Padre Vent Frustration by Thumping Dodgers

There was little the Dodgers could have done Tuesday afternoon against the Padres. It didn’t matter how they pitched, how they hit or even how they played defense.

No one was going to beat the Padres on this day.

Seething at the announcement of first baseman Fred McGriff’s four-day suspension and $1,000 fine, the Padres unleashed their pent-up frustration, ripping the Dodgers 8-4 in front of a boisterous crowd of 22,915 at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

It didn’t matter that the Padres played primarily with a second-string lineup, batted players out of position or employed a third-string manager. The severity of McGriff’s punishment from last week’s brawl with the San Francisco Giants fueled his teammates’ competitive fires.

“We were pretty upset about it,” Padre third baseman Gary Sheffield said. “If a guy deliberately hits you, what are supposed to do, sit there and kiss him? If a guy throws at you deliberately, you’ve got to hit back.

“It’s not right, man, it’s not right.”

Sheffield, McGriff’s best friend on the team, took care of matters himself.

Batting cleanup for the first time in his career, Sheffield laid into Dodger starter Tom Candiotti for a three-run homer in the first inning, smacked a double in the sixth and spent the rest of the game wondering how he did it.

Sheffield, who has a career-high 14 homers and 50 RBIs this season, had not batted cleanup since he was in the minor leagues. And he was facing Candiotti, who had retired Sheffield 14 consecutive times. Most of them, Sheffield said, were strikeouts.

“He’s made me look bad in the past, real bad,” Sheffield said. “Really, I was just hoping to make contact.”

Sheffield walked to the plate in the first inning with one out, Tony Gwynn on second base and Darrin Jackson on first. At the very least, Sheffield said, he knew that Candiotti couldn’t pitch around him.

“But with him,” Sheffield said, “it doesn’t really matter. What you think is a strike one minute can be a mile outside the next.”

Candiotti’s first pitch to Sheffield was a nasty combination of a knuckleball-slider. Sheffield swung and missed and felt kind of foolish.

“I thought I was in real trouble after that one,” Sheffield said.

Candiotti’s second pitch was another knuckleball, this was starting out high, but dropping nicely over the plate. Sheffield sent it soaring 387 feet into the left-field seats.

“I was so happy I couldn’t believe it,” Sheffield said. “I just dropped my head and started sprinting. I just wanted to get in there (the dugout) as fast as I could and shake hands with everybody.

“I wanted to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.”

The Padres had a 3-0 lead.

The Dodgers had another defeat.

“That was the difference in the game,” said Candiotti, making his fourth appearance in 11 days. “We’re down three runs, and it’s hard to battle back from that.”

The Padres, who had scored only six runs in 44 innings since McGriff (strained rib cage) was injured in Thursday’s brawl, produced as many runs in the first six innings Tuesday. By the time rookie starter Frank Seminara tired in the seventh, the Padres led, 6-1.

Seminara (2-2) allowed eight hits and three runs in 6 1/3 innings in his first victory at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium. After Mike Maddux walked the only two batters he faced, Larry Andersen and Randy Myers came in and pitched 2 2/3 shutout innings to preserve the victory.

“I feel more comfortable every time I’m out there,” said Seminara, who made his fifth start since being recalled from triple-A Las Vegas. “I want to prove to myself and to my teammates that I can pitch up here.”

The victory ended the Padres’ three-game losing streak. It was the Dodgers’ 11th loss in 12 games. Most infuriating to the Dodgers was that the Padres’ team had only one player--right fielder Tony Gwynn--who was playing in position in his usual spot in the batting order.

The Padres even had difficulty finding a healthy manager for the game.

Padre Manager Greg Riddoch arrived at the ballpark at 7:30 Tuesday morning, but an inner-ear infection left him nauseous and dizzy. He made out the lineup, hung around until 10:30 and left.

“I felt like a knife was stuck in between my ears it hurt so bad,” Riddoch said. “I couldn’t even think.”

Bench coach Jim Snyder, who normally would be the interim manager, was in the hospital undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. That left third-base coach Bruce Kimm as manager, a role he had not played since 1983 when he managed Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He handled the field assignments; pitching coach Mike Roarke was left to handle the pitching moves.

“It was nice to get the win,” Kimm said, “I hope it’s my last one as Padre manager.”

Certainly, the Padres can afford few more games without McGriff, who will be out until at least Saturday. That’s why the Padres were so enraged to learn of the suspension, knowing McGriff will have missed seven games by the time he returns. Giant pitcher Trevor Wilson, who hit McGriff with the pitch that incited the brawl, might not miss a start since he has four days between appearances.

“We all got cheated because Trevor Wilson was gutless and tried to hit someone,” Padre right fielder Tony Gwynn said. “It’s not fair, no way. It looks like the fines were equal, but they’re not. You can’t treat a pitcher the same as any everyday player. . . .

“It’s not fair to us. It’s not fair to our fans. And it’s not fair to Fred because he didn’t initiate the thing.”

The Padres will have the opportunity to air their complaints firsthand Thursday. Bill White, National League president, is scheduled to visit with the Padres and Giants before the opener of their four-game series at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

“I just know what happened wasn’t fair,” Sheffield said, “and we sure can’t go too much longer without Fred. This is going to hurt, and it could hurt bad. This offense isn’t the same without him.

“I know speaking for myself, I’m seeing a whole lot of different pitches.

“I can’t wait to have him back.”