If Lockout Goes On, Milestones Will Have to Wait : Baseball: Any games missed would be opportunities lost for players to move up on all-time lists.

Nolan Ryan’s pursuit of 300 victories promises to be one of the highlights of the 1990 baseball season--if there is a season.

Fans can also monitor Wade Boggs’ progress toward a record eighth consecutive 200-hit season, count Rickey Henderson’s stolen bases as the Oakland Athletics’ outfielder closes in on Lou Brock’s record and check for gray hairs on Ryan and Bill Buckner as each attempts to play into a fourth decade.

But the longer the spring training lockout goes, the less likely it is that the season will open as scheduled on April 2. A shortened season would leave players less time to collect the hits, strikeouts and saves they need to reach various records or milestones.

The 50-day strike in 1981 was especially costly to Ryan, 43 years old and 11 wins away from becoming the 20th pitcher in major league history to win 300 games. In the strike-shortened ’81 season Ryan was 11-5 and had 140 strikeouts, an average of 8.5 a game, in 21 starts. Over 35 starts, he would have won 18 games and recorded 233 strikeouts.

Angel pitcher Bert Blyleven, then with the Cleveland Indians, was 11-7 in 20 starts in 1981. Had he started 34 games, as he had in 1980, he might have won 19 games and would be considerably closer to 300. Blyleven, who will be 39 on April 6, will start this season with 271 victories and has pitched 4,702 innings, 17th most. He has 3,562 strikeouts, fifth behind Ryan’s record 5,076. Within passing range for Blyleven this season are Don Sutton at 3,574 and Tom Seaver at 3,640.

Although he claims he doesn’t keep track of his statistics, Blyleven is aware that he’s gaining on the leaders.

“I watched Gaylord Perry pitching his 5,000th inning and I got goose bumps,” Blyleven said. “To see someone achieve a milestone like that is quite an honor. Not only to see it but to have a chance to get one yourself, you’ve got to go for it.”

He’s going for several milestones and has a good chance to reach a few if the season isn’t drastically curtailed and he remains unhurt.

“Three-hundred wins is my long-term goal,” said Blyleven, who won 17 games last season and was the American League’s comeback player of the year. “My first goal is to bring a pennant to Anaheim. Sure, I’d like to pitch 5,000 innings, get 4,000 strikeouts and 300 wins for my career. But the team concept comes first.”

Blyleven and Ryan are the only pitchers in history who have struck out at least 200 batters in eight seasons in the American League. Blyleven is proud of that, but humble enough to know he’s not in Ryan’s league as a strikeout pitcher.

“That’s putting me in some classy company, with Nolan Ryan,” Blyleven said. “But he’s got a lot more 300-strikeout seasons than me (six, to none for Blyleven).”

Even so, Blyleven has three more shutouts, 60, and ranks eighth, two spots ahead of Ryan. Neither has a realistic shot at the record of 110, set by Walter Johnson.

Blyleven most wanted to know where he stands in games started and complete games, explaining that he sees those as the best measures of a pitcher’s worth.

“Starting that many games shows I’ve been healthy and consistent, and somebody’s had enough faith in me to keep sending me out there,” said Blyleven, who has started 638 games to rank 12th in that category. With 239 complete games, he ranks 94th. Ryan, at 213, isn’t even in the top 100.

“I feel I can play another three or four years and hopefully I’ll get higher in all these areas,” Blyleven said. “I’ve been able to stay healthy and I haven’t missed too many starts. . . . You can’t worry about losing time to the lockout. It may be in the back of your mind, but whenever the season does start, you’ve got to make sure you’re physically and mentally ready for it and not worrying about anything else.”

George Brett lost time in the 1981 strike, games and days he values all the more as he nears 37 and measures his accomplishments against those who have played before him.

“Hits is probably the most important to me right now,” said the Kansas City Royals’ third baseman, whose 2,528 rank 60th. “I’d like to get 3,000 and only a handful of players have gotten 3,000. I can get it if I’m healthy and if there’s baseball. . . . I want to play baseball, but I want to play it under the right terms. At the end of my career I might feel cheated over losing games (to the strike and lockout), but I also had four knee operations and I missed I don’t know how many games because of a broken foot. You can’t blame anybody for missing those games.”

Baseball has become “so stat-minded,” Brett said. Though he isn’t always aware of his standing in different categories, the more he heard about his march up the charts in extra-base hits, doubles, total bases and runs batted in, the more intrigued he became.

“Where am I in doubles? Ahead of Babe Ruth? Wow,” said Brett, who hit 26 doubles last season for a total of 514, eight more than Ruth. “Who’s next?”

The names Joe Cronin, who hit 515, and Ed Delahanty, 522, didn’t excite him. But discovering that he’s within easy range of Willie Mays, who had 523 doubles, gave Brett a kick.

“Willie Mays? That’s who I want to pass,” Brett said. “I need nine, huh? I’d better go out and do some sprints.”

He’d have to do some long-distance running to get near Tris Speaker’s major league record of 793.

“I don’t think I’m going to get that one,” Brett said, laughing.

The season is no laughing matter to Buckner, who signed a triple-A contract with the Boston Red Sox after he was released by the Royals. The former Dodger and Angel is moving up the charts in at-bats, hits, games played and doubles, but he’s more concerned with winning a job than chasing records. “I know where I stand in some things, but right now there’s so much competition to just make the ballclub that I can’t even think about personal achievements,” Buckner said. “Ideally, if I could write the script, I’d get two doubles so I’d have 500. I’d really like to get those. But first I’ve got to make the team.”

Buckner, who was 40 in December, batted once for the Dodgers in 1969. Twenty years and 9,353 at-bats later, he ranks 28th in times at bat, 28th in games at 2,495, 40th in hits with 2,707 and tied for 28th in doubles. One major league at-bat in 1990 will give him plate appearances in four decades, a feat accomplished rarely in modern times. The most notable recent four-decade players are first baseman Willie McCovey, catcher Tim McCarver and pitcher Jim Kaat.

“When I look back, I put in a lot of time and had some success,” Buckner said. “It’s something you’re proud of, but you’re not fully proud until you’re finished and they tell you to go home.”

Then there are the dubious records, the marks those who hold them would just as soon ignore. Blyleven has allowed 398 home runs, more than all but seven other pitchers in major league history, but he isn’t embarrassed by that because he regards that as a byproduct of his longevity. Only Robin Roberts, with 505; Ferguson Jenkins, 484; Phil Niekro, 482; Sutton, 472; Warren Spahn, 434; Steve Carlton, 414, and Gaylord Perry, 399, allowed more home runs, yet all but Roberts and Jenkins also won at least 300 games.

“You mean seven other fools are ahead of me?” Blyleven asked. “So I’m at 398. Hmm. I just need one heck of a good Minnesota season to catch Roberts. . . . But you look at the guys who have given up more home runs than me and they’re all in the Hall of Fame, or have a chance to be. I just guess all the home runs Roberts gave up were solo shots.”

THE BIG CHASE

PLAYERS IN PURSUIT OF MILESTONES

PLAYER RECORD PLAYER MILESTONE RECORD RANK HOLDER Nolan Ryan, Wins 289 20 Cy Young Texas Losses 263 6 Cy Young Decades played 3 2 Minnie Minoso Games started 676 8 Cy Young Shutouts 57 10 Walter Johnson Innings pitched 4,786 13 Cy Young Strikeouts 5,076 1 Walks 2,540 1 200-K AL seasons 8 1 Bert Blyleven, Wins 271 27 Cy Young Angels Shutouts 60 8 Cy Young Walks 1,268 28 Nolan Ryan Innings pitched 4,702 17 Cy Young HRs allowed 398 8 Robin Roberts Strikeouts 3,562 5 Nolan Ryan 200-K AL seasons 8 1 Dennis Eckersley, HRs allowed 289 27 Robin Roberts Oakland Saves 97 51 Rollie Fingers Doyle Alexander, Det. HRs allowed 324 17 Robin Roberts Dan Quisenberry, Games 669 46 Hoyt Wilhelm S.F. Saves 244 5 Jeff Reardon, Saves 266 4 Rollie Fingers Boston Con. 30-S seasons 5 1 Lee Smith, Bost. Saves 234 7 Rollie Fingers Dave Righetti, NYY Saves 188 11 Rollie Fingers Dave Smith, Houston Saves 176 16 Rollie Fingers Steve Bedrosian, SF Saves 161 18 Rollie Fingers Wade Boggs, Bost. Con. 200-H seasons 7 2 Willie Keeler Bill Buckner, Decades played 3 2 Minnie Minoso Boston Games played 2,495 28 Pete Rose At-bats 9,354 28 Pete Rose Hits 2,707 40 Pete Rose Doubles 498 28 Tris Speaker Darrell Evans, Games played 2,687 18 Pete Rose Atlanta Home Runs 414 21 Hank Aaron Extra-base hits 859 37 Hank Aaron RBIs 1,354 48 Hank Aaron At-bats 8,973 44 Pete Rose Total bases 3,866 57 Hank Aaron Runs 1,344 66 Ty Cobb Dwight Evans, Home runs 366 34 Hank Aaron Boston Runs 1,369 62 Ty Cobb Doubles 456 48 Tris Speaker RBIs 1,283 65 Hank Aaron Total bases 3,954 50 Hank Aaron Robin Yount, Hits 2,602 52 Pete Rose Milwaukee Extra-base hits 800 54 Hank Aaron Doubles 481 40 Tris Speaker Total bases 3,929 55 Hank Aaron George Brett, Hits 2,528 60 Pete Rose Kansas City Extra-base hits 901 31 Hank Aaron Total bases 4,083 42 Hank Aaron Doubles 514 23 Tris Speaker RBIs 1,311 57 Hank Aaron Dave Parker, RBIs 1,342 49 Hank Aaron Milwaukee Total bases 3,947 52 Hank Aaron Doubles 470 43 Tris Speaker Dale Murphy, Atl. Home runs 354 38 Hank Aaron Eddie Murray, L.A. Home runs 353 40 Hank Aaron Carlton Fisk, WSox Home runs 336 45 Hank Aaron Games caught 1,928 2 Bob Boone Gary Carter, S.F. Games caught 1,823 5 Bob Boone Frank White, K.C. Games at second 2,071 7 Eddie Collins R. Henderson, Oak. Stolen bases 871 4 Lou Brock Willie Wilson, K.C. Stolen bases 598 13 Lou Brock Tim Raines, Mont. Stolen bases 585 16 Lou Brock

PLAYER RECORD Nolan Ryan, 511 Texas 315 5 815 110 7,357 Bert Blyleven, 511 Angels 315 2,540 7,357 505 5,076 Dennis Eckersley, 505 Oakland 341 Doyle Alexander, Det. 505 Dan Quisenberry, 1,070 S.F. Jeff Reardon, 341 Boston Lee Smith, Bost. 341 Dave Righetti, NYY 341 Dave Smith, Houston 341 Steve Bedrosian, SF 341 Wade Boggs, Bost. 8 Bill Buckner, 5 Boston 3,562 14,053 4,256 793 Darrell Evans, 3,562 Atlanta 755 1,477 2,297 14,053 6,856 2,245 Dwight Evans, 755 Boston 2,245 793 2,297 6,856 Robin Yount, 4,256 Milwaukee 1,477 793 6,856 George Brett, 4,256 Kansas City 1,477 6,856 793 2,297 Dave Parker, 2,297 Milwaukee 6,856 793 Dale Murphy, Atl. 755 Eddie Murray, L.A. 755 Carlton Fisk, WSox 755 2,185 Gary Carter, S.F. 2,185 Frank White, K.C. 2,650 R. Henderson, Oak. 938 Willie Wilson, K.C. 938 Tim Raines, Mont. 938