PADRES UPDATE : NOTEBOOK / BOB NIGHTENGALE : Van Slyke Keeps His Average Up, Although the Pain Gets Him Down

Center fielder Andy Van Slyke is as surprised as anyone that with six months left in the season he is contending for the National League batting title.

Van Slyke went two for four Tuesday to remain third in the NL with a .324 batting average.

“It has not been a goal of mine or even entered my mind,” Van Slyke said, “especially when you have Tony Gwynn in the league. I’ve always been a good hitter, but I just happen to be a little bit better hitter this year. Who knows? I may go zero-for-50 and be back where I belong.”

Still, Van Slyke entered the year with a .269 career average, having never hit .300 in a season.

“Really, the surprise of the year for me has not been my average,” Van Slyke said, “it’s been the number of games I played after being told my condition in spring training.”

Van Slyke was told he had three degenerative discs in his back. He was expected to rest his back periodically this summer. Instead, he has missed only seven games this season.

“The back has gotten no worse and no better,” Van Slyke said. “I have just gotten to the point of accepting the pain. It’s something I’ve learned to deal with on a daily basis.

“There are times I stand in the outfield and go, ‘This stinks. We’re in first place, I’m hitting .340, and I still feel this stinks.’ ”

Although Van Slyke concedes it sounds crazy, he believes his ailing back actually has made him a better hitter. It forced him to cut down on his swing and has made him more of a contact hitter who uses the opposite field.

The difference has been astonishing, particularly against left-handed pitchers. Van Slyke He entered the season with a career .209 batting average against lefties, but this season is hitting .297 against them.

“My back has made me a better average hitter,” Van Slyke said, “but production-wise, I don’t think it has helped me any.”

Van Slyke has only eight homers this season, but is ranked among the National League leaders in 11 different offensive categories, including sixth with a .493 slugging percentage.

Although Padre third baseman Gary Sheffield is tearing up the National League, he has been intentionally walked only two times this season.

In comparison, Fred McGriff has been intentionally walked 14 times. In fact, Kurt Stillwell (8), Jerald Clark (2) and Darrin Jackson (2) have been intentionally walked at least as many times as Sheffield.

The Padres benched center fielder Darrin Jackson for the first time since July 21, Jackson is a career 0-for-8 against Pirate starter Randy Tomlin. Kevin Ward, who replaced Jackson in the lineup, entered the game with four hits in nine at-bats (.444) off Tomlin, including two homers.

The Padres have extended their working agreement with the Las Vegas Stars for two more years through the 1994 season, the Padres announced Tuesday.

The Stars have been the Padres’ top farm team in the Class AAA Pacific Coast League for 10 years, dating back to the 1983 season.

“We’re delighted to be associated with such a high quality city and high quality organization as Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Stars,” General Manager Joe McIlvaine said in a prepared statement. “We look forward to continuing our productive relationship.”

Pirate Manager Jim Leyland on the fact that 31 of their games this season have been won or lost on the final at-bat: “I guess when you get a five-year contract, the players want to test you to see if you’re any good. If this keeps up, I’ll look like Don Knotts and Telly Savalas, all rolled up in one.”

Since the Pirates traded third Steve Buechele to the Chicago Cubs for pitcher Danny Jackson on July 10, Pittsburgh third basemen are batting .248 with only 17 RBIs.

The Pirates have allowed nine pinch-hit homers this season and have yet to hit one.

Their last pinch-hit homer occurred Sept 12,1991, when Curtis Wilkerson connected off Lee Smith of the St. Louis Cardinals.