Kelly Makes Right Move With Hrbek

Pennants are won and managers are declared geniuses because of moves such as the one made on Monday by Minnesota’s Tom Kelly.

Knowing Kent Hrbek’s career batting average was a feeble .118 against Angel left-hander Chuck Finley, Kelly almost wrote in Gene Larkin’s name at first base instead of Hrbek’s for the opener of the four-game series against the Angels. After weighing reason against faith, Kelly threw out the statistics and kept Hrbek in the lineup.

“I really wasn’t going to play him,” Kelly said of Hrbek, who has been struggling much of the season. “Larkin had a super day against Finley in Anaheim (a homer and a single Aug. 6), but I just felt I should give Herbie a shot.”

Hrbek rewarded Kelly’s faith by hitting a 442-foot shot off reliever Chris Beasley into the Metrodome’s second deck, launching the Twins to an emotional 4-3 victory over the Angels.

“Herbie plated one,” Kelly said after the Twins doubled their lead over the second-place White Sox to two games. “God, that was a nice swing.”

Hrbek has had relatively few home-run swings this season. He has averaged 25 homers and 89 runs batted in per season over his nine-year career, but he entered Monday’s game with only 12 homers and 60 RBIs. Despite only sporadic contributions from Hrbek, the Twins have occupied first place for 54 of the past 59 days. Still, he felt guilty for not doing more.

“It’s about time I started doing my job,” Hrbek said. “Chili Davis, Kirby Puckett, Shane Mack--those guys have been carrying the load all season. The last couple of days I started feeling good at the plate. I’d like to carry the load for a while.

“I’ve been seeing the ball good and making contact the last few days. I’ve been trying some different things, technical things. You know me: I get on hot streaks and go for a while. I’m trying to stretch this out as long as I can.”

Hrbek was robbed of a homer in the third inning Monday when Angel center fielder Shawn Abner leaped and reached over the fence for the grab, but Hrbek made certain no one but a spectator would catch the 3-and-1 fastball he got from Beasley in the eighth inning. He and the crowd of 31,789 knew immediately it was gone; they broke into cheers and Hrbek broke out his home-run trot.

“I wasn’t going to bunt, I knew that,” Hrbek said, smiling. “I knew that one was out when I hit it. He threw me a curveball away on the 2-and-1 pitch and I was surprised to see something over the plate. It felt good coming off the bat.”

Only Minnesota starter Jack Morris felt better than Hrbek at that instant, for it put the pitcher in position to record his 14th victory in his fifth attempt.

When he was with Detroit, Morris said, “I viewed (Hrbek) as one of the guys who, with one swing of the bat, can ruin your night. He did it to me several times.”

On Monday, he made Morris’ night.

“See how much fun it can be in August?” Morris said as the clubhouse TV showed Baltimore’s Leo Gomez hitting the 11th-inning home run that beat the White Sox.

Hrbek hopes the fun is only starting for him.

“I hope I’m getting in a groove,” said Hrbek, who was four for eight with four RBIs in his past two games. “One guy can’t carry a club, but he can help out. A lot of guys have been picking up the slack here, doing the things we need to win, different guys every day.

“It’s about time I do something. I’ve pitched in here and there, but it’s about time I kept doing it.”