Padres’ Sheffield Gets Even : Baseball: His 10th-inning homer propels Padres to 3-2 victory over San Francisco.

Padre third baseman Gary Sheffield, proving again that he can dangerous when mad, hit a one-out homer in the 10th inning Friday, lifting the Padres to a 3-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants in front of 17,654 fans at Candlestick Park.

He said this one was for Fred McGriff.

McGriff was sitting in the Padre clubhouse Friday, unable to play because of a strained rib cage he sustained during Thursday’s brawl between the two clubs. He drew the wrath of the Giants’ frustration with Sheffield when he was hit by a pitch thrown by starter Trevor Wilson, which incited the brawl.

Sheffield also was injured in the melee, straining his left shoulder. Padre Manager Greg Riddoch feared that Sheffield was badly hurt and already dismissed the possibility that he would be able to play at all this weekend.

Sheffield had other plans.

He arrived in the clubhouse and told Riddoch he was fine. Riddoch couldn’t believe it, and told Sheffield to take it easy. Sheffield insisted on playing, and the lineup was changed minutes before the game.

“I was totally surprised,” Riddoch said. “I made the lineup without Gary, and when he said he was ready to go, I didn’t even envision that. It was like a blessing.”

Sheffield, who missed by perhaps three feet of hitting a homer in the eighth inning off reliever Omar Olivares, swung a little harder in the 10th off Rod Beck. His 13th homer, a career high, cleared the left field fence.

“The pain was not going to keep me out of this game,” Sheffield said, smiling. “Let’s just say it was nice revenge.”

Not bad for a guy whose shoulder was so painful Thursday night that he openly worried whether he might have to be put on the disabled list.

“I was scared it would be a lot worse,” said Sheffield, who hit two homers and drove in a career-high six runs in Thursday’s game before the brawl. “I got blindsided when I went out to help out Fred, the crowd fell on me, and my shoulder gave away. I felt a rip in there. It felt like a tornado fell on me.

“The doctors said I’ve got some ripped tissue in there.”

The most aggravating aspect of the injury, he said, was that he spent the entire winter rehabilitating his shoulder only to have the same problems again.

“I used the whole winter to get rid of this snapping in there,” he said, “and now it’s back. The thing that makes you mad is that there was no need for it in the first place.

“When I got into the dugout (Thursday) after my homer, I was shaking hands, and someone said, ‘Ya’ll be ready.’ I’m thinking, ‘Be ready for what?’

“I turned around, saw Fred get hit, and said, ‘Here we go.’ Man, the way I was hitting, I hated to come out of that game.

“Oh well, this one helped make up for it.”

Sheffield’s homer provided the Padres (36-31) their third consecutive victory, and made a winner out of reliever Jose Melendez (5-3), who pitched two shutout innings.

If not for the pitching of Padre starter Bruce Hurst, Sheffield’s heroics would not have been possible. He kept the Giants in check through the first eight innings, yielding only five hits.

Hurst retired 13 of the last 14 batters he faced, and if not for a wild-pitch strikeout of Darren Lewis in the third inning, might have come away with his seventh victory.

Hurst was pitching his first game since his flare-up Monday with Riddoch after which he was fined. Hurst met privately with John Barr, assistant general manager, and asked to be traded. It was the second time this season that Hurst has made the request.

“As a professional, whether the player’s problems are with the front office, general manager, or manager,” said Joe McIlvaine, Padre general manager, “you’re paid to do a good job. You can’t let it affect your concentration and use it as an alibi.

“He doesn’t have to love the situation, or love the manager of his teammates, but he has to be professional about it.”

McIlvaine said that he’ll stay out of the cold war between Hurst and Riddoch. Besides, just because Hurst wants to be traded, he said, doesn’t mean there’s any urgency to trade him.

“We’ll listen to offers for him,” McIlvaine said, “but we’re not actively shopping him. The problem is that teams just aren’t taking on salaries right now. No one wants to add to their payroll.”

Hurst is in the first year of a contract extension that’s paying him $2.75 million this season, $2.75 million in 1993, with a $3 million option in 1994 or a $400,000 buyout.

Although there were no incidents Friday, and tempers were tamed after Thursday night’s brawl between the two teams, there still were hard feelings.

The Padres were without McGriff. The Giants were without All-Star Will Clark, who had a stiff neck. The Padres still were blaming it all on Wilson, who triggered the brawl when he hit McGriff with a pitch.

“You can blame him for everything that happened,” Padre right fielder Tony Gwynn said. “It all boils down to him.”

The Padres also failed to find the humor in Wilson’s remark after the game Thursday when he said the glove he threw at McGriff’s face was the “only strike I threw all night.”

Said Gwynn, remembering Sheffield’s two homers: “That’s bull. He threw strikes. One went 425 feet. The other went 405 feet.”

If there was any question about Gwynn’s resentment toward the Giants, it was revealed before the game when a Giant batboy walked into the Padre clubhouse and asked Gwynn to sign a box of baseballs.

Gwynn took the pen, started to sign, when he asked who would be recipient of the box of balls.

It was for the Giants, he was told, something about a charity auction.

Gwynn frowned, gave the balls back to the batboy and said: “Not now, maybe when things cool down.”

Riddoch also still was seething Friday, angered that McGriff will be out for at least two days, and maybe longer.

“It’s a big concern,” Riddoch said. “It’s like them losing Clark and (Matt) Williams. If somebody told me I’d have McGriff in two days, I’d be tickled because I just don’t know.”

Riddoch also refused to apologize for his behavior after Thursday’s game. Giant President Al Rosen poked his head into Riddoch’s office Thursday to check on any possible injuries, and Riddoch refused to look up at him.

“If you just lost two outstanding players,” Riddoch said, “you’re not going to go out and do some entertaining.”