PADRES UPDATE : NOTEBOOK / BOB WOLF : Roberts Cannot Forgive, Forget Padre Management for Troubles

Bip Roberts didn’t say goodby to San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium Sunday without taking one last shot at the Padres and Manager Greg Riddoch.

Roberts, who still lives in Poway, had expressed his feelings about Padre management more than once since being traded to the Cincinnati Reds last winter for relief pitcher Randy Myers. He let it be known Sunday that he has not mellowed.

“I did the work of three guys and they didn’t appreciate it,” Roberts said. “I had a guy trying to work on my mind who wasn’t a psychology major.”

Asked if his latter statement referred to Riddoch, Roberts said, “That’s right, and now he’s having problems with everybody. It’s unbelievable.”

Several Padres have complained lately about Riddoch’s technique. Roberts had conversations with some of them during the Reds’ weekend visit.

“The Padres gave me my opportunity, and I’m grateful for that,” Roberts said. “It’s just too bad I couldn’t have stayed, but the trade was the best thing that ever happened to me.

“Last year was a tough year for me. I had a so-called off year, and there was a tendency to point fingers. I had knee surgery, a twisted back and a separated shoulder, and those injuries are well documented. To say I didn’t always want to play was totally irrelevant.

“The thing that was most satisfying to me was that the fans appreciated my hustle and the way I played.”

Roberts batted .281 in 1991. He had had two .300-plus seasons before that, and is hitting .306 now. He made the National League All-Star team this year for the first time, and appropriately for him, the game was played here.

“That was the greatest time of my life,” he said. “It was really a thrill to hear the ovation I got from the fans.”

Roberts has played left field, center field, third base and second base.

“I like left field best,” he said. “I just wish I’d get a chance to play it regularly. I still don’t know the feel of the warning track.”

And does playing against the Padres give him extra incentive?

“At first it was special,” he said. “It was a way to relieve my stress and tension and my feelings toward them. Now it’s just another game.” The Padres’ Tony Gwynn missed his fifth consecutive game because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee.

The four-time batting champion took treatment on the knee, but did not work out. He was wearing a brace, but said he wasn’t sure if he would wear it when he returns to duty.

“It doesn’t feel good,” he said. Outfielder Glenn Braggs of the Reds, who lives in San Bernardino, flew to Anaheim from Cincinnati Sunday night to get a second opinion on his right knee from Dr. Lewis Yokum of the Angels. The Reds’ doctors have recommended immediate surgery. The meager paid crowd of 12,895 for Sunday’s game left the Padres 40,196 behind their pace of last year, when they drew a modest 1,804,289. All told, the series with second place in the National League West at stake attracted just 42,841 cash customers.