Hurst Gets the VIP Treatment : Very Important Pitcher Welcomed by the Padres

Amid talk of family and baseball, Bruce Hurst, the Padres’ new centerpiece in a winter of acquisitions, arrived in town Thursday to a welcoming committee that rivaled any in team history.

The news conference resembled an Academy Awards ceremony, except it was shorter. For nearly an hour, the key players in the Hurst negotiations took turns shuffling from the head table to the microphone.

Among those with place-settings: Hurst and his wife, Holly; Padre owner Joan Kroc; Dick Freeman, the team’s acting president; and San Diego Mayor Maureen O’Connor.

The table thus filled, city council members Ron Roberts and Wes Pratt, who arrived with O’Connor, took seats in the gallery.

All of which stunned and pleased Bruce and Holly Hurst.

“No, I didn’t expect the mayor or the owner to come,” Bruce Hurst said. “I thought it would just be media. But it’s really nice that they’re a part of this.”

Said Holly: “After hearing Bruce talk about the organization, it doesn’t surprise me that they showed up. It’s very refreshing.”

In trying to land Hurst, the Padres worked to convince him that they had a top-flight organization and that San Diego is a family-oriented community, something Hurst had said he was seeking. Thursday’s event was meant to have that kind of feel.

The mayor applauded Padre officials. Padre officials applauded the mayor.

Dick thanked Joan. Joan thanked Dick. Dick thanked former Padre Dane Iorg, a good friend of Hurst’s who spoke highly of San Diego throughout the contract negotiations. Dick thanked O’Connor.

As the Christmas cookies, nuts, cider, coffee and soft drinks waited on a table a few feet away, O’Connor handed the key to the city to the Hursts. Hurst and Freeman ceremonially signed the historic contract, and Hurst held up a No. 47 jersey and donned a brown-and-orange cap.

“It’s great to be in San Diego,” Hurst said. “This is the place I want to be, to settle and to play baseball. I’m looking forward to contributing to the Padres and to the city.

“I just want you to know how proud I am to be here, and how much I appreciate the way the whole process went. I’ve never been more impressed with anyone than I have been with Mr. Freeman and Mrs. Kroc, and Jack McKeon. Their honesty and integrity through this whole process made a big impact on my wife and I. I know I’m coming to a first-class organization, and I’m really looking forward to being here.”

In his first appearance in the city since he signed a 3-year, $5.25 million contract loaded with incentives that could push it as high as $5.6 million, Hurst was relaxed but animated.

On a cool, blustery, rainy day more resembling October in Boston than December in San Diego, he stood in the cozy Stadium Club, surrounded by Christmas greenery and poinsettias, and spoke repeatedly of the family virtues that he said led to his decision to sign with San Diego.

“My family was a real big consideration, and when I say that, I’m walking a real fine line,” said Hurst, who is from St. George, Utah, about 500 miles northeast of San Diego. “I’m not saying Boston or New England is not a wonderful place to raise kids and to live, because it certainly is a great environment. But my family is from the West, and the proximity is so much better. It’s the chance of a lifetime. This has always been a place in which I’ve considered settling down permanently. Now I have the chance to play baseball and live here.”

Left-handed starting pitchers are always in demand, and Hurst is one of baseball’s best. He compiled a career record of 88-73 in Boston, including a career-best 18-6 with a 3.66 earned-run average in 1988. He was picked as the Red Sox player of the year by the Boston Baseball Writers’ Assn. of America. Those numbers impressed the Padres, but Hurst thinks the best is yet to come.

“I think I’m still improving,” he said. “That’s what excites me. I think I can get better and better. I think my control has improved, I feel a lot more comfortable on the mound, my relaxation in certain situations is better--I don’t get tense and fear the worst anymore, and I learned to throw a changeup over the plate in certain situations for strikes.”

And after spending 9 years in the American League, a new league doesn’t worry him.

“I approach pitching one way: A quality pitch gets a quality hitter out,” Hurst said. “I figure I get 35 starts a year, and it’s my job to be ready to pitch those 35.”

Hurst said he did plenty of research before choosing San Diego. He spoke on different occasions with Boston Celtic star Danny Ainge and his wife, who is from San Diego; Oakland pitcher Dennis Eckersley, who played in San Diego during his days with the Chicago Cubs; former Padre Tim Lollar, a teammate of Hurst’s in Boston; and Tony Gwynn.

He liked what he heard. The sole reason for the delayed decision, which came several days after Hurst wanted, was simply that he wanted to hear out all parties.

“I just wanted to make sure everyone said what they had to say before I had a chance to make my choice,” Hurst said. “One of the problems we had was the distance--Nick (Lampros, Hurst’s agent) was in San Jose, I was in Boston, and during the last few days everyone else was in Atlanta (at the winter meetings). The problem was trying to get everyone together.”

Once past the hard part, how anxious was Hurst to get to San Diego? He and his family left their house in Boston 4 hours before the movers were finished packing. They flew to Las Vegas Wednesday night and arrived in San Diego Thursday morning.

Hurst likes the area, and he likes the way the Padres are shaping up for 1989.

“I’m excited to be on a team on the rise,” he said. “I’ve experienced the playoffs and World Series in the last couple of years, and I know how much fun it is to play in the playoffs. And the addition of Jack Clark and Walt Terrell to an already good team--I think that’s exciting.”

At times Thursday, Hurst was funny; at others, he seemed ready to get down to business. He certainly was enthusiastic. When O’Connor greeted him before the conference, Hurst said, “You don’t know how happy I am. This is a great day.”

Some excerpts:

On his last few days in Boston: “It’s nice to come to a place where I’m welcome. I wasn’t the most welcome person the last few days in Boston. Everyone told me to leave town like the Colts left Baltimore.”

On recruiting his friend, Dale Murphy, to play for the Padres: “I’m bordering on tampering here, but I’d love to have him on my team. It would be a dream come true.” Hurst said he telephoned Murphy with a Christmas greeting but didn’t talk much about the Padres.

On the pressure of being a high-priced free agent: “I don’t care. A lot was expected of me in Boston. I don’t think the money changes things at all. My job is to do the best I can.”

On spring training in Yuma, Ariz.: “I’ve never been there, but I hear it’s only 2 1/2 to 3 hours away. The kids don’t have to get out of school to go to spring training. That’s nice.”

On his first night in San Diego, Hurst planned to attend the Padre organization Christmas party. It was his first chance to meet his new co-workers in the front office.

He more than likely was the subject of a few toasts to 1989.

Padre Notes

Jack McKeon, the Padre general manager/manager, said he has talked this week with the Yankees regarding third baseman Mike Pagliarulo. “It’s still alive, but it’s on the back burner,” he said. “I’d still like to acquire another hitter.”