WORLD SERIES / ATLANTA BRAVES vs. MINNESOTA TWINS : BASEBALL / ROSS NEWHAN : Pressure of This Sort Is Relatively Easy for Twins’ Knoblauch

The parade of Minnesota Twin second basemen alone has kept the revolving doors of the Metrodome, well, revolving.

Among those ushered in--and out--in recent years have been:

John Castino, Steve Lombardozzi, Tim Teufel, Tommy Herr, Wally Backman, Nelson Liriano, Fred Manrique and Al Newman.

Only Newman remains, but he sits and watches as Chuck Knoblauch continues to put a stranglehold on this troublesome position, dismissing the pressure of the postseason as he did the pressure of the regular season, when he batted .281 and emerged as the leading candidate for the American League’s rookie of the year award.

Newman sat and watched Knoblauch bat .350 in the five-game playoff victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, then sat and watched again Saturday night as the 23-year-old second baseman, the No. 1 draft choice of the Twins out of Texas A&M; two years ago, set the tone in a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves in the opening game of the World Series.

Displaying the aplomb of a veteran against the guile of Atlanta starter Charlie Leibrandt, Knoblauch singled to center and stole a base in the first inning and singled to right in the third, driving in the game’s only run until Greg Gagne hit a three-run homer in the fifth.

Knoblauch also walked and stole again against Jim Clancy in the fifth, singled against Mark Wohlers in the seventh and made a sprawling stop of Terry Pendleton’s hard hit grounder in the eighth, turning it into a double play that choked off the Braves’ last gasp.

Three for three. Four times on base. Two steals. Defensive gem.

“Nice game,” said Minnesota Manager Tom Kelly, who smiled and added: “Knobby has had a fantastic season. He’s going to be a solid major leaguer. He makes mistakes like everyone, but knows how to correct them. Heck, I was begging for him here last year, but the general manager wouldn’t let me have him--and that was the right decision.”

It enabled Knoblauch to get in a second minor league season before making the jump from double A to become as influential a factor in worst-to-first as the free-agent signings of Jack Morris, Chili Davis and Mike Pagliarulo.

Pressure? The confident and competitive Knoblauch learned to deal with it early. His father, Ray, pitched in the minors and coached at a Houston high school for 25 years. His uncle, Ed, was a minor league outfielder.

Knoblauch remembers serving as a bat boy for his father’s high school team when he was a toddler, remembers playing for his father as a teen-ager.

“Ever since I can remember I’ve been around baseball, with my dad being a coach and player,” he said. “I was always around older guys who picked on me and pushed me.

“And later, when I played for my dad, when you’re the coach’s son, there was always pressure to play the straight and narrow.

“I couldn’t screw up because that would make him look bad. I think it has helped me to play under that kind of pressure. I know it has helped me to get the kind of baseball education I did from my dad and uncle.”

Ray Knoblauch was at the Metrodome Saturday night when his son became the first rookie to get three hits in a World Series game since Brian Doyle of the New York Yankees did it against the Dodgers on Oct. 17, 1978.

Dad may not have been surprised. He has always had as much confidence in his son as the sometimes brash son has in himself.

When signing with the Twins after his junior year at Texas A&M;, Knoblauch wanted contract assurance that he would be invited to the spring camp in 1990.

General Manager Andy MacPhail said he normally didn’t offer that, but would if Knoblauch hit .280 in his first minor league season. “Make it .300,” Ray Knoblauch said, drawing a glance from his son, who satisfied that agreed-to obligation by batting .286 at Kenosha and .364 at Visalia.

Kelly wanted him then and demanded it after Knoblauch hit .289 at Orlando in his second year.

“When the manager has confidence in you, it makes it easier,” Knoblauch said of his 1991 success. “TK (Kelly) told me to go out and do my best and we’d deal with it on a day-to-day basis.

“I may look back when this is all over and realize what I’ve done, but right now I’m able to keep it in perspective, treat it as fun and do what I have to do.”

One thing he did Saturday night, as he has done frequently this year, is step out of the batter’s box and count to 10 to regain composure.

“I’ve been up to the plate enough to be calm and relaxed, but when you have 55,000 screaming fans, you tend to start thinking you’re a home run hitter.

“Counting to 10 helps remind me I’m not.”

By being what he is, a contact hitter with a face-in-the-dirt mentality, Knoblauch has put an end to the count of another kind, the parade of Minnesota second baseman.