The Backups Step Forward in 3-2 Victory : Dodgers: Reserve outfielders Stan Javier and Chris Gwynn make the most of opportunities in win over Phillies.
Two members of that celebrated Dodger outfield were hard at work Saturday in a 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Stan Javier tied the game with a run-scoring single in the fourth inning, and Chris Gwynn clinched it with an RBI double while pinch-hitting in the eighth.
Darryl who?
OK, so fans won’t be asking that question any time soon, but they are becoming aware that there is more to the Dodgers--and to winning--than million-dollar bats.
Before 40,335 at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers won their third consecutive game thanks to two reserves whose combined salaries are less than half of the salary of any of the three outfielders they play behind.
In the fourth inning, with the Dodgers and starter Mike Morgan trailing, 1-0, Javier lined a one-out single to left field against Pat Combs to score Eddie Murray from third base and tie the game.
Charlie Hayes threw wildly on a grounder to third base in the fifth inning to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead, one of three Phillie errors.
Gwynn took over in the eighth.
With two out and Lenny Harris on first base after a pinch single, Gwynn drove a sinker from Roger McDowell to the left-field wall to score Harris and give the Dodgers a third run that they would need.
In the ninth inning, reliever Jay Howell allowed a leadoff home run to Dale Murphy to cut the score to 3-2. Howell, who has allowed hits in eight of 10 appearances this year, settled to retire the next three hitters for his fourth save.
The winner was Morgan, who allowed one run and six hits in seven innings, the fifth time in six starts this season that he has allowed one run or fewer.
But, for once, the spotlight was on Javier and Gwynn.
“In order to have a winning team, you have to have guys like that,” Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda said. “Remember what happened in 1988 with the ‘Stuntmen’? It’s always been like that.”
The Stuntmen were reserves on the 1988 World Series champions.
“You need those kinds of players,” Lasorda said, “and we have some good ones.”
With two hits, Javier increased his average to .290, and Gwynn is batting .444 in nine pinch at-bats and .333 overall.
“I’m just going up there and trying to swing the bat as well as I can,” Javier said. “Hardest part is keeping myself ready to hit.”
Gwynn agreed.
“I’m not going to say it’s that hard, but I’m not going to say it’s easy either,” Gwynn said of his role on the bench. “It’s really tough when you sit on the bench, but you want to play every day. You want to be ready, but you never want to lose that competitive fire.
“Basically, it comes down to, I don’t have a choice. I will do whatever I can do while I’m waiting for a break to get into the lineup.”
Gwynn actually credited his success as a pinch-hitter to the original “Stuntman,” former Dodger Mickey Hatcher.
“Last year I took a lot from Mickey about how to stay ready during a game,” Gwynn said. “Being a pinch-hitter is not something I aspire to do for the rest of my life, but I guess I am more comfortable with it. I have a better idea of what guys are trying to do with me.”
Also obviously comfortable is Morgan, who improved to 4-2 while lowering his earned-run average to 1.38, second lowest in the National League.
He was quick and efficient. Only one of his seven innings lasted more than six minutes. He faced more than four hitters only once. Only one hit went for extra bases, and that resulted in the Phillies’ only run against him.
They scored in the second inning on a two-out, two-strike double into the right-center field gap by former Dodger catcher Darrin Fletcher, who was recently recalled from triple A to replace injured Darren Daulton.
Ricky Jordan started the uprising with a one-out single, and then was forced at second on a grounder by Charlie Hayes.
Fletcher, a top Dodger prospect who was stuck in the minor leagues behind Mike Scioscia, was trying to make up for his ninth-inning strikeout Friday.
But that two-strike pitch was Morgan’s only mistake.
“I wasn’t even supposed to be on this team. I started the year as the fifth starter,” Morgan said. “I figure, I might as well give it all I can, for as long as I can, and see what happens,” Morgan said.
More to Read
Are you a true-blue fan?
Get our Dodgers Dugout newsletter for insights, news and much more.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.