Padre’s Public Forum Is an Open, Shut Affair for Fans : Baseball: Very few hardballs tossed around and public meeting to discuss the team.

You’re informed that the Padre decision-makers are going to make themselves available for fan feedback, so you expect they will do so via telephones from behind bulletproof glass.

Shoot, the Padres don’t have a second baseman who can carry Bip Roberts’ bat. They have no leadoff hitter, no third baseman and a bunch of left fielders who rekindle memories of Carmelo Martinez.

How many shopping days until Benito Santiago is traded? Who lasts longer? Santiago or Greg Riddoch? How about the no-smoking ban, the continuing reclassification of seats that affects mini-season ticket buyers and the move to leave Yuma?

Baseball fans in the South Bay were invited to ask questions directly of the Padres’ management team. They could approach Dick Freeman, the club’s president. Or they could talk trades with Joe McIlvaine, the Padres’ general manager. Or they could address individual grievances with Bill Adams, vice president of business operations, or Andy Strasberg, vice president of public relations.

Upon arrival at the Hilltop High School cafeteria Wednesday night, however, there weren’t even metal detectors at the door.

Chairs were set up and a banner advertised the San Diego-based 1992 All-Star game. There was even red, white and blue bunting. A sign on the wall indicated that cafeteria maximum capacity was 535, but there was still room for 489--give or take a Padre employee--after the fan forum had been called to order by KSDO’s Ron Reina.

“This is not supposed to be a gripe session,” Reina said, and the two ladies who were knitting in the front row didn’t miss a stitch.

Scott Coolbaugh would have been considered a hard-hitter in this crowd.

Forty-five minutes into this fan feedback and not one question had been hurled at McIlvaine.

“This is more of a plea than a question,” said a gentleman in finally turning the attention on McIlvaine. “Would you please take down that minor league fence you got in the stadium? I don’t think the Padres have ever won the battle of home runs in the Murph since that little short fence was put up. We’ve got a young pitching staff and no home run hitters.”

McIlvaine spoke. “You can’t keep changing your ballpark. Because you hit more home runs doesn’t mean you win games.”

The gentleman persisted, ignoring Reina’s “no griping” ground rules, and pounded McIlvaine until McIlvaine stood on his baseball expertise. “Sometimes they (home runs) do win games,” he said, “and sometimes they don’t.”

There you have it--the most heated exchange of the night.

As for other information gleaned in this face-to-face meeting with Padre management:

- The Padres do not have any “holes” on their team.

“When you hear people talking about, ‘They’ve got this hole here and they’ve got this hole there,’ McIlvaine said, “it’s not a hole. It’s an opportunity. It’s an opportunity for a young person to step up, take the job and do the job.”

- Everybody but everybody in baseball wants Thomas Howard, although McIlvaine said the Padres probably will platoon him in left field with Jerald Clark.

“Thomas Howard is the most asked for player by other teams,” McIlvaine said. “It’s not (Andy) Benes or (Greg) Harris.”

- Contrary to one fan’s opinion that Clark “has been a tremendous defensive liability,” McIlvaine said, “I think you’re overstating that. . . . He played left field better than I thought he would.”

- Although the Padres don’t have any holes, McIlvaine said the club will try to get a significant player for either second or third base before the regular-season opener.

- Free agent infielder Kurt Stillwell is still available.

“The agent’s been ballyhooing for about a month now about all these other teams that are out there to get him,” McIlvaine said, “and he’s bluffing. Nobody else right now is trying to get him, and the longer we wait the better shape we’re in there.”

- McIlvaine said Riddoch is considering using Darrin Jackson as the No. 3 hitter behind Tony Gwynn with Tony Fernandez batting leadoff.

- McIlvaine said reports that Fernandez was unhappy and wanted to play elsewhere “were greatly exaggerated.” He said Fernandez performed much of the year with an injured thumb that should have prevented him from playing.

“He never begged off one day,” McIlvaine said. “Bip Roberts is loved by everybody here, but he’s the opposite. When he had the slightest thing, he begged off. He couldn’t play and that doesn’t endear you to your teammates.”

- As for Fernandez’s complaints about the hitting background in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium and the condition of the field, McIlvaine said, “Like anybody else, he complains. He’s a little bit of a whiner in some ways, and I tell you that honestly.” But he said Fernandez’s complaints were well-founded, and the steps in center field will be painted black and new grass will be used in the infield.

- McIlvaine said some of the writers in this city harbor resentment for the trading of “two popular players, Joe Carter and Robbie Alomar.”

McIlvaine: “It will continue, it will linger and it will always be there.”

He also complained about the lack of human interest stories in the newspaper during the winter, staples, he said, where he previously worked.

“I don’t see those here,” he said, “and it bothers me.”

- McIlvaine said that if Tom Werner, the Padres’ chairman/managing partner, “was sitting up here with us, I think every one of you would say, ‘What a nice person.’ He’s honest, he’s direct and he’s a pleasure to work with.”

- One fan wanted to know if a particular sports writer in town could be “shot.” McIlvaine remained mum, but Strasberg asked, “Which one of us did you direct that to?”

- Folks who want a Padres’ mascot to appear at their games were advised by Freeman “to stay tuned.”

After the good-natured meeting, each fan received a free T-shirt from the Padres.

“It’s like they stated at the beginning; we weren’t here to have a shouting match,” said Larry Butcher, a Padres’ season ticket-holder for 14 years. “It was nice and pleasant and better than having a big debate. They answered a lot of questions.”

You see, there was no reason to have an ambulance on call. With the exception of the guy who wanted the short fences torn down, it was a real love fest.

“There’s nothing to hide,” McIlvaine said. “I have no reason to hide anything. The media can make what they want of things and they interpret it however they want to interpret it. But there’s a good reason that goes into everything that’s done. We don’t get to explain that very often.

“I’ll take on anybody. I was 10 years in New York. I can answer any question.”

So what about all these holes?

Or, uh, opportunities?