Alomar Hitting His Prime at Plate

Roberto Alomar was 20 years old when he became an everyday player in the majors, with the San Diego Padres in 1988. Padres right fielder and perennial batting champion Tony Gwynn told Alomar then that, sometime in the future, he would win batting titles.

That time, Gwynn said Saturday, is now. In his first year with the Baltimore Orioles, Alomar leads the majors with a .401 average.

Gwynn, whose .394 average in the strike-shortened 1994 season is the closest anyone has come to .400 since Ted Williams batted .406 in 1941, said Alomar has a shot at finishing with that magical number this year. Gwynn and Alomar are close friends, and every chance Gwynn gets, he watches Alomar on television and marvels at his development.

“I don’t think he’s gotten as good as he’s going to get,” Gwynn said. “I think he’s just getting into his prime now. I think he’s just starting to learn what he’s capable of doing and how he can take over control of the offensive game when he steps into the box. It ain’t the pitcher dictating the action. He’s dictating the action.

“I think he’s finally starting to realize that. I told him when he was here he was going to win his share of batting titles, and it’s probably that time. He has the ability to hit a home run, or work the count and hit a double down the opposite line and do whatever he wants to do. He’s probably the best all-around player in the game.”

And, Gwynn said, all the proper circumstances are in place for Alomar to take a run at .400. First, Alomar is playing in a new city and will be driven to prove himself. Second, the Orioles have other marquee players and some on-going controversy, and Alomar won’t always be the primary focus of attention. Third, Gwynn said, the Orioles’ presence in the American League East race also will take pressure off Alomar.

“None of the attention is on him right now because he’s doing what he’s supposed to do,” Gwynn said of Alomar, whose best average was .326 in 1993. “He’s not moaning and groaning about something, and I can guarantee you that on team flights when the other guys are complaining to each other, he’s sitting there going” -- and, with this, Gwynn imitates Alomar’s voice, sounding like Ricky Ricardo of “I Love Lucy” -- “ ‘Hey, man, I told you, I do my job. I’m hitting .400. What are you doing?’

“Robbie’s got the perfect temperament to have the year like that. Other guys are getting the notoriety, and deep down inside he’ll want to prove he’s as good as they are.”

Gwynn’s run at .400 was interrupted by the players’ strike, and he is sure he could’ve achieved that. “I was consistent with my swing,” Gwynn said. “I didn’t have any ruts, really. Right up until the day we went on strike, I was on a run, one of those runs when you’re hitting the ball hard almost every time you went up to the plate, and you get your share of dinkers and chippers and bloopers. Most of the time I hit the ball hard, it found a hole.”

Hitting .400, Gwynn said, would require “a lot of skills that Robbie has, plus you need to be lucky -- if you can stay away from injuries, you can do it. You’ll find out in September, because the heat (pressure) will be ungodly. Somehow, I have the feeling he’ll be well-prepared for it. He’s got eight years in, he’s been under fire before, he’s been in the spotlight before.

“I just think you have to look at the degree of difficulty that would be involved. He could do it. He’s got the ability, he’s got the smarts, he’s got the technique. If he’s hitting really good right-handed” -- and Alomar is much improved -- “he definitely could do it.”

Playing half his games at Camden Yards helps, too, Gwynn said. “I was asking Wally Joyner, ‘Is Camden Yards small?’ He goes, ‘Small? It’s a bandbox.’ And that works in Robbie’s favor, too, because, driving the ball to left-center is a strength, and that’s a short shot there.”

There is one player in the National League, Gwynn said, “who can do whatever he wants to do at any time,” Barry Bonds, and one who is close to that level -- Barry Larkin. Alomar is like Bonds, Gwynn said. “If he wants to hit homers, he can do that. If he wants to hit .400, he can do that. There’s nobody close to him defensively, and in base-running instincts, there’s no one even near him.

“I told him that the first time I saw him in spring training. You see a guy go up there and have that kind of knowledge of the strike zone at age 21 or 22, and you know he’s going to get to be a much better player.”

Gwynn said he was shocked when the Padres traded Alomar after the 1990 season, and he called his friend. “I told him, ‘I don’t like the trade, but you can go to Toronto and be the marquee guy there, because you’re a complete player,’ ” Gwynn said. “ ‘You will become a complete player in Toronto, because you will have the freedom to do what you want to do.’

“He got to bat second, bat third and do different things. He’s the only guy I know who can go up there and have a 35-inch bat and then come back and take one of my bats (31 inches). I saw him hit a home run to center field this season, and that bat he was using looked awful short. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s using small bats sometimes.”

Gwynn asked about some of Alomar’s statistics, his strikeouts, his batting average from the right side, and murmured his approval.

“I can imagine what he’s doing there -- everything,” Gwynn said. “Going to a new town, he’s got to make the hay. He’s got to prove to people he’s worth what he’s getting.’