Baseball Roundup : Cardinals’ Bats Outperform Their Gloves, 13-12

Could it be that the St. Louis Cardinals miss Jack Clark’s glove more than they do his bat?

It is not likely that Clark, first baseman for the Cardinals before becoming the New York Yankees’ designated hitter, made the difference, but the Cardinal defense has collapsed. They have gone from best in the majors to worst.

For four seasons in a row, the Cardinals have made the fewest errors in the National League. Now, with virtually the same defensive cast, the Cardinals have made more errors than any other major league team.

The Cardinals have 39 errors in 33 games.

They made five, four of them dropped fly balls, Thursday at St. Louis, but had enough offense to nose out the San Francisco Giants, 13-12, in an afternoon game that followed a 16-inning night game won by the Giants, 5-4.

Bob Horner, Clark’s replacement at first, dropped one of the flies, but he also came out of a 2-for-30 slump to get four hits, two of them two-run singles.

Center fielder Willie McGee, three-time Gold Glove winner, dropped two of the flies in the fourth inning to set up five unearned runs as the Giants chased John Tudor and took a 7-3 lead.

The Cardinals scored six runs in the sixth, chasing Rick Reuschel, but they trailed, 11-9, going into the bottom of the seventh, when they scored four runs, Horner singling home two of them.

Shortstop Ozzie Smith and third baseman Terry Pendleton of the Cardinals, incidentally, already have 13 errors--5 by Smith, who had only 10 all last season.

Chicago 2, San Diego 1--The Padres had 14 hits in 10 innings at Chicago but managed only one run and lost again. Rookie Damon Barryhill doubled home Mark Grace with two out in the extra inning to win it for the Cubs.

One of the Padre hits was Carmelo Martinez’s smash that hit pitcher Calvin Schiraldi in the left knee. He was carried off the field on a stretcher, but it was only a bruise.

Padre starter Eric Show made his first appearance in Chicago since he hit Andre Dawson in the mouth with a pitch last July 7. Dawson needed 24 stitches and missed two games. There were no incidents this time, and Dawson went 0 for 3 against Show.

Toronto 8, Seattle 2--Jesse Barfield’s run-scoring double in the fourth inning triggered a three-run rally at Toronto, helping Mike Flanagan improve his record to 4-2.

Cleveland 3, Milwaukee 1--Ron Washington tripled home Mel Hall with the go-ahead run with two out in the ninth inning at Milwaukee, giving Tom Candiotti his fifth win against one defeat.

Texas 2, Baltimore 1--Jose Guzman (4-2) and two relievers worked out of one jam after another at Arlington, Tex., and the Rangers extended their winning streak to six games. The Orioles, who have won just 4 of 33 games, had 8 hits and received 5 walks but left 12 runners on base.