PITCHER NOT SO PERFECT

Kevin Brown understood the ground rules.

As baseball’s first $100-million player, Brown knew the heat of great expectations would increase the moment he signed the stunning $105-million deal with the Dodgers.

But he didn’t expect this.

The Dodgers have been a laughingstock. They have been an embarrassment on the field, proving that an $80-million payroll doesn’t necessarily buy happiness--or enough victories to avoid last place in the National League West.

And Brown has become the poster boy for the overpaid, overhyped ballclub.

Brown goes to the mound today against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium. The right-hander continues to do what he can, though Brown’s critics believe he has not done enough.

“Obviously, everything has been real frustrating,” Brown said. “The bottom line is winning, winning is the only way to have fun, and we haven’t been having a lot of fun.

“You can’t help but be discouraged by the way the season has gone for us. You want to stay positive, you want to keep hoping that this won’t continue, but it has. It’s hard.”

Especially for Brown.

General Manager Kevin Malone thought Brown was the key piece to completing a championship puzzle. He persuaded team President Bob Graziano, and Peter Chernin and Chase Carey, the top Fox officials, to back his efforts to sign the free agent during the off-season.

Graziano, Chernin and Carey quickly got aboard. Their support enabled Malone to close the deal with Brown’s agent, Scott Boras, by agreeing to give Brown a seven-year deal, unheard of for pitchers. The use of a chartered jet to fly Brown’s wife, Candace, and their sons, Ridge and Grayson, from their home in Macon, Ga., to Los Angeles clinched the transaction.

Expectedly, the record-setting contract with the unprecedented plane perk was not well received by baseball officials. At that point, Malone became public enemy No. 1 in the industry.

Malone stoked the fire by announcing that Brown’s arrival elevated the Dodgers among the game’s elite, and that his presence would make the Dodger starting staff dominant.

Of course, Malone insists he was only trying to boost the organization’s morale after years of unfulfilled expectations. Regardless, what has occurred has been a worst-case scenario for the Dodgers and Brown.

With few exceptions, the pitching staff has been a major disappointment. Brown also has struggled recently after beginning the season 9-4 with a league-low 2.89 earned-run average in his first 16 starts.

Brown is 0-2 with two no-decisions in his last four starts. He has a 7.27 ERA during that span, increasing his ERA to 3.72.

The rocky stretch kept Brown at home during the All-Star game. Not that he would have enjoyed the experience this season.

“I understand how it works,” said Brown, a four-time all-star. “Results are the only thing that matter, and that’s just the way it is. I can’t worry about what other people think, but I know that I’m not satisfied with aspects of my performance.”

Many within the organization believe Brown has placed too much of the team’s burden on his shoulders.

“Brownie sometimes feels like he has to do it all himself, like it’s all on him,” Manager Davey Johnson said. “All I expect from Brownie is for him to go out and set the great example he always does. He expects more from himself, and that’s great, but it can’t all be on him.”

The public perception is that the team has failed because Brown has not had the impact many were led to believe he would.

However, Brown can only do so much.

He has no control over Chan Ho Park’s fragile mental state created by his unresolved contract situation. He didn’t cause Carlos Perez’s unexplained decrease in velocity, Darren Dreifort’s growing pains in the rotation or catcher Todd Hundley’s throwing problems.

“We haven’t completely gotten it together as a team in some areas,” Johnson said. “That’s not on any one individual.”

Brown did have a strong influence on the San Diego Padre staff last season. Padre General Manager Kevin Towers and Manager Bruce Bochy credit Brown with leading the Padres to the World Series.

The Florida Marlins won the 1997 World Series championship with Brown playing a major role. But Brown isn’t some good-luck charm who magically transforms teams. His presence alone is not going to make everything right.

“Kevin Brown is a great pitcher and we needed him,” said left fielder Gary Sheffield, who also played with Brown in Florida. “You need to have that No. 1 starter if you’re trying to be a championship club. But you can’t look at Kevin Brown to make everything right by himself.

“Everyone has to be responsible for their own performance. We’re all grown men, and we should be treated like grown men. If somebody is struggling, it’s not because Kevin Brown isn’t doing something right. It’s not because Kevin Brown isn’t doing his job. It doesn’t work that way.”

Brown has tried to help.

He speaks often with his fellow starters, and has offered suggestions where he sees fit. He also helps in an unspoken way because the other Dodger pitchers don’t have to worry about being The Man.

However, Brown has learned that this role-model stuff is a lot tougher than one would think.

“It’s a process,” Brown said. “You don’t just come in and start . . . Sometimes it takes a while. It’s just not an overnight thing. I mean, I do question myself sometimes. I think about if there is something I want to say that might help in a certain situation.

“You ask yourself what can you do? But we all learn from each other. It’s not a situation where I’m going to tell guys what to do. Everybody has to do what works for them. You talk about baseball and situations, and you hope something you say can help. But it’s just not that simple.”

Malone remains among Brown’s fiercest supporters, saying the $15-million-a-year pitcher has been everything he expected.

“Kevin Brown gives us a chance to win every time he pitches,” Malone said. “People don’t realize how competitive this guy is and how much he cares. That’s something that every team needs, and you couldn’t ask for a better influence for our young staff.

“The way he prepares, the way he goes about his work. We need that influence. The other guys see that, but they’re still learning. As for [the expectations], all you can control is your effort.”

But that won’t be enough to satisfy Dodger fans.

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Muddy Brown

A look at where Kevin Brown ranks in various pitching categories this season and his average in those categories from 1996-1998:

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Category ’99 rank ’99 ‘96-98 avg. ERA 20th 3.72 2.33 Wins T19th 9 17 Innings pitched per start 4th 7 7 1/3 Strikeouts per 9 IP 14th 7.83 7.68 Baserunners per 9 IP 8th 10.90 9.58 Home Runs per 9 IP 23rd 0.91 0.32

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Green Machines

A look at some of the top starting pitchers in baseball this season, with their numbers and salary compared to Brown:

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Player Team W-L ERA 1999 salary Kevin Brown Dodgers 9-6 3.72 $10,714,266 Kent Bottenfield St. Louis 14-3 4.01 $800,000 David Cone N.Y. Yankees 10-4 2.65 $8,000,000 Mike Hampton Houston 12-3 2.81 $4,000,000 Randy Johnson Arizona 9-7 2.80 $9,350,000 Jose Lima Houston 13-4 3.20 $1,950,000 Pedro Martinez Boston 15-3 2.51 $11,000,000 Kevin Millwood Atlanta 11-5 3.27 $230,000 Mike Mussina Baltimore 12-4 3.57 $6,523,143 Curt Schilling Philadelphia 14-4 4.06 $5,100,000

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Researched by HOUSTON MITCHELL / Los Angeles Times

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Brown in Blue

A breakdown of Kevin Brown’s various pitching categories in his first season with the Dodgers.

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IP W L ERA Home 71 1/3 6 1 2.40 Away 66 2/3 3 5 5.13 April 34 2/3 2 1 2.34 May 44 1/3 3 2 2.84 June 39 4 2 5.08 July 20 0 1 5.40

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