Case Is Far From Closed on Shaw

The Dodgers put reliever Jeff Shaw in a difficult position in Friday’s 9-6, 12-inning loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.

The recently demoted closer worked through two rain delays totaling 41 minutes because Manager Davey Johnson used four other relievers, and right-hander Terry Adams has a sore pitching shoulder.

The Cardinals tied the score, 6-6, in the 11th against Shaw on J.D. Drew’s two-out, run-scoring single. Craig Paquette capped the Cardinals’ victory with a one-out, three-run homer against Shaw.

Shaw (2-4) gave up four hits and four runs in 1 1/3 innings. Although the delays made the situation more difficult, Shaw has struggled since the season started.

Johnson has been forced to use a closing committee because of Shaw’s ineffectiveness.

Shaw has blown seven saves in 19 opportunities and has a 7.96 earned-run average. Opponents are batting .331 against him--left-handed batters .362.

“We have a problem right now and we’ve got to figure out a solution,” said Johnson, trying to determine how to use Shaw. “With the rain, I don’t want to be too tough on him . . . but I don’t want to relive [the blown saves] over and over again.

“We have to try to do whatever is in the best interest for him and the ballclub. We’ll have to figure out a plan to see what we can do with him. The bottom line is the bottom line, but we have to do everything we can.”

The Dodgers gave Shaw seven days’ rest at the beginning of the month to strengthen his tired pitching shoulder, and the right-hander’s fastball had more velocity after he returned.

But even at his best, Shaw’s fastball is only about 91-92 mph. His slider hasn’t been effective, and Shaw, 33, needs the pitch because he can’t overpower most batters.

“I’m not going to make excuses, that’s not what I’m about,” Shaw said. “I came in to get a job done, and I didn’t get it done.

“I had a bad game with some weird circumstances thrown in there. It [his confidence] is rocked and a little shaken, but it’s not broken.”

The Dodgers acquired Shaw from the Cincinnati Reds in July 1998 for first baseman Paul Konerko and pitcher Dennis Reyes, then the club’s top two prospects. Konerko has become a consistent run producer for the Chicago White Sox, and Reyes has been a key member of the Reds’ bullpen.

But the Dodgers didn’t have a proven closer at the time of the deal, and Shaw led the National League with 42 saves in ’97. He had 48 saves combined for the Reds and Dodgers in ‘98, and led the Dodgers with 34 last season.

After the ’98 season, the Dodgers tore up the contract Shaw signed with the Reds and gave him a three-year, $16.65-million package because he could have forced the club to trade him as a player traded in the middle of a multiyear deal.

Shaw is making $5.05 million this season and is owed $6.05 million next in the the final guaranteed year of the deal. The Dodgers hold a $7.05-million option for 2002, or a $1.5-million buyout.

Not surprisingly, Johnson hopes Shaw reverts to form. Quickly.

“The closer didn’t just die, he’s still alive, he still can come back,” Johnson said. “But while he’s struggling, we’ve got to go to an alternate plan.”

*

During the heaviest rains Saturday, Cardinal Manager Tony La Russa helped the ground crew put the tarp on the Busch Stadium field. . . . Mark McGwire is 13 home runs behind Reggie Jackson, who is sixth on the all-time list at 563. “I was honored enough to play my rookie year with him,” McGwire said. “I find it sort of weird. He saw me hit 49 as a rookie.”

TODAY

DODGERS’ KEVIN BROWN (6-2, 2.38 ERA) vs. CARDINALS’ RICK ANKIEL (6-3, 3.58 ERA)

Busch Stadium, 11 a.m. PDT

TV--Channel 5. Radio--KXTA (1150), KWKW (1330).

* Update--Brown is second in the league in ERA, second with four complete games, eighth with 102 innings pitched and tied for eighth with 89 strikeouts. Ankiel averages 9.3 strikeouts per nine innings. Opponents are batting .225 against the rookie left-hander.