Ex-Teammates Rijo, Stewart Put Old Times Aside for Series Opener

Dave Stewart and Jose Rijo go way back together.

Tonight, they will also be on the mound for Game 1 of the World Series between Oakland and Cincinnati at Riverfront Stadium.

“I was playing in the Dominican Republic in 1978 when I first met Jose,” Stewart said. “He was too young to play, so he had to watch.”

Pitching in big games is nothing new for Stewart. He is 5-0 lifetime in the American League playoffs and was the World Series MVP last season when he beat San Francisco twice.

The leaves changing color in October and Stewart pitching in the World Series are quickly becoming synonymous.

“Dave Stewart was one of the best teammates I’ve had in my short career in baseball,” Rijo said. “He was one of the few guys to come to me when I struggled.”

The A’s haven’t struggled too much since Stewart arrived. They have won three straight AL pennants and are trying to become the first team to win consecutive World Series since the 1977-78 New York Yankees.

This time, they will have to do it without sure-handed shortstop Walt Weiss. Weiss, as expected, will miss the World Series with a knee injury. But they do have Stewart for three games, if necessary.

Stewart has won 20 games in each of the last four seasons, averaging 36 starts and 265 innings a season.

With Stewart, 27-game winner Bob Welch and Mike Moore, the A’s have the edge in starting pitching over Rijo, Danny Jackson and Tom Browning. But this is a series that could very well be decided by the Nasty Boys--relievers Rob Dibble, Randy Myers and Norm Charlton.

Rijo is still more of a thrower than a thinker.

The A’s, needing some left-handed power, traded him to the Reds along with pitcher Tim Birtsas before the start of the 1988 season for Dave Parker.

After years of unfulfilled promise, Rijo set career highs in victories (14), games started (29), innings pitched (197) and strikeouts (152) this season.

The pitchers may get a break because some of the power boys are hurting. Oakland’s Jose Canseco has a sore middle right finger and aching back. Cincinnati’s Eric Davis is sore all over. In the playoffs, they were a combined 6-for-34 with no home runs.

In the only bit of controversy on Monday, Davis rejected Piniella’s idea of batting leadoff and will remain in the cleanup slot. Davis was was 4-for-23 in the playoffs with no homers, two RBIs and nine strikeouts.

Willie Randolph, Rickey Henderson, Willie McGee and Dave Henderson also enter the World Series with some aches and pains for the A’s.

Canseco has not hit a home run since Sept. 16 and the A’s did not hit a homer in their four-game sweep of Boston.