Can Wizard Roll Royce? : Future Hall of Famer Smith, 41, Finds Himself in a Battle for Starting Shortstop Job With Newly Acquired Clayton, 26

It comes down to this: Ozzie Smith, maybe the best shortstop ever but now 41 and coming off shoulder surgery, must win his job. He is challenged by Royce Clayton, 26, who grew up in Los Angeles idolizing the defensive wizard of the St. Louis Cardinals.

“I was 12 or 13 when I first saw him play at Dodger Stadium and couldn’t take my eyes off him,” said Clayton, formerly of the San Francisco Giants and St. Bernard High in Inglewood.

“I turned to my dad right then and said, ‘That’s what I want to do when I grow up. I want to play shortstop like Ozzie.’ ”

The rebuilt Cardinals are brimming with optimism, but Smith is not pleased.

“Put yourself in my shoes,” he said. “How would you feel? I’ve been playing for 18 years. I have nothing to prove.”

Smith started last season as the oldest opening-day shortstop since Luke Appling with the Chicago White Sox in 1950. He injured his shoulder on May 31, had arthroscopic surgery, sat out 77 games, played in only 44 and batted .199. His 1996 contract rolled over at $3 million only after he was cleared in an off-season physical by an independent doctor.

However, the uncertainty lingered, and General Manager Walt Jocketty said the Cardinals had to have protection. His acquisition of Clayton for Allen Watson and two other pitchers was considered a steal.

Said Manager Tony La Russa, “I’ve got genuine interest in preserving and enhancing Ozzie Smith’s legend and legacy. . . . We’re talking about a first-round Hall of Famer, but the question is, how healthy and how reliable can he be?

“I’ve told Ozzie, just as I’ve told Royce, that . . . the guy who plays the best will play the most. Most of the time these things have a way of playing themselves out. If not, I was hired to make tough decisions.

“We have a lot of newness here. We need to come together as a team. We can’t afford too many squeaky wheels. If Ozzie can’t play better than Royce, he’s got to decide whether he wants to be part of the winning atmosphere we’re tying to build.”

Smith, though, seems to be winning the competition. He is batting .250 with no errors, while Clayton is batting .160 with five errors. Clayton drove in 58 runs and stole 24 bases while batting .244 in his third full season with the Giants. Fans here have been chanting “Ozzie!” no matter who has been at shortstop.

Said Smith, apparently talking about La Russa, “What bothers me most is that people seem to be looking at me as a person who will cause trouble, and that’s unfair. I’ve never given any manager a reason to feel that way. I don’t know where that comes from.

“I’m here to help. It may be an awkward situation but there’s no adversity between Royce and me. We’re friends, and that won’t change. He’s also probably the one player who reminds me of me.”

The Cardinals won’t say it, but they didn’t trade three pitchers to have the young shortstop sit on the bench. Clayton said he expects to play every day because “that’s the only way I know how to think.” With the Giants, he was frequently Ozzie’s dinner guest when their teams played.

“He did a lot to boost my confidence, make me feel comfortable,” Clayton said. “Everybody is saying that this will be a bad situation, but I’ll always look back on it as a chance to learn from the greatest shortstop who ever played.”

However it turns out, Smith said this will probably be his last season. He is contracted to work for the Cardinals for six years at $200,000 a year after he retires. He has 2,396 hits and is shooting for 2,500 to demonstrate he also knew how to use the bat, but he said there has been too much emphasis on that, as if it’s the only reason he wants to keep playing.

“That’s the furthest thing from the truth,” he said. “I mean, I seem to reach one milestone or another every time I step on the field.”

How often he steps on it is still a question.