Alomar Fits In Well in Cleveland : Baseball: Former Padre catcher becoming team leader on Indians.

Sandy Alomar Jr. is smiling a lot these days. Considering what he accomplished last year, you can hardly blame him.

The Cleveland Indians’ 24-year-old catcher is coming off a season of distinction: He became the first rookie catcher to start an All-Star Game; he unanimously won Rookie of the Year honors; and he earned a Gold Glove Award.

Life couldn’t be better for Alomar. He recently purchased a home in the Cleveland suburb of Westlake, and, by the sound of things, he plans to stay a while.

“I like the atmosphere here,” he said. “(The organization) treats me great.”

But if you want to quickly wipe the smile off Alomar’s face, just ask him about his old team, the Padres.

“Man, I’m so sick of talking about the Padres,” Alomar said. “I wish people could understand that I’m happy in Cleveland. I wear number 15 for the Cleveland Indians. I don’t play for San Diego anymore.”

And he doesn’t care about how the Padres are handling Benito Santiago’s contract negotiations.

“That’s their problem,” Alomar said. “Benito’s a friend of mine, and he’s right, he is one of the best catchers in baseball. If he doesn’t get what he wants, I guess they’ll have to find another catcher, won’t they?”

Despite the touch of sarcasm, Alomar said he never has harbored any bitterness toward the Padres for trading him to Cleveland along with Chris James and Carlos Baerga for Joe Carter.

“I was happy when I heard about the trade,” Alomar said. “They had to trade somebody. If I was the GM, I wouldn’t have traded (Santiago) either.”

But he would have traded himself. Six years in the Padres’ minor-league system was enough for Alomar. It was mentioned to Alomar that Baerga, 22, also toiled in the minor leagues before getting his chance to play in Cleveland last year.

“Carlos didn’t toil,” Alomar said. “He was only in the minors four years. That’s a lot different than six. I busted my butt. I paid my dues.”

But Alomar stopped short of saying he paid too many dues. He realized a long time ago from his father, Sandy Sr., that baseball is a business first and a game second.

“You have to wait for your turn,” Alomar said. “I never whined or asked to be traded. I learned if you talk too much, you’ll be in trouble.”

Alomar’s chance might have come a year earlier had the New York Mets consummated a deal for him in summer 1989. But the Mets’ organization thought Alomar was lacking offensively.

“They penalized me for my first three years in the minor leagues,” said Alomar, who hit .215, .207 and .240 during those years. “That’s fine. I don’t really care what they say. For the last four years, I’ve hit .300 and that speaks for itself.

Alomar might have waited six years for a chance to play in the big leagues, but the Indians have waited much longer for a catcher with such offensive and defensive skills. Cleveland has not had an All-Star catcher since the days of Ray Fosse, who made the team in 1970 and 1971.

But Fosse’s career with Cleveland was far from brilliant. After his infamous collision with Pete Rose in the 1971 All-Star game, he was never the same. By 1973, Cleveland had traded Fosse to Oakland.

So you can imagine the expectations heaped upon Alomar, a two-time minor league player of the year, by the Cleveland media and fans, who have been without a contending team for 31 years.

“Sandy came in here with all the publicity and hype,” said Herb Score, who pitched for the Indians in the 1950s and has broadcasted the team’s games on radio for 27 years. “This was a team without a bona fide star. There was a lot of attention paid to him. But he exceeded expectations. As the year went on, he just got better and better.”

Alomar hit .290 with nine homers and 66 RBIs and his .376 batting average against left-handers was the best in the American League. He also threw out 34% of baserunners attempting to steal.

“I was surprised how I adjusted that quickly to the new league,” he said. “All of the awards I got really surprised me. It was great. I wasn’t expecting any of it.”

Score said he was impressed with how well Alomar handled the attention that came with his success.

“I never heard him say ‘no’ to anybody,” Score said. “And he had a lot of people asking for his time. He’s just the nicest kid you’d ever want to meet.”

In addition to dealing with media and fan pressures, Alomar also had to adapt to a new league and learn how to catch a new pitching staff.

“Our pitching staff is not the easiest to catch, especially me,” said Tom Candiotti, who throws a knuckleball. “He did a great job with me. His movement is so good. I don’t know where the ball is going half the time, so I know he doesn’t.”

As Alomar began to learn the staff, Candiotti said he began to take more control.

“As the second half went on, he really began to take the staff under his wings,” Candiotti said. “He really turned into a leader. A lot of players looked up to him. He doesn’t say a whole lot, but he sets a great example with his hard work.”

Alomar seemed almost embarrassed that anyone would suggest he is a leader.

“I don’t like to brag about myself,” he said. “That stuff’s for other people to talk about. All I know is that I put the team first, and I do everything I can to help this team win. I hate to lose.”

Candiotti said that kind of intensity was desperately needed in the Cleveland clubhouse. But Candiotti said Alomar can also bring an air of looseness into the clubhouse.

“It’s really refreshing to have him out there,” said Candiotti, who is in his sixth year with the Indians. “He’s like a kid having a good time. I’ve told him, ‘Just get serious once. We’re having a game out here.’

“I’ll be out there throwing him a knuckler that he knows he shouldn’t have caught, and all you’ll see is these white teeth back there. You can see them all the way from center field.”

But the smiles and good times will end quickly if Alomar doesn’t produce again this year.

“I think even more will be expected of him this year,” Candiotti said. “He’ll be asked to take on more of a leadership role and they’ll probably want him to hit for more power.”

Alomar is ready for the challenge.

“Every year I have to prove myself,” Alomar said. “Nobody believes what happened last year. That’s past. You have to be able to deliver every year.”