BASEBALL : Riding a Giant Elevator

Hot is hot, but the San Francisco Giants confronted a stark truth Wednesday: It is difficult to win on only three hits in 11 innings. They gave it a try but lost to the San Diego Padres, 4-3.

Suddenly, the Giants have lost two consecutive games after winning nine in a row and 16 of 17. Momentum works both ways. It’s the nature of the game.

Suddenly, the Giants’ resilience will be tested again. It seems to be the nature of their season. Charles Dickens would love it.

“One thing these guys will be able to say about 1990 is that we saw the worst of it and we saw the best of it,” Manager Roger Craig said.

“I still say that to come back the way we have is unbelievable. I don’t think I’ve ever been with a club that’s done it to the same extent.”

The National League’s defending champions are still 8 1/2 games behind the Cincinnati Reds in the West, but as catcher Terry Kennedy noted, “If we hadn’t come back the way we did, we’d be 17 out and the summer would be over.”

What the Giants have come back from with their 16-3 June--the 1965 team set the club record for victories in a month with 21 in September--is a series of injuries and a stumbling start that undoubtedly sent tremors through the nervous faithful.

The Giants were 17-29 on May 28 and 14 1/2 games behind the Reds, which is why, with 95 games remaining and that deficit cut almost in half, they can now say that progress is their most important commodity.

And it is also why they believe they can continue to compete, to close in, despite continuing uncertainty regarding the stability of their pitching.

The Giants have already employed 21 pitchers, including 11 starters. They have used the disabled list 12 times and currently have five pitchers on it, including three of the spring’s original starters--Rick Reuschel, Kelly Downs and Mike LaCoss--and spot starter Atlee Hammaker.

There is no certainty about when, or if, any will return. Nor is it certain that Don Robinson, 2-0 in five starts since leaving the disabled list May 22, will continue to be available. Robinson, Craig said, is “a walking time bomb” because of an arthritic knee.

How did the Giants produce a June boom at a time when they seemed headed for a continuing swoon?

Craig cited an elixir of new blood as represented by John Burkett, 25, and Trevor Wilson, 24, who have helped hold the rotation together with a combined record of 10-1, and right fielder Rick Parker, 27, who is hitting .333 since Kevin Bass went on the 60-day disabled list because of knee surgery.

“The kids came in and picked everybody up,” Craig said, “but I also think that our veterans never lost faith. We won in ’87 and ‘89, and they knew in the back of their minds that we could play better, even with all of the injuries.

“It also helps to have as good a defense as there is in the league. We make double plays out of balls other teams don’t even catch. Our defense makes the pitching that much better.”

Then, too, there’s the modern Murderers Row of Will Clark, Kevin Mitchell and Matt Williams, who are on a pace to drive in 100 or more runs apiece.

The Giants entered Wednesday’s game leading the league in both hits and runs while averaging 7.1 runs a game in June with a .326 team batting average.

“With those three guys in the middle of the lineup, you’ve got to decide who you’re going to pitch to, who’s going to beat you,” Giant batting coach Dusty Baker said. “Once that doubt creeps into the pitcher’s and manager’s minds, they’re dead.

“It’s great. It’s like it was in Los Angeles when we had Garv (Steve Garvey), Reggie (Smith), Ron Cey and myself in the middle of the lineup.”

Only death and taxes are automatic. Clark and Mitchell were up with runners in scoring position in the late innings of a tie game Wednesday and failed. Williams’ 16-game hitting streak ended as the Giants wasted effective pitching by Burkett and Jeff Brantley.

Jack McKeon, the San Diego manager, said later that he thinks the Padres, Giants and Dodgers are all still alive, that neither the Giants nor anyone else is likely to rip off another 16 of 17, that what he is still looking for is the consistency his team showed in winning 29 of their last 39 in 1989.

The rhetoric was stronger in other parts of the clubhouse. There is bad blood between the Padres and Giants, stemming from the broken arm suffered by San Diego catcher Benito Santiago when hit by a Brantley pitch last Thursday.

The Giants, who have hit only four other batters all season, have hit five Padres in the last 30 innings, and Roberto Alomar attempted to discuss the matter with Burkett after being grazed on the hand by a pitch in the seventh inning Wednesday. Benches emptied, but it was a typical waltz, and there was no retaliation on the part of San Diego pitchers.

“This wasn’t the time, but that time will come,” Padre outfielder Joe Carter said.

Craig said: “I didn’t think Alomar even got hit. If we’re going to throw at guys, we’ll do a better job of it than that.”

The bemused Giants seemed to think that with all their talk--before, during and after the series--the Padres were looking for something to rally around and, Brett Butler said, “showing more frustration than validity.”

What seems valid is that the Giants, despite these last two losses, are back in a race they won last year and appeared out of two weeks ago. They have 15 games left with the Reds and are 3-0 against them.

“We can’t worry about Cincinnati,” Craig said. “We’ve got to play our game the way we have been. We’re not going to win every game, we’re not going to win nine out of every 10, but if we win two out of every three, we’ll have a shot.

“We need our young pitchers to hold up and we need one more solid starter. I’m looking for a miracle. I’m looking for just one of our injured pitchers to come back.

“I’m praying for it. I’m begging for it.”