St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 12

4 ik JUN 26 1993 4C sports ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH SATURDAY, JUNE 26. 1993 BASEBALL CARDINALS NOTEBOOK CARDINALS REPORT CARDINALS' AVERAGES BATTING Avg. AB H2B3BHR RBI Murphy 1000 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 Alttu 336107 10 38 1 0 16 K'tgu 333 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 JeHenet .327260 39 85 10 3 10 41 Pappaa .322 90 10 29 4 0 1 12 Parry .321 28 6 9 1 0 2 6 Gilkey .305213 38 65 17 3 4 22 O. Smith .279258 29 72 11 4 1 32 tanklord .269234 36 63 7 2 3 29 .251 243 23 61 17 0 1 30 .250 44 6 11 0 0 0 2 Par 247170 23 42 13 0 2 17 Whiten .246264 37 65 4 2 9 38 Pagnozzi .238101 15 24 3 0 4 12 Brewar .237 59 4 14 1 0 0 8 Cvare .214 14 0 3 0 0 0 0 Woodson .208 48 2 10 1 0 0 2 Tewksbury .207 29 1 8 0 0 0 5 Osborna .185 27 3 0 0 0 3 Cormier .182 22 2 4 0 0 0 0 Magran .074 27 2 2 1 0 0 0 Arocha .045 22 1 1 0 0 0 2 Perez 000 1 0 0000 0 L.

Smith .000 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Lancaster ..000 20 0000 0 SB: Jefferiea 19. Pana 11, O. Smith 9. Lankford 9, Whiten 7, Gilkey 6, Zeiie 4, Alicea 2, Pappas. Perry.

PITCHING ERA IP BB SO Kilgus 1 0 0 00 9.2 8 1 7 Perez 4 2 2 26 43 2 35 15 39 Arocha 8 2 3.07 70.1 61 8 36 Lancaster ..3 0 3.24 41.2 41 15 23 Osborne 3 3.26 88 1 83 28 47 Murphy 1 4 3.33 29.2 21 9 20 Magran 6 6 3.43 89 1 81 26 32 Otivarea 1 2 4.04 55 2 63 24 32 L. Smith 2 1 4.12 28.1 26 7 27 Tewksbury 7 6 4.17 90.2116 6 42 Cormier 4 4 4.54 71.1 79 12 34 Saves: L. Smith 25, Perez 3, Olivares. on disabled list. CARDINALS' STATISTICS Road Total VS.

EAST I 2 1 3 1 2 1 1 1 Chicago 1 Florida 2 Montreal 3 New York 2 Philadelphia 0 Pittsburgh 3 2 0 3 1 Totals v. Eaat 11 6 8 8 19 13 VS. WEST Horn Road Totala A Twist Of Fate: Knee Injury Aids Kimberlin Career By Mike Eisenbath Of the Post-Dispatch Staff Keith Kimberlin needed something to pump life back into his minor-league baseball career. Who would have thought a knee injury could do it? "I was in Detroit's minor-league system for three years, and I was getting kind of down on pro ball," said Kimberlin, a graduate of Affton High. "At times, it wasn't a whole lot of fun going to the ballpark.

But now I'm having more fun than I've ever had with the game." He's playing shortstop now for the Philadelphia Phillies' Class AA affiliate Reading, in the Eastern League. The Phillies need a shortstop. The hope is back in his eyes. He rates this as the best season of his career, despite his .269 batting average and modest RBI total (16). Consider the alternative.

In October 1991, Kimberlin wanted to wipe away the memory of a struggling season with Detroit's Class AA team in London, Ontario. He was playing a pickup soccer game when he suffered a knee injury. He tried to rehabilitate the knee, but it failed to get better. "The doctor told me I had a torn ligament," Kimberlin said. "And I said, 'Well, that's that.

That's pretty much my I knew other players had come back from it, though, so I figured I'd give it my best try." He had reconstructive knee surgery in March 1992 and missed the entire season. Detroit released him, and Kimberlin went to work trying to come back wondering if he ever would soil a uniform again. "Even during the course of the season, when things are going bad, you think about getting another career going because you might need it pretty soon," Kimberlin said. "There was a point in my rehab when the knee wasn't getting better and it wasn't getting worse, but I just figured I had better get on with my life. "I'm pretty close to getting my degree.

You'd think after being in school for five years, I'd be getting close." He still plans to obtain an art degree from Missouri Baptist. His baseball canvas still needs some work, though, and he seems to have regained his stroke. Kimberlin has played in 58 consecutive games at shortstop and is batting second in the Reading lineup. Only seven of his 63 hits have gone for extra bases, but he's never swung a big bat. He leads the team with 25 runs, has a solid .361 on-base percentage and has stolen 11 bases in 14 attempts.

The knee seems to be holding up. He's been customarily solid afield, too, with a respectable 13 errors. Kimberlin will turn 27 next month. But he looks at his numbers. He feels a rebirth.

He notices 29-year-old San Diego rookie Jeff Gardner and 31-year-old Seattle rookie Rich Amaral. "If you want to stick it out, and if you've got some tools and a never-say-die attitude, you've got a chance," he said. "I'm willing to keep going and find out what happens." Not many people thought Kimberlin would get this far, even before the knee injury. As a senior at Affton, at a strapping 5 feet 8 and 110 pounds, he started at shortstop but usually sat on the bench for a designated hitter when his spot in the order came around. Two years at Southeast Missouri State and two years at Missouri Baptist later, Kimberlin went to the Tigers in the 20th round of the 1989 draft.

By then, he had grown to 6-1 and 170 pounds. Still no behemoth, Kimberlin at least has his speed and his defense and the surprising endurance to withstand almost 60 consecutive games. He's impressing his mostly younger teammates, in more ways than one. "My mother and father came up last week and brought some of my artwork," Kimberlin said. "Some of it is hanging in the clubhouse now.

When the guys saw it, they said, 'Who did Someone said, 'Keith and they all went, 'No They're just illustrations, of guys like Brett Hull and Curtis Joseph and some older ballplayers. "The guys like the kind of drawings they can recognize. If I brought in some of my abstract stuff, they'd all say, 'What the heck is Anyone who suspected Kimberlin's days as a ballplayer were past and has seen him this season might be wondering the same thing. "Baseball and art are similar," Kimberlin said. "In both, you have to work hard to refine skills.

Both can be natural, God-given talents to an extent. And there's a certain artwork to playing shortstop, a grace to the position." Kimberlin is enjoying the chance to create more than ever. 1 Atlanta 1 2 1 2 2 4 Cincinnati 2 1 2 1 4 2 Colorado 2 1 2 0 4 1 Houston 1 1 1 1 2 2 Los Angeles 1 2 3 0 4 2 San Diego 2 1 0 3 2 4 San Francisco 2 1 1 1 3 2 Totals vs. West 11 9 10 6 21 17 Overall Total 22 14 18 16 40 30 BY THE NUMBERS Won Lost Day 15 9 Night 25 21 Shutouts 2 2 1 -Run Decisions 16 8 Extra Innings 4 2 Vs. RH Starters 28 23 Vs.

LH Starters 12 7 Grass fields 12 8 Artificial fields 28 22 Cards Opp. Double Plays 53 58 Stolen Bases 69 57 Home Runs (Home) 22 23 Home Runs (Away) 18 35 Left On Bases 484 443 ATTENDANCE Horn Road Totals 1,219,540 1,785,116 minimi I i i Wes- PazPost-Dispatch Brian Jordan took Ray Lankford's position in center field Friday, but not Lankford's spot as cleanup hitter. I Bad Break For Kilgus: He's Out For 2 Months By Rick Hummel Of the Post-Dispatch Staff NEW YORK What seemed to be a perfectly Dl narmiess ptay nas turned into a two-montn va- r-j: I tt UPCOMING GAMES Today: at New York 12:40 p.m. Sunday: at New York 12:40 p.m. Monday: Philadelphia 7:35 p.m.

Tuesday: Philadelphia 7:35 p.m. Wednesday: Phiadelphia 7:35 p.m. LOUISVILLE AVERAGES (Through Monday) BATTING Pagnozzi on Friday. "I just wanted to give Pag-nozzi another day with his jammed thumb," Torre said. "I didn't want him to take a step backward and not be able to play Saturday." A large banner hung in right field reading, "Laura Dagon (Loves) Gregg Jef feries." Jeffer-ies, the Cardinals' first baseman, was making his first visit to Shea Stadium since the Mets traded him to Kansas City before the 1992 season.

The New York Mets' Vince Coleman entered last night's game with a dismal .288 on-base percentage, despite his league-leading 31 steals. "That's not something you like," manager Dallas Green said. "What do you do with him, and where are you going to put him?" Bob Tewksbury (7-6) will seek his fourth consecutive victory Saturday when he faces the Mets' Doc Gooden (7-6). Gooden, who had one-third of the Mets' victories, missed his last start because of shoulder stiffness. Brian Jordan made his second appearance with the Cardinals this season when he replaced Ray Lankford (strained right hand) in center field.

Jordan singled in his first at-bat. Cardinals manager Joe Torre said he planned on keeping Jordan when Lankford returns. But Torre said he didn't know how he would handle having four "regular" outfielders. "But by that time, you're better off with a four-outfielder rotation because of the weather," he said. Lankford is on the 15-day disabled list.

Jordan played center field instead of Mark Whiten, who had been Lankford's backup, "because he has more experience playing it," Torre said. Jordan batted sixth Friday. "I don't want to throw him in the middle of it," Torre said. "I don't want Jordan to all of a sudden think he has to be the player Ray Lankford is." Erik Pappas again caught in place of Tom Avg. AB 2B 3BHR RBI .320 200 64 14 1 6 37 Lockhart, 3b Cromer, ss tauuu iui iciiever ram migus.

ne will be out until late August with a broken bone in his right foot. Kilgus was injured Wednesday night in Miami when he broke off the mound to field a tapper by the Florida Marlins' Alex Arias. Kilgus, a lefthander who has not been scored on in eight outings covering 9 innings, limped to the foul line to tag Arias and then came out of the game. Kilgus was replaced on the roster by lefthander Tom Urbani, who was sent to Class AAA Louisville last Saturday. Urbani has been recalled three times this season.

Originally, it was thought that Kilgus had suffered a sprained foot, but the break was found Friday in St. Louis by Dr. Stan London, the team surgeon. .313 131 41 5 1 5 13 .308 117 36 5 0 4 20 .292 24 7 2 0 1 5 .282 259 73 13 8 5 33 .278 212 59 13 0 10 37 .275 109 30 7 1 0 10 .257 230 59 16 1 8 31 Rover, 3b Fulton, Jones, 2b Lyons. 1b Figueroa.

ss Snider, of 'Maclin, of Thomas, of .248 141 35 6 2 .246 138 34 3 13 4 13 0 1 0 5 0 0 0 0 Patterson, 1b. .235 51 12 Ellis, 186 70 13 Villanva.c .083 12 1 Savinon. of .000 4 0 SB: Jones 9, Maclin 4, Royer, Savinon, Ojeda Snider, Figueroa, Thomas. PITCHING ERA IP BB SO Ozuna 0 4 2.90 31.0 25 15 30 Watson 5 3 2.99 99.1 86 24 67 Dixon 2 2 3.27 33.0 26 14 28 Sebra 6 5 3.29 79.1 83 25 51 Buckels 0 0 3.48 31.0 40 4 28 Guetterman. 1 1 3.49 28.1 34 10 15 Meier 4 4 5.66 70.0 83 23 53 Milchin 0 2 6.17 35.0 36 20 28 2 5 6.35 51.0 69 8 21 Compres 3 4 7.61 23.2 37 16 16 Saves: Dixon 7, Ozuna 3, Guetterman 2, Wiseman.

'On disabled list. 1993 Howe Sportsdata Intl. and happiness when I came back. There is no happiness now. It's just something I've got to do." And what about the thrill of winning or throwing a shutout? "Nothing I do from here on out, on or off the field, will feel the same," Ojeda said.

"But that's just the way it goes. "I've changed a lot. I'm telling you the way I really feel. I get up, look in the mirror and say, 'You're here, pal. What are you going to do with the There's none of that smelling the flowers.

But I won't go to pieces, either. Anyone can do that." came another struggle. "I just can't quit," he said. "That's my whole reason for coming back. Five years down the road, I might regret it if I quit." Because of a shoulder injury, Ojeda didn't do any pitching in spring training, even before the accident.

The shoulder was repaired surgically April 27. Ojeda's arm is sound again, but he doesn't think playing baseball will be much fun anymore. "I don't feel 35, I feel 85," he said. "I had surgery before, and I seemed to come back better than ever. And this operation wasn't as serious as some others.

But there was always joy From page one was the physical relief. Emotionally, the wound has not healed. "I left the country for a while," he said. "I had a lot of money in my pocket, and I wasn't going to come back. I went as far as Delta goes nonstop.

I had to go through certain things alone." i Ojeda, 35, eventually returned home to Los Angeles, but deciding to continue playing be Lockhart Make the Best-Seller A.L Avuil. TO, near trails, un, Iras. jl95Mo. W144M Tim FMdlna 4, Medlca- Hist PrectitJiilftffuiii. Supplies -per i obv fur Solla ook roum leaf 4 chal.

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For five years, he has been a regular player in Class AAA three with Cincinnati's Nashville club, last season with Oakland's club in Tacoma, and now in Louisville. "I've never been outstanding, not flashy," he said. "I've been the kind of player you have to watch a couple of times to appreciate." He played second base in college. But the Reds had several second base prospects. Since he hit with some power, he was most easily moved to third.

"My second season with Nashville, I started out in the big-league camp at spring training," Lockhart said. "They switched me to left field and told me I had a really good chance of making the team as the last outfielder. That was the spring of the lockout, so that hurt my chances. "Then, on the last day of spring training, they traded for Billy Hatcher and that knocked me back to the minors. I hit .350 through all of April and May that year, and they kept saying they'd call me up.

Nothing happened." He plays on. "There are a lot of guys that I played with someplace who aren't playing anywhere now," Lockhart said. "To me, that says something, that someone still wants me to play for their team. "Sometimes, you can't help but let it cross your mind: Five years in Triple A when is someone going to bring me up? I could let it get to me and quit and find another job. But I've got the rest of my life to work." The Lockharts have lived in four cities during their 314-year marriage.

They rent one apartment during the season, then an offseason apartment back in Nashville. Though neither has obtained a college degree, they usually don't have trouble getting winter jobs. The hardest part of life in the minors is the moving. Things were easier until Danny Lockhart's birth almost eight months ago. Now, they are a true family.

The burdens increase. The calling of marriage and parenthood can lower a batting average on the priority list. "If you're not accepting of this life as a wife, the minor leagues can tear a marriage apart," Lisa said. "All that frustration from when Keith is on the road builds up, and I could let it all out when he gets back. You have to be careful.

"Like, I never clean the house when Keith is home; I wait until he's gone. How dirty can it get in a week? It's more important for Danny and I to spend time with Keith while he's here." Keith Lockhart talks about how he has learned to hit better with two strikes, how he doesn't try to pull the ball as much. But those won't be the most valuable lessons he will gain from his days in baseball. "I'm not scared of the day my baseball career ends; I know it'll happen, and soon," he said. "Maybe that's why I enjoy every day out there." For all the heartache, Lisa enjoys it, too.

"It gives me a thrill every time I see Keith sign some little kid's autograph," she said. "Our son might not ever see Keith really play baseball, but if he could that's what I would want him to see. I want him to get that same thrill as me." Tonal laser writer Dlnlne rm, BR, ch art, ate. Buy tell. 8720-Carof.

Coverim SCARP wiles I Equipment NT orinter: like new comfc letter. legal poper travs, 7 nv aging, From page one great. But I've learned to just play and not worry about that." Lockhart has picked up some versatility. He's played first base, second base, third base and right field. "Anything to give me a better chance of getting called up, or at least getting into the lineup here every day," he said.

Lockhart attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, but don't assume he went there with the most pious of attitudes. "The only thing I knew about Oral Roberts was that you had to wear a tie to classes," he said. "I grew up 15 minutes east of Los Angeles. I went to Oral Roberts to play baseball." He met Lisa at ORU. But it didn't seem to be a match made in heaven, per se.

"I went to school there because I lived two miles from the school at the time," she said. "I had grown up in a Christian home, but I didn't really practice those beliefs, including the time Keith and I started dating. The beliefs weren't real in my life until things got rough, with all the little worries." Worry helped Keith and Lisa turn to Christianity as a focus in their lives. "I partied a lot in college, but from a distance I watched teammates who were Christians and was attracted to their lifestyle," Keith said. "I used to worry a lot, about what my career would be like and everything.

The worry got out of control; it wears on you. Lisa and I got tired of trying to do things by ourselves, so we put our lives in the hands of the Lord." Lockhart started his pro baseball career with much promise. The Cincinnati Reds drafted him in the I i selection ot New lulpment avail. Inoer-e-Cuto Cadet-i ownbov tdoor 31' "Mr Every day, almost a million people read the Post-Dispatch. That's why it's the best place to advertise your home, boat, car or anything else you may want to sell.

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