Newly Arrived Abner Is Happy to Just Let Jack Do It in the 12th

Shawn Abner had more than one reason to be happy when pinch-hitter Jack Clark singled home the winning run for the Padres in the 12th inning Thursday.

It wasn’t just the flush of the Padres’ 1-0 victory over Cincinnati that brought a smile to Abner’s face. The newly arrived outfielder was relieved to have been spared the trauma of batting against the submarine pitches of 43-year-old Kent Tekulve with the game on the line at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

Abner, who will be 23 Saturday, was in the on-deck circle when Clark lined Tekulve’s 3-2 pitch to left field. Mark Parent lumbered home on the hit, and if he hadn’t made it, Abner would have had to bear a burden that he wasn’t quite ready for in his first game back from triple-A Las Vegas.

“I was saying to myself, ‘Please get a hit, Jack,’ ” Abner said. “I’ve never hit against a guy like that. I’ve always liked to come up in that situation, but my first day back, I’d rather have Jack do it.”

Abner was recalled from Las Vegas Wednesday after infielder Tim Flannery was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a partially torn muscle in his right wrist. He didn’t play Wednesday night but started in center field Thursday. Manager Jack McKeon said he would be platooned with Marvell Wynne for the time being.

This is a crucial test for Abner, who has been a disappointment since he was acquired from the New York Mets in December 1986.

After a promising 1987 season, in which he hit .300 at Las Vegas and .277 in a September trial with the Padres, Abner made the San Diego club in spring training last year. But he hit just .181 in 37 games, was sent back to Las Vegas and hit only .254 there, with four home runs and 34 runs batted in in 63 games.

With those negative numbers on his record, Abner was given a third ticket to Las Vegas for 1989. He again failed to tear up the Pacific Coast League, but his .269 average in 56 games included eight home runs and 31 RBI, so when Flannery got hurt, McKeon gave him another chance.

“We’ve got to find out if he can do it.” McKeon said.

Abner’s latest debut didn’t prove anything, of course, but it gave cause for encouragement to both him and McKeon.

Leading off, he had one hit in five at-bats with one strikeout and hit one other ball well. In the field, he handled three fly balls without incident. His only regrettable act was a base-running gaffe that blunted what might have been a game-winning rally in the ninth.

After leading off the ninth with a single off Rob Dibble, Abner was sacrificed to second by Roberto Alomar. Tony Gwynn hit a hot bounder back to John Franco, who had replaced Dibble after Abner’s hit, and Abner made the mistake of straying too far off second. Franco picked him off easily, and Carmelo Martinez ended the inning by lining to center.

“He just went a step too far,” McKeon said. “But he played OK. He hit the ball good. One ball that was caught, he just got under it or it would’ve been a home run.”

To McKeon, the most positive aspect of Abner’s performance was that he acted as though he felt he belonged in the major leagues.

“He seemed much more poised, much more relaxed,” McKeon said.

Asked for a self-assessment, Abner said, “I feel pretty good about the game I had. My first time up (against Tom Browning), I just missed getting all of it. Another inch, you don’t know what might have happened.”

And Abner’s unfortunate incident at second base?

“The ball was hit so hard, I figured it would go to the left of the pitcher,” he said. “I had a good lead because I wanted to score and win the ballgame. I thought maybe Franco would hesitate or something, but he didn’t. I knew then that I was dead.”

Although he had played 53 major league games previously, Abner admitted that he had butterflies when he took the field.

“I don’t care whether you’ve been around 10 years or 30 days,” he said. “When you’ve been playing in front of 3,000 people and you see more than 20 grand in the stands, you get a little nervous.”

It’s possible that Abner will be around only until Flannery comes back, but he is determined to make his stay permanent this time.

“When I was here last year, I played about every five days,” he said. “Now I just want a chance to prove myself. I’m going to bust my butt for 15 days and see what happens.”