Hershiser Has a Different Scoreless Streak : Dodgers Give Their Pitcher Zero Support Again as Padres Win It, 1-0

The Dodgers, visiting their southern neighbors Friday night for the first time since late July, had their first chance to see what this San Diego Padres’ pennant fuss was all about.

Some of them may still have their hands over their eyes.

In a 1-0 loss, the Dodgers discovered at least three of the ways the Padres have crept within six games of the first-place San Francisco Giants:

--With a 22-year-old pitcher who last season was in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference.

--With a former starter who quietly set the Padre record Friday by earning his major league-leading 38th save.

--With a game-winning double off a shortstop’s knees.

With two out in the seventh inning of a scoreless game, Dodger starter Orel Hershiser walked Bip Roberts, who stole second base on a pitch that bounced under catcher Mike Scioscia’s glove. Roberto Alomar was intentionally walked, bringing up Darrin Jackson, who entered the game in the fourth inning in place of sore-heeled Tony Gwynn.

What happened next, even Gwynn couldn’t have pulled off.

Jackson lofted a ball in front of shortstop Alfredo Griffin, who retreated in anticipation of the bounce. But the bounce went crazy, shooting off the infield dirt and ricocheting off his knees into shallow left field. Roberts scored, and Jackson got his sixth, and oddest, double of the season.

“I got lucky, what can you say?” said Jackson, who had struck out in his previous two at-bats against Hershiser. “As soon as I hit it, I said, ‘Shoot, it’s right at him.’ But it was a knuckleball. And it landed in a perfect spot.”

Said Griffin: “I think I should have caught the ball. At least, I should have blocked the ball.”

The San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium crowd of 28,771 didn’t know whether to cheer or laugh, so they did both. They kept it up for the remaining two innings as rookie Andy Benes gave up two hits in 7 1/3 innings for his fourth consecutive victory. Mark Davis threw the final 1 2/3 innings for his save.

The Padres’ 15th victory in their last 18 games was enough to keep them in a second-place tie with the Houston Astros, who beat the National League West-leading Giants, 5-2. And it was more than enough to help Hershiser reach a milestone of frustration.

He lost his third consecutive game and has an 0-4 record in his last six starts, despite an earned-run average of 1.93 during that time. This is because the Dodgers have been shut out in his last three starts, and have not scored in his last 30 innings.

How bad has Hershiser’s luck been? Bad enough, he implied, that it may have cost him a second consecutive Cy Young Award.

“I think I’m pitching better than last year,” said Hershiser, who is 14-12 with a 2.31 ERA.

Last season, he had a 2.26 ERA but was 23-8.

“It would be more frustrating if we were in a pennant race . . . if these games meant anything,” Hershiser said. “All I can do is go out and do my job.”

Because the Dodgers were shut out for a major league-leading 16h time, Hershiser’s performance--he gave up seven hits in seven innings--was overshadowed by those of Benes and Davis.

Davis got the record after he replaced Benes in the eighth inning with Lenny Harris on second base and one out. Davis struck out both Willie Randolph and Eddie Murray, then retired the Dodgers in order in the ninth. He has had six saves in the Padres’ last seven games and has blown only four of his 42 save opportunities.

“I try not to reflect on the season and any numbers until the end of the year, but this (record) is definitely a highlight for me and my career,” said Davis, who passed Rollie Fingers’ record of 37 saves set in 1978.

Benes, last year’s National League No. 1 draft pick from the University of Evansville, was celebrating the passing of a different landmark.

“I felt like I grew up tonight,” said Benes, who struck out six in improving to 4-2. “It made me feel like I’m finally over the hump.”

The Dodgers’ offense, getting their first look at Benes, learned what Philadelphia and Montreal had already discovered. Benes can throw well--and hard. He entered with only five previous major league starts but with victories in his last three--over the Expos and the Phillies twice. During those starts, he had struck out 18 in 19 1/3 innings.

Benes struck out at least one batter in each inning until the sixth, which featured his most important pitch. And it wasn’t a strike.

With one out, he walked Randolph, then watched as Murray drove a fastball into the left-field corner for a double, moving Randolph to third base.

Up stepped Mike Marshall, who if he thought the kid was cracking, soon realized otherwise. Benes’ first pitch hummed underneath Marshall’s chin, dropping him to the ground while the roaring crowd jumped to its feet. Four pitches later, Marshall fouled weakly to the first baseman. Jeff Hamilton hit a grounder up the middle that shortstop Garry Templeton picked off in front of second base and threw to first to end the inning and the final Dodger threat.

“Every other start, I’ve had an inning where I’ve given up more than one run--this was the big inning for me,” Benes said.

Hershiser hasn’t seen a big inning since Eddie Murray hit a two-run homer for him in the sixth inning of an Aug. 18 game in New York. The Dodgers have not scored for him since then. That was 21 days ago.

Dodger Notes

The Dodgers could finish with two pitchers among the league’s top five in ERA--Orel Hershiser and Mike Morgan. But Morgan needs 162 innings to qualify and has only 148 2/3. With 21 games remaining, it will be difficult for Morgan because he is no longer a starter. “It would be nice to go home for the winter having that ranking under my belt,” said Morgan, whose 2.60 ERA ranks fifth. “It wasn’t my main objective when we started the season, but here it is September, and it’s become a little more important.” Morgan said he would need eight or nine more appearances to accumulate the 12 1/3 needed innings.

Look for several more players from triple-A Albuquerque to join the Dodgers after the weekend. The Dukes could finish their Pacific Coast League championship series against Vancouver by Sunday. Among the favorites for recall are pitcher Jeff Fischer, third baseman Dave Hansen and shortstop Jose Vizcaino. . . . Dodger Vice President Fred Claire said Friday he has discussed the possibility of catcher Rick Dempsey remaining with the organization as a minor league coach or manager after his playing career ends. “I think he would be a tremendous asset in that area,” said Claire, who must first decide whether to offer another playing contract to Dempsey, whose contract expires at the end of this season. Claire and free-agent pitcher Fernando Valenzuela won’t begin negotiations until after the season, as Valenzuela’s agent, Tony DeMarco, said last month.