His Life Is One of Milestones

Old Man Twin is expecting twins. That’s the off-the-field update on Dave Winfield. Wife Tonya got the news late last month, meaning that some time this November, Winfield should complete what is quite possibly an unprecedented life cycle.

From Padre to Twin to padre of twins.

“Great day to have two,” Dave can tell Tonya on the way to the hospital.

On the field, the word on Winfield is: It’s always something.

Tuesday night, Winfield hit a home run off Mark Langston. It was the 300th of his American League career.

Thursday afternoon, Winfield hit two doubles off Chuck Finley. These moved him to within one of Willie Mays on the all-time doubles list and past Harmon Killebrew on something known as the all-time total-bases-coming-on-long-hits list--which, best I can tell, is either an obscure compendium of bases amassed on doubles, triples and home runs or a new rotisserie category.

“I don’t really keep track of ‘em,” Winfield frankly admitted, “but on a day-to-day basis, (total bases coming on long hits) play a key part in breaking a game open.”

Hard to argue with that.

Every time Winfield puts bat to ball these days, he’s breaking something, surpassing someone or triggering another countdown.

Winfield has 3,018 hits. With 140 more this season, he can pass Lou Brock, Rod Carew, Cap Anson, Robin Yount, Paul Waner and George Brett to move into 11th place.

Winfield has 1,790 RBIs. With 72 more this season, he passes Frank Robinson, Al Simmons, Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski and Mel Ott to move into eighth place.

Winfield has 454 home runs. With 22 more this season, he passes Willie Stargell and Stan Musial, takes over 16th place and places magic number 500 so tantalizingly close-- only 24 to go --that he may try to squeeze out another season in 1995, at age 43, if the Twins want him to or not.

Thursday afternoon, invigorated by three RBIs and a 7-4 victory over the Angels, Winfield sounded like a man who wasn’t planning on leaving any time soon.

“I enjoy myself,” Winfield said, stretched out in a folding chair in front of his red-white-and-blue locker stall. “It’s a great job. You work hard, you fool around with the guys, you stay young. It’s OK.”

But the drudgery, the schlepping from plane to hotel to ballpark, the 0-for-3s followed by 0-for-4s. Winfield has done the drill for more than 21 years, nearly as long as some of his current teammates have been on earth. One, outfielder Rich Becker, was born 16 months before Winfield made his big league debut with San Diego.

When in a life does it come time to try something new, if only to break the monotony?

“This might seem like the same thing every day,” Winfield said, “but it’s also different every day. It’s the same--and it’s different. It keeps you guessing every day.

“The people around me enjoy that I do it. When I travel, it brings family and friends together, and we have a good time. When you add it up, you probably couldn’t find any other work or occupation that would allow you to carry on with this lifestyle.”

Winfield has been doing this for so long, and for so many employers, that he refers to his two-year stint with the Angels, 1990-91, as “just a stopover.” Beating the Angels today means no more to him than beating the Athletics tomorrow.

“That team has turned over. It’s totally different now,” he said. “There’s only a few guys I know over there. Harold Reynolds. Chili. Finley. Langston. I know Rex Hudler.”

Older guys. And this Angel team has gone young. Winfield can remember playing against Tony Perez. Thursday, he found himself playing against Tony Perez’s son, Angel first baseman Eduardo.

The home team has changed on him, too. Native Minnesotan son Winfield joined the Twins two years after their world championship run was done, landing smack-dab in the middle of a youth movement, in the middle of non-contention.

“This is pleasant,” is how Winfield refers to his Minneapolis stop, his fifth stop, but then he can say that because he got his with Toronto in 1992.

“Toronto was the most fun,” he said, “because we had a great team. I was playing with older, experienced guys--just a lot of experienced veterans who knew what they were doing.

“Toronto was the only time in my career where I could say at the start of a season, ‘This is the best talent in baseball.’ I’d look at the guy to my left, I’d look at the guy to my right and I’d say, ‘The opposition is in trouble.’ ”

The task at hand has been downscaled. Now, Winfield plays to keep playing. The Twins would like him to produce bigger numbers than the 21 home runs, 76 RBIs and .271 average he managed in ’93. If he wants to stay, he must oblige them--and Winfield admits the brass ring of 500 home runs has caught his eye.

“It would be great,” he said. “I know very few people have done it and it’s something I never even thought about accomplishing when I started playing. If it happens here, it happens here.”

And if not?

“Well, I’m certainly not looking to leave. But . . . “

Winfield would then pack up his bats and see if anyone’s in the market to rent a Hall of Fame moment. Until then, he hangs around the clubhouse and counsels the youngsters, such as Kirby Puckett, who has closed, slowly, to within one hit of 2,000.

“He’s feeling it a little now, but as soon as he gets 2,000, it’ll be like water off a duck’s back,” Winfield said. “Then things will be back to normal.”

Give Puckett a break, Winfield is saying. The kid’s only 33.