Record Goes to Sheffield; Padres Win : Baseball: Third baseman gets 2 RBIs in 7-3 victory over Reds.

Gary Sheffield stood at second base Wednesday afternoon, watching the fans rise to their feet, cheering until their palms hurt and screaming until their voices became hoarse.

Sheffield couldn’t believe it. This adulation was all for him. It was as if he was being embraced by the entire city.

The Padres defeated the Cincinnati Reds, 7-3, in front of 26,741 at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, but the day belonged to Sheffield.

Sheffield set a franchise record for RBIs by a third baseman when he got his 65th and 66th of the season, eclipsing Graig Nettles’ 1984 record of 65.

The ovation even caused Sheffield to forget to ask for the record-breaking baseball in the eighth inning. He finally remembered when Red shortstop Barry Larkin nudged him.

“I was kind of in a trance,” said Sheffield, who achieved the mark with a double off Chris Hammond. “I couldn’t even move. It’s just so hard to describe the feeling.

“It was one of the moments where you feel like you’re in a concert or something. The crowd is going crazy around you. Everybody is screaming.

“Now, I know what it feels like to be a rap star.”

In a scant four months with the Padres, Sheffield already is considered their greatest third baseman ever.

“In my opinion,” Padre Manager Greg Riddoch said, “he might be the best player in the National League right now. He plays great defense. He puts big numbers on the board. What more could you want?

“He’s exceeded everyone’s expectations.”

Said Padre first baseman Fred McGriff, who told Sheffield to open his batting stance this season: “I think it’s safe to say he’s shocked the house.”

With two months left to play, Sheffield is batting .328 with 19 homers and 66 RBIs.

“I thought I could hit 10 to 15 homers, hit .280 or .290, and maybe drive in 80 or 90 runs,” he said, “but nothing like this. Really, I’m as surprised as anyone.”

Sheffield entered the season with 21 homers in his three-year career with the Milwaukee Brewers. He never had hit more than 10 homers or driven in more than 67 runs in a season. He was coming off a season in which he batted .194 with 22 RBIs in only 50 games.

“I was calling it a season at this time last year,” Sheffield said. “I was looking to get out of Milwaukee. I even tried calling a few ballclubs.

“You had to be there to understand what I went through.”

The Padres (55-47) know they wouldn’t be in the National League West race without Sheffield. The Padres, who have won 12 of their last 17 games, remained five games in back of the division-leading Atlanta Braves with their victory. The Cincinnati Reds (58-42) fell into second place, one game back.

The Padre offense, dormant the past week, came to life behind Sheffield, who had missed two games with a bruised right knee. The Padres scored more runs Wednesday than they had in the previous six games.

Sheffield and catcher Benito Santiago produced the bulk of the Padre offense with two RBIs apiece, making a winner out of rookie Frank Seminara (6-3).

This was supposed to be Santiago’s day off, but he was summoned into duty in the second inning when catcher Dan Walters sustained a strained right hamstring rounding second base. Santiago went three for three to raise his batting average to a season-high .267.

“This is the shortest off day in my life,” Santiago said, “but, hey, no complaints.”

Although Seminara lasted only five innings, he kept the Reds’ offense in check, allowing only four hits and one unearned run. He also was saved when Tony Gwynn robbed Hal Morris of a two-run homer in the fifth inning by making a leaping catch over the right-field fence.

Said Gwynn: “It felt great to contribute, since I haven’t been doing much with my bat.”

The Padres clung to a 3-2 lead when they put the game away in the seventh, scoring three runs for their biggest inning since July 19 against the Montreal Expos. Sheffield, who has developed quite a flair for the dramatic, tied Nettles’ record by sending Scott Ruskin’s curveball 415 feet into the left-field seats for his 65th RBI. Santiago and Jerald Clark later added RBI singles, setting the stage for Sheffield’s moment in the eighth.

“I used to follow Graig Nettles with the Yankees, and knowing I broke his record is a great honor,” Sheffield said. “I never would have figured the record was only 65 RBIs. I thought it would be at least 100.”

Indeed, no National League team had fewer RBIs as its record for third basemen. The Houston Astros having the second-lowest mark with 90 by former Padre Doug Rader in 1972.

“I guess you can look at that two ways,” McGriff laughed, “that can either be real good or real bad for the Padres.”

For now, the Padres will take the good.