Dodger Batters Fail to Get Fat Off Hoyt as Padres Win, 11-2

SAN DIEGO —  Ever so faintly, the people here began a cheer in the ninth inning Friday night: “Hoyt . . . Hoyt . . . Hoyt.”

But few people heard it because so few were saying it. LaMarr Hoyt had confused them, almost as much as he’d confused the Los Angeles Dodgers. The fans might have wanted to scream for him, but what had he done?

In actuality, he’d shut down the Dodgers, giving up nine hits in an 11-2 Padre victory. In reality, though, he hadn’t been so dominant. The Dodgers hit the ball in the air many times, to the outfield many times. But the balls were always caught, which was convenient for the Padres.

It’s what Hoyt calls a “comfortable offer,” which, defined, means that opponents think they had a comfortable evening at work, hitting the ball hard four times. But they end up going 0 for 4, and Hoyt ends up with a comfortable complete game victory.

Like Friday night.

Now, the Dodgers had no clue what Hoyt would throw at them because they didn’t even know him. Manager Tom Lasorda said he wouldn’t recognize Hoyt if he saw him and had no idea that Hoyt had lost 30 pounds after the American League Chicago White Sox traded him to the Padres this winter.

“I heard he was heavy,” Lasorda said, obviously not knowing that the White Sox used to win ugly, too, not just heavily.

“Sure, when you don’t see a guy, a pitcher certainly has the advantage.”

Said Bill Russell:”His curveball floats in. . . . If you’ve ever caught a Frisbee, you know what it’s like. It’s tough to wait on, floating in like that.”

So Hoyt outpitched Dodger starter Jerry Reuss for his first National League victory.

“They were getting themselves out,” Hoyt said.

And this is how he wins.

The Dodgers, though, played dodge ball most of the night, and yet never were charged for any errors. Nonetheless, their defense certainly did nothing to help their pitchers, who surrendered 11 hits and eight runs in five innings.

The messes began in the the bottom of the first, an inning that began favorably. Alan Wiggins and Tony Gwynn, the first two batters, were easy outs. But then Steve Garvey doubled just inside third base, just inside Pedro Guerrero’s dive. It began.

After Jerry Reuss walked Kevin McReynolds, Terry Kennedy hit a grounder just to the right of second base. Mariano Duncan dribbled the ball off his feet (no error), but Garvey did not try to score. The bases were loaded now.

So Reuss faced Carmelo Martinez, who’d homered the last time he’d been in a situation such as this. Reuss threw a low breaking ball, then an inside pitch and the count was 2 and 0. Later, Martinez showed his home run swing, but hit it over the fence behind him. It was 2 and 2. Then 3 and 2 on a high changeup. Then he walked him, a fastball getting up too high. Garvey scored, and it was 1-0.

Jerry Royster batted next, and Reuss threw a wild pitch, enabling McReynolds to score. In his last start, Reuss had been hit in the right forearm and lip, and he’d walked two straight batters immediately afterward. So this was obviously worrisome for the Dodgers. His wild pitch bounced once before it reached catcher Mike Scioscia, and then bounded off of Scioscia’s midsection.

Then it got worse. Royster hit a chopper slowly down the third base line, a ball that bounced three times on the grass, dribbled to the dirt and stopped. It was a slow single, scoring Terry Kennedy, a relatively slow runner. It was 3-0.

Meanwhile, Hoyt was hot in his first home appearance, yielding just one hit through four innings. And he sets batters up so well. He’ll throw fastball, fastball, fastball and come back then with a slow curve ball. People are confused. Duncan struck out his first two times up, doing it horribly both times.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers dodged. In the second inning, Alan Wiggins hit a ball hard to left field, a ball that Al Oliver looked to have under control. But Oliver seemed to stumble a bit, and the ball hit him in either the wrist or the palm of his glove. It bounded free into the outfield, a double according to the official scorer.

Gwynn singled then, scoring Wiggins, and this was important only because it had been “Tony Gwynn Batting Tips Night.” Gwynn had written some keys to hitting on a pamphlet, and these were handed out to fans. He backed up his words, so to speak.

The Dodgers had scored in the fifth, getting an RBI singled from pinch hitter Terry Whitfield. But Gwynn doubled in the bottom of the fifth, and the Padres were off again.

Garvey singled then, Gwynn going to third and then scoring on Terry Kennedy’s sacrifice fly. A walk (Carmelo Martinez), a single (Craig Nettles) and a double (Garry Templeton) added three more runs.

And all this came against Bobby Castillo, who’d just come off of the disabled list (sore shoulder), just for this.

In the seventh, with Carlos Diaz pitching now, Kennedy homered to right, a freaky play, too. Mike Marshall had jumped up to rob him, seemingly making the catch. Kennedy stopped between first and second, looking completely confused. Marshall, though, never threw anything towards the infield, so Kennedy ran the bases. It was his third home run.

Finally, the Dodgers were charged with an error in the seventh inning when Greg Brock, playing for Bream at first base, waited too long to step on the base after he fielded a Nettles grounder. He almost threw it to the pitcher, but didn’t.

Dodger Notes Dodger first baseman Greg Brock and his right elbow felt good on Thursday, but apparently felt “super” before Friday night’s game. So he said he was again ready to play, the only problem being in his mind. Brock said no one’s sure if his elbow will heal faster if he sits or if he plays. “Most of it (the decision on whether he’s healthy enough to play) is on me,” he said. Meanwhile, his replacement, Sid Bream, was taking swings in the batting cage Friday night, and Tom Lasorda started yelling at Padre catcher Terry Kennedy, who was watching: “Sid Bream. Remember that name. (Bream smacked one into the outfield then ). He’s hitting just like I taught him” . . . Mariano Duncan, the third youngest player in the National League (22), posed for his first baseball card photo Friday. He didn’t smile . . . Pitcher Bob Welch threw for 15 minutes before Friday’s game and had no pain in his right elbow. Consequently, he will start Monday night against the Giants in San Francisco . . . Second baseman Steve Sax officially made the 15-day supplemental disabled list on Friday, but still was out there taking batting practice on the injured muscle above his ankle . . . Bobby Castillo came off the disabled list and threw in the bullpen when starter Jerry Reuss encountered trouble in the second inning, again in the fifth inning . . . Bill Russell has played 2,0005 games as a Dodger and is one game shy of tying Gil Hodges for third place on the all-time Dodger list . . . Padre right fielder Tony Gwynn was given the “Silver Bat Award” Friday night, in recognition of his N.L. Batting Crown last season (.351) . . . A stat Dick Williams likes: San Diego pitchers have walked just 12 batters in eight games. Last year at this time, it was 29.