BASEBALL PREVIEW : DODGER PROFILES

L.A. Times Archives

April 7, 1991 12 AM PT

PLAYER Tim Belcher

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-3 Wt: 223

Birthday: 10/19/61

ML Service: 3.032

1990: Team was 11-5 when he pitched six innings or more; he was 9-9. Right shoulder problems in August led to disabled list before arthroscopic surgery Sept. 11 to remove torn cartilage. He’s back and has been named opening day starter.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 9-9 4.00 24 5 0 153.0 136 68 48 102

BEST YEAR 1988

With Dodgers, 12-6 record earned Baseball America NL rookie of year. Closed regular season winning nine of 11 decisions.

PLAYER Brett Butler

CENTER FIELD

Bats: L Throws: L Ht: 5-10 Wt: 160

Birthday: 6/15/57

ML Service: 9.009

1990: Dodgers’ new leadoff man (signed as a free agent Dec. 15) batted .309 for the San Francisco Giants. Tied with Len Dykstra for NL lead in hits (career-high 192) and among leaders in many categories. Third toughest NL batter to double up, once in 207.3 at-bats.

With the San Francisco Giants:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .309 160 622 108 192 20 9 3 44 51

BEST YEAR 1985

With Cleveland, batted .311 and led AL outfielders with a .998 fielding percentage, making one error in 458 chances.

PLAYER John Candelaria

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: L Ht: 6-6 Wt: 225

Birthday: 11/6/53

ML Service: 15.117

1990: Appeared in 47 games, 44 in relief, for Minnesota and Toronto. He was 7-3 with four saves for the Twins, then joined the Blue Jays for the stretch drive. Struggled late, going 0-3 with just one save. Record stands at 174-113 for career.

With the Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 7-6 3.95 47 0 5 79.2 87 35 20 63

BEST YEAR 1977

With the Pittsburgh Pirates, was 20-5 and led the league in winning percentage (.800) and earned-run average (2.34).

PLAYER Gary Carter

CATCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-2 Wt: 214

Birthday: 4/8/54

ML Service: 16.017

1990: Played in 92 games for San Francisco, batting .254 with nine home runs and 27 RBIs. Caught in his 1,862nd game June 19, breaking Al Lopez’s National League record. 11-time All-Star ended season 31 hits short of 2,000.

With the San Francisco Giants:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .254 92 244 24 62 10 0 9 27 1

BEST YEAR 1984

With Montreal, tied Philadelphia’s Mike Schmidt for the NL lead in RBIs with 106 and was third in home runs with 27. All-Star MVP.

PLAYER Dennis Cook

PITCHER

Bats: L Throws: L Ht: 6-3 Wt: 185

Birthday: 10/4/62

ML Service: 1.143

1990: 1-1, 7.53 ERA in five games with Dodgers after acquired in trade that sent catcher Darrin Fletcher to Phillies Sept. 13. Won first five decisions with Phillies. Will start the season in triple-A Albuquerque but will be first left-hander back if another falters.

With the Philadelphia Phillies and Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 9-4 3.92 47 2 1 156.0 155 68 56 64

BEST YEAR 1989

Split time among triple-A Phoenix (7-4, 3.12), San Francisco (1-0, 1.80) and Phillies (6-8, 3.99). Three-hit Expos in last start.

PLAYER Tim Crews

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-0 Wt: 195

Birthday: 4/3/61

ML Service: 3.041

1990: Led Dodger staff with 66 appearances. In June had a 1.80 ERA in 12 games. Had season-high 14 consecutive scoreless innings Aug. 25-Sept. 10 and retired a career-high 22 consecutive batters from Aug. 26 to Sept. 3.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 4-5 2.77 66 0 5 107.1 98 33 24 76

BEST YEAR 1988

With Dodgers, 4-0 in 42 games, 3.14 ERA. Was 3-0 in first half, 2.84 ERA. On road, allowed three earned runs in 27 2/3 innings (0.98 ERA).

PLAYER Kal Daniels

LEFT FIELD

Bats: L Throws: R Ht: 5-11 Wt: 205

Birthday: 8/20/63

ML Service: 4.135

1990: Batted .296 in first full Dodger season, with career highs in RBIs (94) and homers (club-leading 27). Led NL with three grand slams. His .531 slugging percentage was highest by Dodger since Pedro Guerrero’s .539 in 1987. Hit .451 swinging at first pitch.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .296 130 450 81 133 23 1 27 94 4

BEST YEAR 1987

With Cincinnati, hit .334 with 26 homers and 26 stolen bases. Had arthroscopic surgery on left knee in July, still hit .364 for rest of season.

PLAYER Jose Gonzalez

OUTFIELD

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-2 Wt: 200

Birthday: 11/23/64

ML Service: 2.155

1990: Played career-high 106 games in first full season with Dodgers. Batted .232, .300 (15 for 50) in 16 starts. Had no errors in 63 chances. One of three Dodgers (with Lenny Harris and Kirk Gibson) to steal home. Was four for 16 with runners in scoring position.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .232 106 99 15 23 5 3 2 8 3

BEST YEAR 1985

With double-A San Antonio, hit .306 with 13 homer, 62 RBIs, 34 stolen bases in 128 games. Texas League All-Star.

PLAYER Jim Gott

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-4 Wt: 220

Birthday: 8/3/59

ML Service: 9.000

1990: Made 50 appearances after starting on 15-day disabled list while rehabilitating from right elbow surgery the previous year. Had 0.73 ERA in 11 games in July. Also had a scoreless streak of 19 2/3 innings in mid-August.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 3-5 2.90 50 0 3 62.0 59 20 35 44

BEST YEAR 1988

With Pittsburgh, finished second in NL in saves with 34, plus 6-6 record, 3.49 ERA. Stranded 27 of 35 runners that he inherited.

PLAYER Alfredo Griffin

SHORTSTOP

Bats: S Throws: R Ht: 5-11 Wt: 166

Birthday: 3/6/57

ML Service: 12.081

1990: Batted .210 in 141 games with one home run and 35 RBIs after hitting .313 in first 37 games (he hit safely in 29 of them). Collected 1,500th career hit June 3 against Cincinnati. Hit into a double play just once every 92.2 at-bats, seventh-best in NL.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .210 141 461 38 97 11 3 1 35 6

BEST YEAR 1986

With Oakland, led A’s with a .285 average and had career highs in hits (169) and stolen bases (33) while playing all 162 games.

PLAYER Kevin Gross

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-5 Wt: 215

Birthday: 6/8/61

ML Service: 7.100

1990: Started 26 of 31 appearances with Montreal. Won four consecutive starts from April 29 to May 9, tying a career high set in 1987 and first tied in 1988. Stopped Lenny Dykstra’s ML-leading hitting streak at 23 games on June 11 in a 5-0 victory over Phillies.

With the Montreal Expos:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 9-12 4.57 31 2 0 163.1 171 83 65 111

BEST YEAR 1985

With Philadelphia, won 15 games and had a 3.41 ERA. Allowed two earned runs or fewer in 20 of his 31 starts and had six complete games.

PLAYER Chris Gwynn

OUTFIELD

Bats: L Throws: L Ht: 6-0 Wt: 210

Birthday: 10/13/64

ML Service: 2.047

1990: In his first full season with Dodgers, brother of San Diego All-Star Tony Gwynn had career highs in average (.284), at-bats (141), hits (40), home runs (five) and RBIs (22). Played all three outfield positions. Batted .358 as starter in 18 games.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .284 101 141 19 40 2 1 5 22 0

BEST YEAR 1990

Was club’s best left-handed pinch-hitter and did not make error in 40 chances. His 13 pinch hits third best in major leagues.

PLAYER Jeff Hamilton

THIRD BASE

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-3 Wt: 207

Birthday: 3/19/64

ML Service: 4.034

1990: Opened the season at third but was limited to seven games--going 3 for 24 (.125)--because of a right shoulder injury. After pinch-hitting April 15 at Houston, he was placed on disabled list, then had surgery May 4 and was lost for the season.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .125 7 24 1 3 0 0 0 1 0

BEST YEAR 1989

With Dodgers, batted career-high .245 with 134 hits, 35 doubles, 12 homers and 56 RBIs. Led NL third basemen with 139 putouts.

PLAYER Lenny Harris

INFIELD

Bats: L Throws: R Ht: 5-10 Wt: 205

Birthday: 10/28/64

ML Service: 2.031

1990: In second full season in majors (with Dodgers), batted .304 with 131 hits. Had .359 on-base percentage leading off. Played third, second and shortstop and center and right fields. Hit safely in 17 of his final 25 games, with a .370 average during that span.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .304 137 431 61 131 16 4 2 29 15

BEST YEAR 1990

With Dodgers, had 40 multi-hit games, 16 three-hit games. Hit .344 with runner on third, .301 with runners in scoring position.

PLAYER Mike Hartley

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-1 Wt: 197

Birthday: 8/31/61

ML Service: 1.022

1990: Six starts in 32 appearances with the Dodgers. Struck out a career-high six batters twice. Optioned May 25 to triple-A Albuquerque, recalled June 1 and remained in majors for rest of the season. Had combined 5-0 record and 1.26 ERA in July/August.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB SO 6-6 2.95 32 1 1 79.1 58 26 30 76

BEST YEAR 1989

With Albuquerque, went 7-4 with 18 saves and a 2.79 ERA. Struck out 76 and allowed 24 earned runs in 77 1/3 innings.

PLAYER Orel Hershiser

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-3 Wt: 192

Birthday: 9/16/58

ML Service: 7.032

1990: Was Dodgers’ opening-day pitcher, but major surgery on April 27 to his right (throwing) shoulder meant his season was finished after just four starts. Will begin this season on disabled list as comeback attempt from unprecedented repair work continues.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB SO 1-1 4.26 4 0 0 25.1 26 12 4 16

BEST YEAR 1988

With Dodgers, threw 59 consecutive scoreless innings to set major league record. Was 23-8 for World Series winner. Won Cy Young.

PLAYER Jay Howell

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-3 Wt: 220

Birthday: 11/26/55

ML Service: 8.145

1990: Underwent knee surgery April 24 and returned in mid-May but still posted team-high 16 saves. Had a season-high streak of 13 consecutive scoreless innings from Aug. 17 to Sept. 17. Did not allow a run in 32 of his 45 appearances.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 5-5 2.18 45 0 16 66.0 59 16 20 59

BEST YEAR 1989

With Dodgers, had a 1.58 ERA with club-record 28 saves in 56 appearances. Named NL All-Star after 15 saves in 17 opportunities.

PLAYER Stan Javier

OUTFIELD

Bats: S Throws: R Ht: 6-0 Wt: 185

Birthday: 1/9/64

ML Service: 4.116

1990: After being acquired by Dodgers in trade (for infielder Willie Randolph) with Oakland on May 13, batted .304 in 104 games with 24 RBIs. Hit .242 in 19 games with A’s. Had career bests in runs (60), triples (6), walks (40) and total bases (122).

With the Oakland A’s and Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2 3B HR RBI SB .297 123 310 60 92 9 6 3 27 15

BEST YEAR 1990

Had career-high 13-game hitting streak June 6-24. Reached All-Star break with .331 average. Hit .359 for September/October.

PLAYER Barry Lyons

CATCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-1 Wt: 200

Birthday: 6/3/60

ML Service: 3.156

1990: Played just 3 games for Dodgers. Began season with Mets, hitting .238 in 24 games--.313 in 9 games in May--before going on disabled list with lower back problems. Later sent to triple-A Tidewater, then released.

With the New York Mets and Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .235 27 85 9 20 0 0 3 9 0

BEST YEAR 1989

With Mets, hit .247 in 79 games and 235 at-bats, by far his most work in the majors. Had 13 doubles, 27 RBIs and 3 homers.

PLAYER Ramon Martinez

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-4 Wt: 173

Birthday: 3/22/68

ML Service: 1.133

1990: With 20-6 record, 2.92 ERA, finished second in Cy Young balloting behind Pittsburgh’s Doug Drabek. Led NL in complete games and finished second in victories, shutouts (three) and strikeouts (223). Allowed 22 home runs, fourth highest in league.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 20-6 2.92 33 12 0 234.1 191 76 67 223

BEST YEAR 1990

Tied Sandy Koufax’s Dodger club record by striking out 18 Atlanta batters in a 3-hit, 6-0 victory June 4. Also went 2 for 3 at plate.

PLAYER Mike Morgan

PITCHER

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-2 Wt: 222

Birthday: 10/8/59

ML Service: 8.111

1990: Pitched 6 complete games in 33 starts and tied San Diego’s Bruce Hurst for NL lead in shutouts with four. Won first three starts. Reached the seventh inning in 20 of his starts. His 2.65 ground ball/fly ball ratio was best in league.

With the Dodgers:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 11-15 3.75 33 6 0 211.0 216 88 60 106

BEST YEAR 1990

Victories included 2-hitter against Cincinnati on July 30 and 3-hitter over St. Louis April 24. Right-handers hit just .236 against him.

PLAYER Eddie Murray

FIRST BASE

Bats: S Throws: R Ht: 6-2 Wt: 222

Birthday: 2/24/56

ML Service: 14.000

1990: Batted career best .330--fourth highest in club history and second in NL to Willie McGee--with 26 homers, 95 RBIs and 58 multi-hit games (first in NL). Hit .411 in September/October. Missed first game in 390 after hamstring injury sustained May 12.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .330 155 558 96 184 22 3 26 95 8

BEST YEAR 1983

With Baltimore, helped Orioles to title by hitting 33 homers with 111 RBIs. Second (to Cal Ripken) in AL MVP vote.

PLAYER Jose Offerman

SHORTSTOP

Bats: S Throws: R Ht: 6-0 Wt: 160

Birthday: 11/8/68

ML Service: 0.047

1990: After recall from triple-A Albuquerque on Aug. 18, hit home run off Expo Dennis Martinez in first major league at-bat, becoming first L.A. Dodger to homer in his first plate appearance. After struggling this spring, will begin season in minors, but he’ll be back.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .155 29 58 7 9 0 0 1 7 1

BEST YEAR 1990

With Albuquerque, hit .326 and scored 104 runs in 117 games, with 148 hits (16 doubles, 11 triples), 56 RBIs and 60 steals.

PLAYER Bob Ojeda

PITCHER

Bats: L Throws: L Ht: 6-1 Wt: 195

Birthday: 12/17/57

ML Service: 9.088

1990: His 38 appearances in his fifth season with the New York Mets (many in a new relief role, with 12 starts) were the most since his career-high 39 with the Boston Red Sox in 1985. As a starter, was 4-5 with 4.76 ERA. From bullpen: 3-1, 2.16 ERA.

With the New York Mets:

W-L ERA G CG SV INN H ER BB S0 7-6 3.66 38 0 0 118.0 123 48 40 62

BEST YEAR 1986

With the Mets, went 18-5 with 2.57 ERA and finished fourth in Cy Young voting. Also was 1-0 in Mets’ winning World Series effort.

PLAYER Juan Samuel

SECOND BASE

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 5-11 Wt: 170

Birthday: 12/9/60

ML Service: 8.041

1990: After starting season leading off in 36 of 39 games and hitting just .184, spent most of the rest of 1990--his first season with the Dodgers--hitting seventh and finished with a .242 average and 13 home runs. Began in center field, switched to second May 15.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .242 143 492 62 119 24 3 13 52 38

BEST YEAR 1987

With Philadelphia, hit .272 with 28 home runs and 100 RBIs. HR mark most by second baseman since Angels’ Bobby Grich (30, 1979).

PLAYER Mike Scioscia

CATCHER

Bats: L Throws: R Ht: 6-2 Wt: 220

Birthday: 11/27/58

ML Service: 10.116

1990: Had career highs in home runs (12) and RBIs (66) and batted .264, his highest average since 1987 (.265). Was selected to the All-Star team. Had only 10 errors in 910 chances and a league-high (for catchers) 842 putouts.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .264 135 435 46 115 25 0 12 66 4

BEST YEAR 1985

With Dodgers (first season as team’s regular catcher), hit .296 with career highs in hits (127), runs (47) and doubles (26.)

PLAYER Mike Sharperson

INFIELD

Bats: R Throws: R Ht: 6-3 Wt: 190

Birthday: 10/4/61

ML Service: 2.074

1990: In his first full season with Dodgers, had career highs in average (.297), home runs (three) and RBIs (36). Became first Dodger to start at every infield position in one season: 75 times at third, 6 at shortstop and 5 each at second and first.

With the Dodgers:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .297 129 357 42 106 14 2 3 36 15

BEST YEAR 1990

Had 25 pinch-hit appearances and batted .368 with 3 RBI, missing qualifying as one of top NL pinch-hitters by 1 at-bat.

PLAYER Darryl Strawberry

RIGHT FIELD

Bats: L Throws: L Ht: 6-6 Wt: 200

Birthday: 3/12/62

ML Service: 7.150

1990: Became the first player in New York Mets history to record 100 or more RBIs (108) in a season 3 times. Participated in his seventh All-Star game. Got 1,000th major league hit Sept. 1. Signed Nov. 8 as a free agent by the Dodgers.

With the New York Mets:

AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB .277 152 542 92 150 18 1 37 108 15

BEST YEAR 1987

With Mets, batted a career-high .284 with 104 RBIs. Club records included home runs (39), runs scored (108) and total bases (310).