Deshaies Gives Padres Victory Over Astros

That’s D-E-S-H-A-I-E-S.

Jim.

Cast aside by the Houston Astros after last season, released by Oakland in March and banished to triple-A Las Vegas in late April after spending a month without a team, James Joseph Deshaies put in several pitches toward showing the Astros what could have been on Friday night.

It was a night the Astros will not soon forget. In leading the Padres to a 4-2 victory in front of 21,589, Deshaies haunted his old mates in just about every conceivable way.

On the mound, Deshaies threw a two-hit shutout for eight innings before finally tiring in the ninth. He lasted 8 1/3 innings, allowing two runs and five hits. He narrowly missed what would have been his first shutout since Oct. 1, 1989.

At the plate, he went two for four and scored two runs. It was Deshaies’ first two-hit game since July 17, 1989, when he went two for three in New York against the Mets.

“(Facing Houston) was not important at all,” Deshaies said. “Tonight was important because we still have a chance to catch the Braves. If I have a mission it’s to prove (his abilities) to baseball in general.”

As far as the Padres are concerned, Deshaies (2-2) has been as welcome as their postgame meal. In five starts with the Padres, his ERA is at 2.12. He has not allowed more than two earned runs in a game.

The Padres, 5-0 against Houston in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium and a season-high nine games over .500, remained seven games behind Atlanta in the NL West thanks in part to receiving two hits apiece from Tony Fernandez, Tony Gwynn and Gary Sheffield. Randy Myers pitched two-thirds of an inning for his 24th save.

This was the portion of the Astros’ 26-game, 28-day trip that was to be like visiting a beloved, long-lost relative. Deshaies, always popular in Houston, spent six seasons with the Astros, and this was the first time the two of them had gotten together since the split.

“I have nothing but good things to say about Jim Deshaies as a player and as a person,” Astro Manager Art Howe said. “He’s top-of-the-line. We really miss him.”

Said Astro pitching coach Bob Cluck: “He was very popular here. Art and I and all of the coaches really liked him.”

They weren’t crazy about him on Friday, though . . .

Despite walking four batters in the first three innings, Deshaies managed to squirm out of it. He didn’t allow a hit until one was out in the fifth, when Rafael Ramirez singled.

Granted, it wasn’t always pretty. Deshaies walked five through eight innings and several balls were hit deep into the outfield. Padre center fielder Darrin Jackson, for example, had eight putouts.

But nonetheless, Deshaies put the Padres in position to win.

The Padres had not had much success against Houston starter Pete Harnisch (4-9). Entering the game, Harnisch was 2-1 lifetime against San Diego with a 1.00 ERA. In five games--36 innings--Harnisch had held the Padres to four earned runs.

But Harnisch was chased after 6 2/3 innings, having allowed 11 hits and four runs.

Instead, it was an old Astro who put up the zeroes.

“He did a great job for me when he was here,” Howe said. “It’s just one of those things. We were going with a youth movement, and he was one of the parts we let go.

“He was struggling wins-and-losses-wise the last couple of years, and that’s why we made the decision.”

Deshaies finished 5-12 last season and 7-12 in 1990. And when you are about to turn 32, have a below-.500 record and are earning a $2.1 million salary from one of baseball’s bargain-basement teams, you tend to get trapped in “youth movements.”

“I consider last year kind of a waste of time,” Deshaies said. “An aberration. Most other years, I pitched similar to what I’m doing now.”