BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : Trade Talk Bothers McGriff

The owners of the San Diego Padres have made no secret about wanting to cut their player payroll at least another $7 million, with trade rumors targeting Fred McGriff, who has about $8 million remaining on his multiyear contract.

“It’s very tough, very distracting hearing the rumors,” said McGriff, who is batting .243 with 13 home runs and 31 runs batted in. “It’s tough enough, but then to hear your name mentioned all the time, well . . .

“I’m going to go out and try to hit my 30 home runs and drive in 100 runs no matter what. But I guess I haven’t been doing such a good job lately of not being distracted. It gets to you a lot of days.”

Said Padre Manager Jim Riggleman: “Fred is a great ballplayer and if he is traded, he will be able to extend his career no matter where he is.”

McGriff says the system is backward. “If I felt like I was doing a bad job, then OK,” he said of a trade. “But my first two years here I hit 30 home runs and drove in 100 runs. It’s not like I’m stinking up the place. I thought if you do well, you get to stay.”

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Riggleman said the impetus for the Padres’ 14-2 rout and 5-4 ninth-inning comeback victory against the Dodgers might have come from their eighth-inning comeback victory Tuesday night against the Atlanta Braves. “We scored four runs in the eighth to tie and one in the ninth to win and once you do that twice within a range of time, it gives you confidence,” he said. “We had comeback before, but not all the way. “