Scioscia Gets Big Slam as Dodgers Close Door

Mike Scioscia’s timing hasn’t been too good lately, but nobody could fault him Tuesday night.

Scioscia’s team reached a low point Monday with the word that Kirk Gibson, last year’s league most valuable player, is lost for the season with a leg injury.

Scioscia himself had nearly hit a low point Monday. Actually, he hadn’t hit much at all.

His average entering Tuesday’s game against the Atlanta Braves was .240, the lowest it had been since April 22.

But with one well-timed swing, he raised both his average and his team’s spirits, hitting a grand slam off John Smoltz to lead the Dodgers to a 10-2 victory before 30,713 at Dodger Stadium.

That equaled the Dodger season high in runs, a mark reached twice.

Franklin Stubbs followed Scioscia’s lead, later adding a three-run homer for the knockout punch.

“I’ve been struggling with the bat of late,” Scioscia said. “That’s why I’m hitting eighth. In that situation (the bases loaded), I’m just trying to hit the ball hard somewhere.

“But my job on this club is defense. That’s my main contribution. I call about 130 pitches and work with the defense. Not that offense isn’t important. But I cannot let it affect my defense.”

Scioscia had plenty to concentrate on behind the plate as well. Orel Hershiser (14-8) pitched a complete game, but this was not a vintage performance. He gave up two runs, seven hits, struck out two and walked three.

“I thought he struggled, but that’s a tribute to the great pitcher he is that he hung in there,” Scioscia said.

He usually does against Atlanta. Hershiser has won eight consecutive and 10 of his last 11 decisions against the Braves.

“I felt great, but not real strong,” Hershiser said. “I didn’t have my location all night.”

He’ll get no sympathy from Smoltz, who is 11-10 after lasting four innings and surrendering five runs, five hits and four walks.

“I just couldn’t get into a rhythm,” said Smoltz, at 22 the National League’s youngest pitcher. “I just didn’t bear down enough. One swing, four runs. That’s a big blow. I wasn’t the same after that home run.”

Brave Manager Russ Nixon said: “We’re dealing with a young man who had success early and is now in a downward trend. It happens to all young pitchers. It will make a better pitcher out of him.”

Scioscia had an opportunity to drive in more runs, but he made inning-ending outs twice in bases-loaded situations.

“The second time I had a picture of hitting another one,” he said.

Considering his recent lack of hitting success, he wasn’t complaining too loudly.

Scioscia and the Dodgers had other things to worry about in the first inning.

Lonnie Smith, his 10-game hitting streak ended the night before, didn’t wait long to start a new one. The third batter in the game, Smith put a Hershiser pitch over the right-center-field wall for his 17th home run.

And then came Scioscia.

Eddie Murray and Stubbs opened the Dodger second with singles, and Billy Bean was walked to load the bases.

That brought up Mike Huff and his perfect average. Huff, recalled from Albuquerque Sunday, singled as a pinch-hitter Monday in his major league debut. He almost got another hit his first time up Tuesday, dribbling a ball down the third-base line. Smoltz, however, bare-handed the ball and fired to the plate to force Murray.

But nothing could save Smoltz from the 1-and-0 pitch he threw to Scioscia. The Dodger catcher deposited it in the bleacher seats in right-center, his fifth homer of the year and his second grand slam, the first coming June 4 against Houston.

The Dodgers added another run in the third when Smoltz’s control deserted him.

A single by Lenny Harris and two walks loaded the bases, and another walk to Huff forced in the run.

That brought Scioscia to the plate with another bases-loaded situation. He hit a fly ball in the same direction as the first, but this one was caught by Dale Murphy far from the seats.

The Braves scored in the fifth when Andre Thomas hit a double and came home on Jeff Blauser’s single.

But an inning later, the Dodgers renewed their onslaught against Sergio Valdez.

After singles by Alfredo Griffin and Willie Randolph and a force play, Murray scored a run with a line single off the glove of first baseman Darrell Evans.

Stubbs then hit a towering home run into the seats in left-center, his fourth home run of the year.

This was Stubbs’ seventh start in the last nine games, a role that seems to agree with him. Overall he is hitting .293. But in his 18 games as a starter, he is hitting .352.

After Stubbs’ home run, the Braves went down meekly as Hershiser held them to two hits the rest of the way.

The Dodgers added a final run in the eighth, Murray getting his third hit, a single, to drive home Dave Anderson, who had doubled.

As he did a year ago, Hershiser is starting to get hot in the latter stages of the season. He has won five of his last six starts to give him a good shot a 20 victories.

Timing. As Scioscia could tell you, it’s all a matter of timing.

Dodger Notes

It wasn’t an outing John Smoltz will care to remember, but he did take something from Tuesday’s outing. By striking out three in his four innings, Smoltz takes over league leadership in that category with 142, one more than Dodger Tim Belcher. . . . There was a doubleheader of sorts Tuesday night with the Dodgers and Braves being preceded by the Dodgers against their wives and children in the annual family game. The wives and children won their 19th consecutive game, 18-0. Highlight was the inside-the-park, run-the-bases-backward, home run by 2-year-old Ryan Anderson, son of Dave. . . . The last Dodger before Mike Scioscia to hit two grand slams in one season was Mike Marshall in 1985. . . . Scioscia’s grand slam was the Dodgers’ fourth of the year. . . . The Dodgers close out their home stand tonight with John Wetteland (3-3) opposing Atlanta’s Pete Smith (2-11).