Hershiser Hopes There’s a Place for Him Next Year

Retirement has been as relaxing as Orel Hershiser had hoped.

The former Dodger pitcher is enjoying time with his family at their Windermere, Fla., home, capitalizing on an unexpectedly early off-season for him.

But Chavez Ravine remains in his thoughts.

Hershiser is troubled by the Dodgers’ poor performance after a promising start, saying his play contributed to the problem.

He also hopes to be part of the solution.

In his first lengthy interview since retiring, Hershiser on Friday reaffirmed his desire to join the front-office or field staff in 2001.

The 204-game winner said he will not lobby for a position, adding he only wants to be part of Chairman Bob Daly’s management team if Daly believes there is a place for him at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers said they hope to retain Hershiser, who is ready to work again.

“The natural progression for me would be to do something with the Dodgers,” said Hershiser, who retired from the club July 6. “I think everyone in baseball pretty much expects that, I understand that. But anything that I say can only put pressure on the front office, and put pressure on Mr. Daly, and that’s not something I want to do.

“I don’t want to have the fans start dreaming or to start expecting something. I know that the speculation will come, and speculation comes quicker when things are not working out well, but I just don’t want to contribute to that.”

Another disappointing season is fueling speculation.

The Dodgers are fourth in the National League West despite many major moves that pushed the payroll to $98 million--second highest in baseball.

Manager Davey Johnson is expected to be fired in another organizational purge that might extend to the executive offices.

The Dodgers are the majors’ worst fielding club statistically, and the fourth and fifth spots in the rotation have been brutal.

There is frustration in the clubhouse stemming from unfulfilled expectations, the team is limping toward the finish line and facing major payroll issues.

Other than that, things couldn’t be better.

“I follow the club on a daily basis and, yeah, it has been frustrating,” said Hershiser, who spent parts of 13 seasons with the Dodgers after being drafted in 1979. “I have a [satellite] dish and I pull them up all the time, and it has been painful to watch, especially because we were only five, six games out at times, and we even climbed to [two] games [Aug. 2].

“I take that personally. I ask myself, ‘What if I had had a better year? What if I wouldn’t have hit the end of my career?’ It’s a feeling like I helped bring them down.”

The 17-year veteran struggled, going 1-5 with a 13.14 earned-run average in his final season.

But many contributed to the Dodgers’ downfall, and Hershiser hasn’t been involved in the closing collapse.

“I don’t know if I want to call it falling apart,” Hershiser said. “I can’t view it as they’ve fallen apart because I still have so many sentimental bones toward the guys. I’m always wanting to give them the benefit of the doubt. I want to believe that everyone is pulling hard, everyone is working at what they’re trying to do, trying to do something good for the team.

“I know I’ve been on teams where we were at least expected to contend, and then at the end things started not to look so good. It’s really hard to get up every morning and say, ‘Today I’m a professional baseball player, and I need to be dedicated to the task, not only for me individually but as a teammate.’ You need to motivate yourself and motivate each other.

“I’m sure that’s very hard for the guys right now. But for me to sit back and watch them on TV and say, ‘If only so and so would have done that, or this is not happening, or I wonder what’s going on in the dugout or the clubhouse,’ that wouldn’t be fair.

“I really can’t critique that because I’m not there on a daily basis right now to see what’s going on, I’m not one of the 25 guys in the locker room.

“If I was still in the locker room and being interviewed, I would say the critiques need to come after the season. Whatever team moral is left, whatever team chemistry is left, all you can do is obliterate it if you start back stabbing and talking about what went wrong.”

Hershiser, whom the Dodgers are paying $2.5 million under the terms of this season’s contract and a 2001 option buyout, prepared a report on triple-A Albuquerque at the request of General Manager Kevin Malone.

Dodger officials plan to meet with Hershiser after assessing the damage of another wasted season.

“Orel Hershiser has always been an important part of the Dodgers, and we hope we can create a situation where he can be a contributing member for many years to come,” said Derrick Hall, senior vice president. “But we must first sit down with Orel once the season is over to see where his mind is, and in what capacity he can best suit his interests and the Dodgers’ interests.”

Hershiser is waiting eagerly.