He’s Thriving Beyond Wally World : Angels: Now 28 and a father of four, Joyner is no longer awe-struck by the big leagues. He’s also leading the majors in hitting.

The smooth swing is the same flawless stroke that turned the rookie into an All-Star in 1986. But this time, it has carried Wally Joyner to the top of the batting statistics, a .375 average that is the best in the major leagues.

The fans and cameras and note pads awaited when Joyner came home to Anaheim Stadium this week, still in the midst of a 16-game hitting streak during which he hit .469.

They were ready to witness the rebirth of Wally World, the exuberant phenomenon that accompanied Joyner’s first two seasons.

But Joyner knows better than anyone that Wally World, if it exists at all, is a small place most comfortable as a refuge for one man and his family.

Joyner, a perceptive player with an agreeable wit, was accommodating to those who besieged him with requests this week, but he soon had to “draw the line.”

He is 28 and a father of four now, not a rookie as awe-struck by the world of big league baseball as it was with him.

“I think I have more control over my destiny now,” Joyner said. “I know what’s going on, No. 1, and No. 2, I know what it feels like and takes to maintain this. If it takes going back into my shell, I’ll do that without any regrets.”

He is a veteran, not only of five years in the majors but of tense contract negotiations and of a promising 1990 season that ended last July with a stress fracture in his knee.

If paying attention to the attention he draws will detract from what he is doing, Joyner will not take part.

“The difference is I’m able to control what happens with me outside of baseball,” he said. “My first year, I didn’t know how to say no or when to say no. I wasn’t able to enjoy what was happening while it was happening. I’ve learned a lot about how to keep my own space and time and freedom.”

Until he flied out to left in the eighth inning of the Angels’ game against the Chicago White Sox Tuesday, Joyner had not gone hitless since May 3, stroking line drive after line drive and a half-dozen home runs.

“He’s in one of the best grooves I’ve ever seen,” Manager Doug Rader said. “I’m a little reluctant to talk about it. I just want to sit back and appreciate it.”

The 16-game hitting streak was the longest of Joyner’s career and tied the Dodgers’ Brett Butler and Milwaukee’s Greg Vaughn for the longest this season.

Over the life of the streak, Joyner was 30 for 64 with six home runs.

“You try not to think about it, or it might come to an end before it’s supposed to,” he said.

Joyner went 0 for 3 with a walk Tuesday but gathered a single in four at-bats Wednesday.

Was the end of the streak the end of something, the beginning of an inevitable decline? Or could it have been merely an interruption?

“Something I heard today was, ‘You’re hot,’ ” Joyner said. “Granted, I might be. The other side of it is, maybe I’ve found my groove for a long time.”

When he went three for four and took over the batting lead on May 13, Joyner joked that he was “king for a day.” Since then, he has realized he would like to be king for a while longer.

Sensitive to the perception that he is on a salary drive as he approaches eligibility for free agency this fall, Joyner points out the desirability of a World Series ring over a batting title.

But if May has revealed anything to him, it is the idea that a batting title could be a realistic goal.

He also saw that the streak and its accouterments might not have been conducive to continuing anything approaching his recent pace.

Joyner was disappointed when it ended, and particularly in the final at-bat, a fly ball with men on base and the Angels trailing. As the ball was caught, Joyner was on his way back to the dugout in disgust.

“I’m going to continue to go out and be aggressive,” Joyner said. “It’s difficult because of the media coverage, question after question. I think I lost my edge because of that. I’m going to go get it back.”

Always something of a streak hitter, Joyner says he is not a true home-run hitter but a streak home-run hitter. His assertion is basically that when he is in a groove, line drives and fly balls occasionally go over the fence.

That is an attitude he developed in response to the fervor that accompanied his first two seasons, when he hit 22 and 34 home runs.

Since then, he has hit 13, 16 and, in last year’s injury-shortened season, eight in 83 games.

The paces Joyner is more intent on keeping up are his average and runs batted in. As of now, he leads the Angels in batting, hits, total bases, doubles, home runs, RBIs and walks.

He has yet to hit .300 in his five major league seasons; his highest was .295 in 1988.

The overriding difference between earlier seasons and this one is that Joyner has decided what kind of hitter he is, and who he is.

“I’m a guy, I think, who goes about his business,” Joyner said. “I’m not a rah-rah guy. I’m not one to sit on the bench giving a pep talk to everybody. I’m not a very enthusiastic guy outwardly, but I enjoy good baseball. I enjoy playing good baseball, I enjoy watching good baseball.

“The way I do things is to go about my business, and when it’s done and over with, evaluate it. If you worry about leading the league in hitting or home runs, you won’t do it.

“It’s not that I’m not enjoying it. But you don’t want to start enjoying it so much that you’re satisfied. When you do, you stop being hungry, and you’re dead. I hope I never get satisfied over what I’m doing.”

Joyner’s Starts and Finishes

Through 38 Games Through End of Season Year Avg. Hits HRs RBIs Avg. Hits 1986 .311 50 15 38 .290 172 1987 .286 42 9 29 .285 161 1988 .274 40 2 14 .295 176 1989 .227 30 1 13 .282 167 1990* .287 39 4 14 .268 83 1991 .375 54 7 32

Year HRs RBIs 1986 22 100 1987 34 117 1988 13 85 1989 16 79 1990* 8 41 1991

*--Played only 83 games because of injury.