DODGERS : Cook Serves Up a Victory Over Expos, 8-4

What the Dodgers need in a left-handed relief pitcher is a guy who thinks that fooling hitters in a close game is no more stressful than fishing.

That is why they are slowly falling for Dennis Cook, who on Tuesday did both.

Taking over in the fifth inning with the Dodgers trailing Montreal, 4-3, Cook retired all six hitters he faced, including three left-handers. Meanwhile the Dodgers were scoring two runs on a home run by Kal Daniels and eventually won, 8-4.

But Cook, the winning pitcher, didn’t stick around to see the finish. He left the clubhouse early, strapped on his chest waders, and jumped into a nearby canal in search of trout.

“I’ve always fished, don’t see why I should stop now,” said Cook, who grew up south of Houston in the small Texas town of Dickinson, population 9,497. “I had to buy the chest waders at the Wal-Mart, but I brought me a pole from home. Might as well use it.”

The only thing harsher than Cook’s twang is his fastball, which he has used to give up one run and five hits in six innings. No Dodger has pitched better, causing many to believe that Cook is leading the three-man race among left-handed relievers.

Not that Cook takes anything for granted. After all, when he was recalled to the major leagues for the first time with San Francisco in 1988, he had already taken a winter job at a diner.

“Didn’t think I was coming up,” he said. “I had to work somewhere.”

This is a guy who, at 28, still lives with his parents and worked on air conditioners this winter with the guy down the street because he wasn’t sure if he would need the money.

“I learned nothing is for sure in this world, and that’s for damn sure,” Cook said.

Cook, who was traded to the Dodgers by Philadelphia for catching prospect Darrin Fletcher on Sept. 13, was 1-1 with a 7.53 earned-run average in three starts and two relief appearances at the end of the season. The Dodgers prefer to look at his 8-3 record with a 3.56 ERA for Philadelphia.

Chris Gwynn also hit a homer Tuesday as the Dodgers improved to 2-3. John Candelaria, another left-handed relief candidate, pitched two scoreless innings, and Jay Howell threw a scoreless inning.

Darryl Strawberry was found to have a pulled right hamstring that will take about three weeks to heal completely, he said.

“I guess I’ll be taking it real slow for a while,” said Strawberry, who felt his leg tighten in the cold weather Sunday, then felt the hamstring pull Monday against Montreal in West Palm Beach.

Said team physician Frank Jobe: “Sometimes these things can take a long time to heal, but we think Darryl can be playing in a couple of days.”

Two other injured Dodgers apparently have healed. Tim Crews, who had a hyperextended elbow, threw 10 minutes of batting practice without pain. And Mike Hartley, who was suffering from a side injury that sidelined him at the end of last season, is scheduled to pitch today against the New York Yankees in Ft. Lauderdale.

Manager Tom Lasorda added another bizarre anecdote to his legend Monday night, pitching a Dodger minor league team to a 7-3 victory over another group of minor leaguers and their pitcher, double-A coach Burt Hooton.

Lasorda struck out four in 7 2/3 innings despite injuring his left hamstring in the fifth inning. Lasorda refused to leave the field.

“I told them they would have to carry me out,” he said.

The game was finally ended after eight innings when owner Peter O’Malley, worried aboutLasorda’s leg, ordered the Holman Stadium lights turned off.

Despite Orel Hershiser’s desire to pitch in his first exhibition game Friday, the Dodgers say it won’t hurt his chances to start the season with the team if he pitches one more simulated game first. A decision will probably come today.

Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent visited Dodgertown as part of his spring training tour. He looked trim, having lost 25 pounds because of illness that forced the removal of his spleen.