Gibson Leads Off 3-1 Dodger Win

The Dodgers’ quest for a center fielder who can bat leadoff didn’t produce a trade Sunday but it did produce a new leadoff hitter who played center field.

In the wake of what he said was a sleepless night, frustrated by the Dodgers’ ongoing offensive struggle, Manager Tom Lasorda moved Kirk Gibson from third to first in the batting order, elevated Eddie Murray from fourth to third and employed Mike Davis as the cleanup hitter.

The result?

Well, it can’t exactly be said that the Dodgers ended the slump.

They collected only four singles as their team average dropped from .227 to .226, but parlayed the wildness of Cincinnati Reds’ rookie Scott Scudder, some creative strategy by Lasorda and a six-hitter by Tim Leary and Jay Howell to defeat the Reds, 3-1.

“All I see is the ‘W’ and that’s what’s sweet,” second baseman Willie Randolph said of a win that was only the Dodgers’ fourth in their last 11 games and enabled them to stay within seven of the Houston Astros, who lead the Reds and San Francisco Giants by one game in the National League West.

Gibson went hitless in three at-bats, but he walked and scored in the third, when the Dodgers ended a string of 23 scoreless innings.

Davis, 1 for 31 at the time, flared a two-run, bases-loaded single in that inning after Randolph sent Gibson to third on a hit-and-run single to left-center, Randolph taking second when Eric Davis threw to the plate. Murray was walked intentionally, and Davis looped his single over shortstop Barry Larkin for a rare lead.

Randolph, whose bat control seems better suited to the No. 2 position in the batting order than the leadoff spot he has been asked to fill on occasion, singled in the Dodgers’ third run in the fourth after Alfredo Griffin walked and was sacrificed to second by Leary.

“Randolph is an exceptional No. 2 hitter if we can get someone on who can run and steal,” Lasorda said. “With Kirk up there, we can manufacture runs.

“We need a catalyst, we had to do something. We’ll keep him up there and see what happens, see if he can turn the offense on.”

Gibson, the Michigan native, slipped into a T-shirt bearing a Detroit Pistons’ logo and said the victories by the Dodgers and Pistons were comparable to a doubleheader sweep.

He said he couldn’t remember the last time he batted leadoff, but would give it his customary aggressiveness.

“We need to be more cohesive,” Gibson said. “We need to work together as a lineup and that hasn’t been the case.

“If I’m going to bat leadoff, I’ll do my part to try and create easy runs.

“I’ll be aggressive and let them (the opposition) know I’m going to be aggressive. I mean, if they want to throw Willie junk, I’m going to be on second, no doubt about it. I’m going to be running.

“If we start manufacturing runs, the guys will relax at the plate and swing like they’re capable. We need to have more diversity.”

More hit-and-runs, perhaps. More double steals. Lasorda, operating from the third base coaches box Sunday, successfully called for both in the two-run third.

“I’ll try to hook up with Willie like we did today,” Gibson said of the hit-and-run. “If I’m on third with one out, that’s an easy way to score runs. I’ll show you how to score because I’m going to be running (on anything hit to the infield).”

Randolph, who has raised his average to .288 by batting .343 over his last 35 games, disputed the contention that he is more effective or prefers the No. 2 spot in the batting order over leadoff, saying his approach doesn’t change.

“I’d prefer to see Gibson in more of a power situation but Tommy wanted to shake things up and it worked,” Randolph said. “Right now, we’ve got to create some offense. Right now, winning is the only thing that matters.”

The Dodgers stole four bases as four Cincinnati pitchers issued eight walks, including six in four innings by Scudder, making his second major league start.

Leary improved his record to 5-4 and lowered his earned-run average to 2.97 by giving up five hits in eight innings before Howell registered his 12th save in the ninth.

Todd Benzinger homered in the first for the Reds. Leary walked only two, which disturbed Red Manager Pete Rose.

“We walked them, but we wouldn’t take walks,” he said. “Leary was wild, but it won’t show in the box score. He could have walked 10, but we have a lot of guys who won’t take walks. If a pitcher is going to be wild, let him be wild.”

Lasorda conducted a pre-game meeting with all of his pitchers, telling them not to press, to put the offensive struggle out of their minds, to caution them, perhaps, against public crticism of the offense and to offer his congratulations on their good work.

“At a time like this,” he said later, “with everyone talking offense, offense, offense, the pitching has gone unnoticed and I wanted them to know they have done a hell of a job. They’ve kept us in the game and I wanted them to know I appreciate it.”

The Dodgers lead the major leagues with a team ERA of 2.74. Leary and Howell showed why Sunday, and the new leadoff hitter scored the first of the only three runs they needed.

Dodger Notes

Manager Tom Lasorda said he will remain in the third base coaching box for as long as the Dodgers are winning. The Dodgers won three in a row with Lasorda there earlier this season. . . . On asking Kirk Gibson to bat leadoff, Lasorda said, “He’s a great competitor. He’ll do anything I ask.” . . . The Dodgers have 14 hits for the first three games of the series, all singles. . . . The Reds had won four straight and nine of 11. . . . Mariano Duncan, who went on the 15-day disabled list with a cut on his right hand May 28, is expected to come off today, necessitating a roster move. . . . The Dodgers announced the signing of their No. 1 selection in last Monday’s summer draft, pitcher Kiki Jones of Hillsborough High in Tampa, Fla. Jones received a bonus estimated at $170,000.