Dodgers, Russell Appear to Be Sinking in the West

As the Dodgers continue to fall apart like a bad shirt-- the latest thread-twirler occurred here Tuesday against the future World Series champion San Diego Padres--keep one thing in mind.

As an organization, they have never given up on a season.

As an organization, the Dodgers play all 18, touch them all, keep running until the calendar tells them to stop.

Some of their players might quit--see 1997, 1996, etc.--but never management.

Leave it lesser franchises--the Seattles and Milwaukees and Montreals of the world--to fill the fall lineup with kids, let an outfielder pitch, let a reliever start.

Leave it others to clean house while the house is still open for business.

Not the Dodgers, who lost 99 games in 1992 and were still trying to figure out ways to win in August, still listening to Tom Lasorda scream in September.

Which brings us to Lasorda’s unfortunate replacement, Bill Russell, who screams with his eyes, which were popping clear out of his head during Tuesday’s 10-6 loss.

You know Fox wants to fire him. You know they want to can him quicker than a sitcom about two wacky sisters and their blind dog.

And after the season, if things do not change, they should.

But not now.

To fire Russell now would be to give up on 1998, hand the team over to a temp, turn the summer into calisthenics, ask fans to watch you run in place.

For all its faults, Jackie Robinson’s organization has never run in place.

You know Fox hates Russell’s squint, his bored stance, the appearance that he is merely watching his team crumble around his folded arms.

You know Fox is only waiting for the day it can bring a big smile and dramatic fist pump back to the Dodger dugout, preferably where the cameras can focus.

You know they are asking, but isn’t sticking with Russell also like running in place?

Yes, if he was doing this poorly with the same team that failed down the stretch in the last two seasons.

But Tuesday, the Dodgers started five players that weren’t even around last year.

Russell is hampered by a bullpen and outfield situation that was not properly improved in the off-season.

He is saddled with a starting rotation beset with injuries and an ineffectiveness that somebody should have seen coming. (News flash: Hideo Nomo was going bad long before last month).

Has he been reaching and motivating his players? Not every night.

But should he at least be given the rest of the season to learn how to do that with this particular bunch? Yes.

To fire Russell now would be unfair not only to him, but unfair to the most important Dodger tradition.

“I hear everybody talking about them over there, but not me, because I know the Dodgers,” the Padres’ Tony Gwynn said Tuesday. “I’ve seen them struggle the first half of the year and then put it all together. I know better than to ever count them out.

“You watch, it’s happened before, these guys are going to settle in, get comfortable, and they’ll be a factor.”

Even if that never happens--a distinct possibility with the probable loss of pitcher Ramon Martinez for the season--you at least want to look like you’re trying.

And considering the possible midseason replacement for Russell, that would be difficult indeed.

What, they’re going to bring in Jim Leyland as his replacement? No until October, they can’t.

What, they want to grab a feisty coach from a winning team, maybe Davey Lopes from San Diego or Larry Bowa from the Angels? Not until October, they can’t.

With the possible exception of Davey Johnson, all the good managerial candidates are busy right now.

This means you fire Russell now, and about the best you can do is get somebody to fill out the lineup card and break up fights.

This also goes for the otherwise lovely idea of bringing back Lasorda to keep the seat warm.

It would be fun, it would sell tickets, but you know Lasorda’s health--not to mention his family----would not allow him to return permanently.

Yes, there are also several younger, inexperienced potential interim candidates within the organization. They also might be fun.

But--and this may sound funny--what if they win? What if the team, feeling no pressure after Russell’s firing, ends the season on a hot streak?

Then in the winter, Fox might feel pressure to stick with the young guy and ignore the available veteran from somewhere else and, well, in two years we could be right back where we started.

So you stick with Russell for the rest of the year. In fact, you do more than that.

Remember when General Manager Fred Claire held a meeting to tell the team that they were not trading for Randy Johnson? He holds another meeting, only in this one, he tells them that Russell isn’t going anywhere.

Once he has the stability that Lasorda subtly and smartly exploited for so many years, then maybe he has a chance to regain control over an aimless bunch that has taken full advantage of the chaos.

And aimless they are.

They blew a 2-0 lead Tuesday with, among other things, a single by Padre pitcher Kevin Brown, a passed ball by Charles Johnson, and Bobby Bonilla’s failure to handle a double-play grounder.

Even the usual chants of “Beat L.A.” from the crowd of 38,166 at Qualcomm Stadium were weak and eventually faded. It was as if, for the first time in a long time, their northern rivals weren’t worth the effort.

Indeed, life around the Dodgers has rarely been more unsightly, more unsettled, with everyone wondering when their realistic hopes of making the playoffs will end.

Fire the manager and find out.