He Has New Hairstyle but Stays True to Roots

He smokes, he enjoys an occasional beer or three, he has been described as a guy who looks more like a plumber than a professional baseball player ... how can the average fan not relate to San Diego Padre reliever Rod Beck?

Beck is back in the big leagues, with his signature Fu Manchu mustache but without the shaggy, shoulder-length mullet, after missing 2002 because of elbow reconstruction surgery and spending the first two months of 2003 in the minor leagues.

A down-to-earth guy in a business filled with multimillion-dollar salaries and egos, Beck endeared himself to fans by living in a 36-foot Winnebago beyond the right-field wall in Des Moines’ Sec Taylor Stadium during his eight-week stint with the triple-A Iowa Cubs, welcoming fans to join him after games for a cold one and some chatter.

A graduate of Grant High in Van Nuys, Beck, who spent 10 major league seasons with the Giants, Cubs and Red Sox, signed with the Padres on June 2 and is filling in for injured closer Trevor Hoffman.

The Times caught up with Beck before he registered his fifth save of the season -- and save No. 271 in his career -- against the Dodgers on Wednesday night.

Question: You shaved your head. Why?

Answer: Because I had the bald yarmulke and the power alleys working, I was doing the comb-over, all that. I hadn’t cut the length in like, 10 years, and it was just breaking off. It looked like weeds, so I chopped it off.

Q: You’re one of only eight pitchers to record a 50-save season (51 with the Cubs in 1998). Have you ever thought of yourself as a superstar?

A: No ... and I don’t know that anyone else has, either. I’ve never thought of myself in those terms. I mean, I was a good player, I made a few All-Star games, the playoffs and stuff, but a superstar? Nah. Even if I was Barry Bonds, I wouldn’t act like I was. I’m a reflection of my parents. They raised me to treat people the way I want to be treated.

Q: Did you ever lift weights or ice your arm before elbow surgery?

A: My last two years in Boston [2000-2001] I started lifting weights and got down to 9.2% body fat, and then I blew my arm out, so I don’t do that anymore. As far as ice goes, I was taught that ice is for scotch, not your arm.

Q: You said you weighed 257 pounds and had 25% body fat when you came to the big leagues in 1991. What prompted you to get into shape in 2000?

A: I was getting old, I had problems with my back, my neck, my knees. I thought I only had a few more years left, so I was gonna get after it. I took one day off after the 1999 season and started lifting weights. I bounced on the trampoline with a medicine ball, rode the stationary bike every day for 40 minutes, busting my tail. I got my weight down ... and then blew my arm out. It goes right back to the statement I made a few years ago: I ain’t never seen a guy on the disabled list with pulled fat.

Q: Can you reach 300 saves?

A: Yes. If given the opportunity, I know I can. I’ve been given the opportunity. Now I have to get the manager’s confidence. Three hundred saves is certainly a goal, but I wouldn’t say it’s a driving force. If I don’t get it, I can still say I had a pretty good career, but 300 is a nice number.

Q: Did two months in the minor leagues invigorate you?

A: Without a doubt. I went there somewhat begrudgingly; it wasn’t that I had a chip on my shoulder, but I was kind of bummed. Guys started coming to me, asking about the big leagues. I started talking to them about it, and what I found was, while trying to help them, they helped me more than I helped them. You had 23-year-old kids playing for $2,000 a month, trying to live their dream and get to the big leagues, and I had already done all that. These guys are playing for all the right reasons, because it’s fun. That’s the reason I started playing. Now, that’s the only reason I’m still playing. I take my paycheck and throw it in my locker. Heck, I’d pay them to play.

Q: How did you end up living in an RV in the stadium parking lot?

A: Well, I was told I was going to go down [to the minor leagues] for two weeks, maybe a month, so I figured, I’m not gonna get an apartment, cable TV, a phone for two weeks and then check out. Two months later, I was still out there. The longer I was out there, the more people found out, and the more popular it became. I liked the publicity, but I wanted people to talk a little about my pitching.

Q: Did you have any second thoughts during the drive from your home in Scottsdale, Ariz., to Iowa?

A: Yeah, I almost turned it around a couple of times. I don’t need to play from a monetary standpoint. I made three All-Star teams, the playoffs, but I never got a World Series ring. But more than that, I’m 34 years old, what am I gonna do the rest of my life? That crossed my mind; that, and the fact my daughters [age 9 and 8], when I left, said they want to see me pitch in the big leagues.

Q: What was the strangest thing that happened while living in your RV?

A: One night, I came out after the game and there were literally 50 people standing in a semi-circle around the RV. I had these bug zappers, these tiki torches, aligned in a semi-circle, and it was like they didn’t want to invade my space. I grabbed a beer, sat down at a table, and no one says anything, they’re just staring at me. So I say, “Y’all either gonna have to come over here, have a beer, ask me for an autograph, take a picture, or you’re gonna have to leave.”

Q: What were people in Iowa like?

A: Very nice, very nice. My fear was that if I didn’t pitch well, they were gonna go break a window or rip off all my stuff when I was out of town. I grew up in L.A., but in Iowa, they were like, “Hey, we don’t do that.” They know when we’re out of town, so anyone could have done anything, but I had more people coming around, making sure everything was OK, taking care of the RV. They were very helpful, very polite. It was a great experience. It was real cool. I made a lot of friends.

Q: What’s the best thing about Iowa?

A: The road out.