can carry a ballclub.”

That drew less than total agreement from Mark Grace, the Cubs’ first baseman from San Diego State who follows Dawson in the batting order and twice drove him in with groundouts Thursday.

Said Grace: “From what happened the last two days, you can see how our offense clicks when Andre Dawson is hitting. When he’s in a groove, there’s always somebody on base. It’s funny how the Padres bring out the best in him.”

Grace is hitting .313--also fielding exceptionally well--and the value of his presence behind Dawson has brought great satisfaction to Cub Manager Don Zimmer.

“All I heard all winter was who was going to hit behind the Hawk,” Zimmer said. “That was the main topic for 100 days. Well, everybody can’t have Ted Williams hitting behind him.

“Now I don’t hear that stuff anymore. They can’t pitch around Dawson with Grace in the on-deck circle.”