Padres Leave 14 Stranded in 5-4 Loss

SAN DIEGO —  Padre Manager Steve Boros kept begging his baserunners to come on home, but they wouldn’t. They stood there, hands on hips.

Where were the hits?

The Padres stranded 14 runners--12 in the last five innings--Saturday night and, consequently, lost to the New York Mets, 5-4.

Gone was their four-game winning streak and gone was their chance to move into first place.

“We had our chances,” Boros said.

Steve Garvey left eight runners himself.

In the seventh inning, the bases were loaded with one out for Kevin McReynolds, who had already homered twice before on this night. Met reliever Roger McDowell struck him out on three pitches. Next, Graig Nettles--who already had homered, too--grounded slowly to second.

In the eighth inning, the bases were loaded for Garvey with two out. A crowd of 36,679--here in part for a postgame Memorial Day fireworks show--chanted, “Garvey, Garvey!” No fireworks came early. McDowell got Garvey to ground slowly to third.

In the ninth inning, Terry Kennedy and McReynolds led off with singles. Jesse Orosco, who had given up a game-winning homer here Friday, ran in to replace McDowell. Nettles flied out, Tim Flannery struck out, and it was up to pinch-hitter Bruce Bochy.

Kennedy and McReynolds had their hands on their hips.

Orosco then jammed Bochy’s hands on a 2-2 pitch and he popped up. First baseman Keith Hernandez got under it and nearly dropped it. But he didn’t.

Boros left the dugout, hands on hips.

Padre starter and loser Mark Thurmond had trouble and couldn’t make it through the fourth inning.

At least he made it through the first.

Remember last Sunday? With The Beach Boys waiting in the wings, the Montreal Expos didn’t wait long to get to Thurmond. Hubie Brooks hit a grand slam, and they were off, scoring six first-inning runs.

Thurmond never got anybody out.

So he came out firing the ball Saturday, his first start since that debacle. He struck out Mooke Wilson--who had gone 5 for 5 the previous night--and then struck out Kevin Mitchell. Keith Hernandez blooped a single, but Gary Carter lined out to shortstop to end the inning and the anxiety for Thurmond.

In the meantime, the Padres were getting to Met starter Bruce Berenyi. In the second, Terry Kennedy walked. Kevin McReynolds, the next batter, popped the first pitch up in foul territory near the first base side, where Hernandez was circling under it. But Hernandez got twisted around as the ball twisted away from him. Suddenly off-balance, he dropped it.

A reprieve.

A home run.

McReynolds hit a 1-and-2 pitch deep to left-center, his eighth of the year, and the Padres led, 2-0.

Hernandez’s hands were on his hips. He shook his head.

And Berenyi couldn’t shake it off. His first pitch to the next batter, Nettles, was hit in almost the same spot in left-center for another home run. Nettles, who tells people he’s a streak hitter, is on one. It was his third homer in four days, and the last two have come on the first pitch to him.

So it was 3-0, Padres.

But Thurmond screwed up.

Now, Met batters were seeing him for a second time. Mitchell, who attended Clairemont High here in San Diego, led off the fourth with a single to left.

Hernandez singled hard to right, a ball that Tony Gwynn thought he’d mishandled. Actually, the ball plopped on one hop into Gwynn’s glove, but Gwynn spun around looking for it. He finally found it in his glove, but Mitchell had run all the way to third.

Next, Gary Carter lashed one to left, just off shortstop Garry Templeton’s glove, and Mitchell scored. Darryl Strawberry smacked one to left-center, but Marvell Wynne made a great running catch. George Foster then scored Hernandez with a sacrifice fly.

It wasn’t over. Tim Teufel singled, and Rafael Santana doubled in two runs to make it 4-3, Mets. It was Santana’s first RBI since April 22, and he was playing only because regular Met infielder Ray Knight was home with his pregnant wife, pro golfer Nancy Lopez.

So Thurmond left. His ERA in his last three games stands at 21.94. Something’s wrong. Just five starts ago, he almost threw a perfect game against St. Louis. Now, he has told pitching coach Galen Cisco that he’s throwing just for the strike zone and not for specific spots around the plate, maybe because he’s not too confident. Cisco told him to cut that out, but Thurmond apparently couldn’t.

He was replaced with Tim Stoddard, and Mitchell again singled in the fifth. He eventually scored--making it 5-3, Mets--on Gary Carter’s second RBI single.

McReynolds hit another home run in the sixth to cut the Padre deficit to one. That’s nine homers on the year, tying him with Steve Garvey for the team lead and ranking him third in the National League.

The Padres always run a fifth-inning video feature on their huge television screen in right field, and Saturday’s feature just so happened to be about McReynolds.

To the tune “Thank God I’m a Country Boy,” the video showed McReynolds hitting homers and making plays in the field. McReynolds watched it all, forgetting to take his warmup throws to begin the inning.

This was right before his second homer of the night. It was the first time McReynolds had ever hit two in the same game.

Padre Notes

Slumping and grumping Carmelo Martinez--6 for 39 before Friday night--had two hits Friday and was even seen laughing Saturday. What a difference a hit makes. “You can just see his spirits pick up,” Manager Steve Boros said. “He’s swinging more relaxed, and that’s what’s important.” . . . And Bip Roberts was seen in the batting cage Saturday. “Who’s this guy?” Boros asked. “Ah, some punk,” somebody answered. Roberts, nursing an injury in the groin area, will make the trip to Montreal, but likely won’t play until Friday in Philadelphia. “He’s got to be able to beat out bunts, beat out high choppers and steal a base,” Boros said. “If he can’t do that, we won’t play him. That’s his game.” Roberts had been confused recently, for he wasn’t sure if he was allowed to sit in the dugout during games. Finally on Friday, he sat there. Boros had asked umpire Ed Montague if it was OK, and Montague said it was fine, as long as Roberts behaved himself and didn’t mouth off to umpires. . . . Boros on Mookie Wilson, who went 5 for 5 Friday: “I don’t think Walter Johnson could’ve got Mookie out.” . . . LaMarr Hoyt walked four batters Friday night, his most as a Padre. “He’s just not sharp,” Boros said. “It’s still spring training for him.” . . . Met third baseman Ray Knight flew home Saturday morning to be with his wife, pro golfer Nancy Lopez, who is about to give birth to their third child.

PADRES AT A GLANCE Scorecard SECOND INNING Padres--With one out, Kennedy walked. McReynolds homered to left-center, his eighth. Nettles homered to left-center, his seventh. Flannery struck out. Thurmond grounded to third. Three runs, two hits.

FOURTH INNING Mets--Mitchell singled to left. Hernandez singled to right, Mitchell taking second and stopping at third on Gwynn’s fielding error. Carter singled to left, Mitchell scoring and Hernandez stopping at second. Strawberry flied to center, Hernandez tagging and taking third. Foster flied to center, Hernandez tagging and scoring. Teufel singled to right, Carter stopping at second. Santana doubled to left-center, Carter and Teufel scoring. Stoddard replaced Thurmond. Berenyi struck out. Four runs, five hits, one left.

FIFTH INNING Mets--With one out, Mitchell singled to center. Mitchell stole second. Hernandez struck out. Carter singled to left, Mitchell scoring. Strawberry flied to left. One run, two hits, one left.

SIXTH INNING Padres--With one out, McReynolds homered to right-center, his ninth. Niemann replaced Berenyi. Nettles struck out. Flannery walked. Martinez, pinch-hitting for Walter, walked. Wynne flied to center. One run, one hit, two left.