BASEBALL PREVIEW / NL WEST : Padres Sign Impact Player Carter, Relief Pitcher Craig Lefferts

Jack McKeon came to the winter meetings shopping for a pennant and came away with some luxury items for San Diego.

McKeon, the Padres manager and GM, acquired Joe Carter in a blockbuster trade with Cleveland and signed free-agent reliever Craig Lefferts.

Will it be enough to win the National League West?

San Francisco, the defending NL champs, have added Kevin Bass. The Dodgers signed Hubie Brooks. All Cincinnati has to do is stay healthy; the talent is already there.

The Padres made a rush at the Giants in the final weeks of the 1989 season by winning 29 of 39 but fell short by three games. McKeon expects the addition of Carter will make up the difference.

In acquiring Carter, McKeon came away with an impact player who can carry teammates when they need it most.

Carter has averaged 31 homers and 108 RBIs over the last four seasons. In 1989, he hit .243 with 35 homers and 105 RBIs.

“He works at being a complete hitter and he’s unselfish,” McKeon said.

Not everything went right for McKeon during the off-season, though: Cy Young Award winner Mark Davis, who saved 44 games in 1989, signed as a free agent with Kansas City.

Despite the loss of Davis, the Padres should have enough in the bullpen with the addition of Lefferts. The left-hander had 20 saves for the Giants last season.

McKeon needs a big season from rookie pitcher Andy Benes, who joins Bruce Hurst, Ed Whitson, Dennis Rasmussen and Eric Show in the Padres’ rotation.

The Padres’ biggest problem is the left side of the infield. Third baseman Mike Pagliarulo hit .196 and shortstop Garry Templeton is 34 and slowing down because of bad knees.

Dodgers

The Dodgers finished with the best team ERA in the majors last season at 2.95 but had the lowest batting average, .240.

To add some punch, Los Angeles signed free agent outfielder Hubie Brooks (14 HRs, 70 RBIs for Montreal) and traded Mike Marshall and Alejandro Pena to the Mets for Juan Samuel.

The Dodgers toyed with the idea of moving Brooks to third base, but he will remain in the outfield because of the abbreviated spring training. Samuel will be in center, even though the former second baseman has trouble with shallow fly balls.

One of the biggest reasons the Dodgers’ offense fell apart last season was the loss of 1988 MVP Kirk Gibson to a hamstring injury. Gibson (.213, 9 HRs, 28 RBIs) had off-season surgery but may not be ready for opening day.

First baseman Eddie Murray got off to a slow start as he adjusted to NL pitching but finished with 20 homers and 88 RBIs.

The Dodgers’ measly run-production was a nightmare for the pitchers. Orel Hershiser had a 2.31 ERA but finished 15-15. Tim Belcher (2.82) led the league in shutouts but ended 15-12.

There’s more pitching on the way.

Ramon Martinez and John Wetteland were impressive last year and are ready to make big contributions. Several teams asked about Martinez over the winter.

The Dodgers, who averaged only 3.4 runs, just need a little more offense to get back into contention. Brooks may be enough.

Cincinnati Reds

The Reds couldn’t overcome a season dominated by Pete Rose controversies and lots of injuries, finishing fifth at 75-87.

There’s talent on this team--lots of it--and Lou Piniella has the job of putting it together after the sorry Rose era.

Every starter in the Reds lineup was hurt last season except first baseman Todd Benzinger (17 HRs, 76 RBIs). Ironically, Benzinger broke his left hand while taking batting practice during the lockout March 2.

Shortstop Barry Larkin (.342) missed the second half of the season when he sustained an arm injury during the “skills competition” at the All-Star Game. It was that type of year for the Reds.

Third baseman Chris Sabo, the Rookie of the Year in 1988, also spent time on the disabled list and slumped to .260 with six homers and 29 RBIs.

Center fielder Eric Davis hit .281 with 34 homers and 101 RBIs despite missing several games with sore feet. The Reds also need a big season from right fielder Paul O’Neill to turn things around.

Injuries also decimated the pitching staff. Danny Jackson went from 23-8 in 1988 to 6-11.

San Francisco

The Giants’ pitching started to fall apart during the playoffs and World Series, and they haven’t done much to improve on the mound.

Can 40-year-old Rick Reuschel repeat his 17-8 season? Scott Garrelts came out of the bullpen last year and finished 14-5 as a starter. The other starters from 1989, Mike LaCoss and Don Robison, combined to go 22-21. Mike Krukow, injured most of 1989, has retired.

Manager Roger Craig is counting on a group of young pitchers to find another big winner.

To help the youngsters, the Giants signed free agent catcher Gary Carter. Carter is coming off an injury-plagued season (knees) when he dropped to .183 with only two homers and 15 RBIs.

The Giants also must make up for the loss of reliever Craig Lefferts, who signed with San Diego.

Will Clark, who signed a four-year deal for $15 million, has emerged as one of the game’s best hitters and should get some help in the infield by the presence of third baseman Matt Williams for a full season.

Atlanta Braves

Despite giving signs last season that they were ready to make a move, the Braves finished last for the third straight year with a 63-97 record.

Reason for optimism comes from a group of young pitchers that includes Tom Glavine (14-8), John Smoltz (12-11), Derek Lilliquist (8-10) and Mike Stanton (seven saves, 1.50 ERA).

To help provide the pitchers some runs, the Braves signed free agent first baseman Nick Esasky. He loved hitting in Atlanta while a member of Cincinnati and had 30 homers and 108 RBIs for Boston in 1989. In six seasons with the Reds, Esasky hit .375 with 14 homers and 36 RBIs at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

Dale Murphy got off to a horrendous start last season but finished strong with 20 homers and 84 RBIs. The Braves need his bat for an entire season to escape the basement.

Houston Astros

The Astros needed a trade to come up with a big bat over the winter but came up empty. In fact, Houston’s only .300 hitter, Kevin Bass, left to sign as a free agent with the Giants.

After first baseman Glenn Davis (34 HRs, 89 RBIs) there’s a big drop in power. Next in home run production was catcher Craig Biggio with 13.

Usually reliable second baseman Bill Doran had an awful second half, going 23-for-176 (.131) after the All-Star break.

For the Astros to be serious contenders, they need a big year from rookie left fielder Eric Anthony (28 HRs, 79 RBIs at Class AA Columbus in the Southern League).

The Astros can be pesky, but they don’t have the bats to make it over a full season.

Predicted order: 1) San Diego. 2) Cincinnati. 3) San Francisco. 4) Los Angeles. 5) Atlanta. 6) Houston.