The Cubs claimed victory over the Dodgers Tuesday night while conceding a defeat of sorts for rookie shortstop Shawon Dunston.
Following the 8-3 triumph over Fernando Valenzuela and the Dodgers in front of 48,187 fans, Cub manager Jim Frey announced that Dunston had been sent to Triple-A Iowa and outfielder Brian Dayett had been recalled.
Dunston was not in the starting lineup Tuesday night, when the Cubs evened their record on the current trip at 3-3.
Keith Moreland sparkled defensively in right field with two sensational catches and went 2-for-3 with an RBI to improve his batting average to .323. Rick Sutcliffe (5-3) was not at his best, but he earned the victory with a complete game performance.
”This place holds a lot of memories for me,” said Sutcliffe, who was Rookie of the Year with the Dodgers in 1979. ”My first year was a good year, the next two not so good.”
Sutcliffe spaced six hits, walked four and hit a batter. ”My slider was flat and I didn`t feel comfortable on the mound,” he said.
”Overall, I`d say Rick Sutcliffe has pitched very well this season,”
Frey said. ”He could have just as easily been 6-1 instead of 4-3 coming into tonight`s game. When he gets a five- or six-run lead, he`s a tough son of a gun. The pitcher is subject to a lot of variables he can`t control. Runs scored by your team is one variable. And errors are another.”
Frey told Dunston of his new destination following the victory.
”I don`t want to go. I can`t benefit by going to the minor leagues,”
Dunston said before the game. ”I can`t benefit from sitting on the bench. I`m not hitting. Nobody on the team is hitting. I`ve seen so many breaking balls.”
Cubs` president Dallas Green indicated Monday that it would be best to return Dunston to Iowa. Green said he was concerned about Dunston`s pressing affecting the rest of the team.
Frey said he would like to see the 22-year-old Dunston succeed, ”but he is not relaxed. Every at-bat seems like an ordeal for him.
”Dallas and I talked about Dunston Monday afternoon, Monday night, Tuesday afternoon . . . we`ve been talking about him for quite a while,” Frey said. ”And we talked about it again tonight after the game. The considerations are what`s best for the ballclub and for Shawon Dunston in the long run.”
Larry Bowa started at shortstop Tuesday night, and knocked in his first RBIs of the season with a bases-loaded single in the seventh. Frey said he will play both Bowa and Chris Speier, ”at least for a while until one of them began to take charge.”
Dunston is hitting .194 and has committed nine errors. He made 58 errors last season, which he split between Des Moines, where he hit .233 in 61 games, and Double-A Midland, where he batted .329 in 73 games.
”When we left Arizona, I thought Shawon had a chance to juice up our offense,” Frey said. ”In spring training he showed me an offensive spurt. He ran around the bases like there were no fielders. When you see this guy making contact and getting on base, he can make things happen. I thought he could give us a lift offensively. But he has struggled here of late at the plate. His defense has bothered his hitting, instead of the other way around. Frustration is the word.”
The Cubs found it difficult to hide Dunston in a starting lineup that is already suffering at the plate. The Cubs entered Tuesday night`s game hitting .222, and only .206 on the road.
The Cubs scored a run in the first when Valenzuela (3-4) threw a wild pitch. Gary Matthews had drawn a two-out walk before Moreland blooped a double into right, putting runners at second and third. With a one-ball, two-strike count on Jody Davis, Valenzuela unleashed a wild pitch, allowing Matthews to score from third. Third base coach Don Zimmer waved Moreland around third on the play, but he was out easily at the plate.
The Dodgers took a 2-1 lead in their half of the first. Steve Sax walked and went to third on Ken Landreaux`s double to right. Pedro Guererro`s sacrifice fly to left scored Sax, and Mike Marshall gave the Dodgers the lead with a double into the left-field corner.
The Cubs took a 5-2 lead in the second inning. Davis led off with a single to left. Leon Durham hit a slow tap along the first base line. Valenzuela darted off the mound but overran the ball, leaving Durham safe at first with the infield single. Bowa forced Durham at second, leaving runners at the corners. Sutcliffe then tied the game with a sharp single to center.
Bob Dernier bunted for a single to load the bases. Ryne Sandberg walked, forcing in Bowa with the go-ahead run. Matthews hit a grounder up the middle that rookie shortstop Mariano Duncan booted for an error, allowing Sutcliffe to score. Valenzuela walked Moreland, the third Cub walk of the game, forcing in Dernier to make it 5-2.
The Cubs increased their lead to 6-2 in the fourth on an unusual inning-ending double play. Sutcliffe led off with a walk and went to third when Sandberg doubled. Matthews lofted a fly to center. Sutcliffe scored after the catch, but Sandberg was thrown out trying to advance to third a split second after Sutcliffe crossed the plate.
Sutcliffe worked himself into a jam in the fourth by walking Mike Scioscia and Greg Brock. Pinch-hitter Terry Whitfield, batting for Valenzuela, lined a single to right, scoring Scioscia to make it 6-3 and putting men on first and third. Sax then hit a sinking liner to right. Moreland made a lunging shoestring catch to rob Sax of a hit and prevent another run from scoring.
