It's Every Alomar for Himself in AL Series

By MIKE DiGIOVANNA

Oct. 8, 1997 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

BALTIMORE —

Baltimore Oriole second baseman Roberto Alomar is an eight-time all-star with two World Series rings, but who knows how things would have turned out had his older brother not whacked him in the head with a baseball bat about 20 years ago?

Sandy Alomar, the Cleveland Indian catcher who will square off against his brother and the Orioles in the American League championship series, recalled those afternoons on the dusty sandlots of Puerto Rico, where the fields were dirt, the bases were cardboard and Roberto played catcher, not second base.

“I had the gear and he always wanted to catch, until one day after school, when we were 9 or 10 years old,” Sandy said. “I was hitting and caught him in the head with my backswing--that’s why they call [catcher’s equipment] the tools of ignorance--and he never caught again. He went on to become a six-time Gold Glove winner at second base, so I think I did him a favor.”

Said Roberto Alomar, “After that I went to shortstop. . . . I wanted to get as far away from catcher as I could.”

The Alomars laughed about the incident Tuesday, an afternoon for hugs and pats on the back in Camden Yards, but brotherly love will be set aside when Game 1 of the best-of-seven series starts tonight. And setting it aside won’t be easy.

“Sandy and I are real close--that’s why this is one of the toughest things I have to do in the game,” Roberto said. “If he wins, I’ll feel happy for him. If I win, he’ll be happy for me. But only one of us can go to the World Series, so we just have to accept it.”

This is Family Feud II for the Alomars. The Orioles and Indians also met in the 1996 division series, when Cleveland, which had the best record in baseball, was upset by Baltimore in four games. This year, the Orioles have the league’s best record and the Indians are considered underdogs.

“It’s fun, but it’s also hard because someone has to get eliminated,” Sandy said. “It wasn’t easy to go home last year instead of to the ALCS.”

Sandy and Roberto have been competing for years, so there’s no novelty to their meeting in the playoffs.

“You know it’s your family out there, but when you go on the field, it’s all business,” Roberto said. “He plays for his side, I play for mine, and we do the best we can. Sandy is a great player and everyone respects him and their team, and I think they feel the same way about us.”

There does not appear to be any bad blood in this rivalry--even when they were kids, Roberto said he had his share of arguments with Sandy, but they never came to blows.

“I don’t think he’s ever taken me out with a hard slide at second base,” Roberto said. “But if he has to, he will.”

Sandy, likewise, said he would not hesitate sharing information with a pitcher that will help get his brother out.

“Of course, he makes adjustments every at-bat,” Sandy said. “He’s a great offensive player and a great defensive player. . . . He’s a total package.”

They are finally saying that about Sandy Alomar this year. Injuries plagued him for years--only twice in seven previous seasons did he have 400 or more at-bats--but he had a breakthrough 1997, hitting a career-high .324 with 37 doubles, 21 homers and 83 RBIs, all career bests.

He had a 30-game hitting streak from May 25-July 6 and was named MVP of the All-Star game when he hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning off Shawn Estes to give the American League a 3-1 victory in Cleveland’s Jacobs Field.

Sandy Alomar also delivered late in the season, hitting the game-winning single in Cleveland’s Central Division-clinching 10-9 victory over New York on Sept. 23 and the division series, Game 4-tying home run off Yankee closer Mariano Rivera in the eighth inning of an eventual 3-2 Indian victory.

Behind the plate, Sandy committed only 12 errors. He threw out only 33 of 117 base stealers but Indian Manager Mike Hargrove said that was not indicative of Alomar’s overall improvement as a catcher.

“You look at him as a player and your eyes go right to his offense--he had a career year and is a very good offensive player,” Hargrove said. “But if you look deeper, you realize how much he has developed as a catcher.

“His handling of pitchers and his game calling have improved, and that contributes to his abilities. I think he’s one of the top catchers in the game, both offensively and defensively.”

A total package, as Sandy might say. But so is Roberto, and one of these total packages will be sent home after this series.

“I look at the bright side,” Roberto said. “You know one of us is going to the World Series.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

Baltimore Orioles vs. Cleveland Indians

SERIES AT A GLANCE

* Game 1: Today at Baltimore, 5 p.m.

* Game 2: Thurs. at Baltimore, 5 p.m.

* Game 3: Sat. at Cleve., 1:15 p.m.

* Game 4: Sun. at Cleve., 4:30 p.m.

* Game 5: Mon. at Cleve., 5 p.m.*

* Game 6: Oct. 15 at Balt., 1:15 p.m.*