The State from Columbia, South Carolina • 10

4-C The S.C., Sunday, June 4, 1989 MAJOR LEAGUE STATISTICS MAJOR LEAGUE AMERICAN LEAGUE Team Batting HR RBI Pct Oakland 1777 226 486 40 212 .273 Minnesota 1755 259 478 38 243 .272 Texas 1754 237 475 38 226 .271 California 1738 233 466 45 216 .268 Seattle 1840 249 491 43 233 .267 Boston 1707 235 456 36 215 .267 Chicago 1802 210 479 32 205 .266 Kansas City 1740 219 448 30 204 .257 Baltimore 1689 222 429 40 208 .254 Toronto 1758 238 444 46 225 .253 Cleveland 1742 213 439 42 196 .252 New York 1733 198 436 28 178 .252 Milwaukee 1736 199 425 46 191 .245 Detroit 1709 193 408 42 171 .239 Individual Batting 125 or more at bats. AB HR RBI Pct Lnsfrd Oak 191 33 68 12 .356 Pimeiro Tex 198 38 70 4 31 .354 Pucktt Min 204 26 69 09 26 .338 Stnbch Oak 154 16 52 02 20 .338 Baines Chi 175 24 59 09 27 .337 ADavis Sea 143 27 48 40 33 .336 Mrelnd Det 133 17 44 09 23 .331 Franco Tex 188 24 62 00 46 .330 Esnreich KC 128 23 41 15 .320 Molitor Mil 180 21 56 19 .311 Gallghr Chi 210 30 65 18 .310 Wsntn Cal 136 18 42 0 21 .309 Sax NY 208 23 64 18 .308 Rynids Sea 207 29 63 0 20 .304 Sierra Tex 204 31 62 38 .304 Liriano Tor 153 19 46 18 .301 Ray Cal 147 18 44 26 .299 CRipken Bit 202 23 60 28 .297 Jacoby Cle 172 26 51 26 .297 Yount Mil 199 32 59 28 .296 McGriff Tor 183 39 54 31 .295 Seitzer KC 193 24 .295 Griffey Sea 170 50 22 .294 Kelly NY 136 40 14 .294 Boggs Bsn 181 27 19 .293 Growll Bsn 191 34 56 31 .293 Gruber Tor 174 32 51 26 .293 Whitkr Det 178 28 52 13 32 .292 Kittle Chi 141 21 41 32 .291 POBrien Cle 189 32 55 26 .291 DWhite Cal 207 31 60 30 .290 Downng Cal 188 25 54 16 .287 Wiliams Chi 150 20 43 7 .287 Evans Bsn 167 29 48 29 .287 Browne Cle 182 20 52 26 .286 Burks Bsn 189 35 54 0 24 .286 Presley Sea 158 17 45 15 .285 Valle Sea 130 19 37 15 .285 Mttngly NY 56 27 .284 Reed Bsn 163 21 46 11 .282 Phillips Oak 135 16 38 12 .281 Hdson Oak 191 30 53 29 .277 Braley BIt 185 29 51 19 .276 Tribil KC 174 22 48 28 .276 Leonrd Sea 187 28 51 11 42 .273 Prrsh Cal 154 23 42 23 .273 Caldrn Chi 200 21 54 27 .270 Espnoza NY 145 13 39 12 .269 Slaught NY 160 19 43 18 .269 Carter Cle 56 35 .268 Buechle Tex 45 21 .266 Javier Oak 35 12 .265 Polonia Oak 39 13 .265 CDavis Cal 46 25 .264 Esasky Bsn 44 28 .263 GBell Tor 186 49 30 .263 Giddn Min 50 20 .263 Boone KC 34 9 .262 Braggs Mil 50 29 .262 BJcksn KC 49 35 .261 Fermin Cle 42 9 .261 Tabler KC 36 13 .261 Hendsn NY 50 18 .260 Stilwil KC 37 17 .259 Barrett Bsn 19 .258 Sheffield Mil 191 17 16 .257 Gaetti Min 192 23 33 .255 Espy Tex 189 31 48 10 .254 Joyner Cal 173 20 44 18 .254 Gagne Min 154 25 39 15 .253 Trmmll Det 171 22 43 10 .251 Parkr Oak 188 22 47 00 29 .250 Sheets BIt 129 12 32 15 .248 McGwre Oak 142 19 35 28 .246 Snyder Cle 187 19 46 25 .246 Fletcher Tex 195 29 47 15 .241 Guillen Chi 232 26 56 13 .241 Tettleton BIt 158 29 38 27 .241 Coles Sea 201 20 48 22 .239 Gantner Mil 160 17 38 14 .238 Rice Bsn 160 18 38 25 .238 Lyons Chi 156 15 37 16 .237 Nokes Det 140 10 28 .236 FWhite KC 145 14 34 11 .234 Surhoff Mil 150 13 35 16 .233 Francona Mil 128 14 29 10 .227 Larkin Min 150 22 34 12 .227 Lemon Det 150 16 34 13 .227 Incoglia Tex 180 17 40 27 .222 BAndeson BIt 182 31 40 15 .220 Lynn Det 147 18 32 14 .218 Deer Mil 190 27 41 27 .216 Fernndz Tor 131 28 19 .214 Allanson Cle 141 13 30 6 .213 Moseby Tor 179 27 38 16 .212 OMcDwll Cle 194 26 41 16 .211 Howell Cal 142 15 29 11 .204 Williams Det 133 12 27 13 .203 Wthgtn Bit 149 12 29 21 .195 Wilson KC 130 21 25 11 .192 Barfield NY 157 22 28 8 19 .178 Team Pitching ERA ER BB SO ShO SA California 2.71 423 138 147 239 11 11 Oakland 3.06 400 160 195 296 5 21 Kanss Cty 3.26 439 170 129 273 4 12 Cleveland 3.49 437 179 154 254 2 15 Baltimore 3.56 436 179 131 200 14 Toronto 4.09 447 209 164 258 3 Boston 4.10 451 204 166 313 12 Milwaukee 4.14 497 211 147 268 4 15 Minnesota 4.28 466 214 146 257 2 8 Detroit 4.28 446 215 200 250 3 12 Texas 4.29 420 216 247 369 13 Seattle 4.46 504 238 188 307 15 New York 4.58 485 233 170 260 18 Chicago 5.28 509 272 206 255 2 11 Individual Pitching 4 or more decisions. IP BB SO LERA Russell Tex 25 17 4 23 3 1.42 McCaskill Cal 73 58 20 33 6 1.49 Burns Oak 41 26 7 16 4 1.74 Montgmry KC 30 20 4 25 6 1.82 DJones Cle 23 21 3 18 2 2 1.9 CFinley Cal 77 69 28 44 7 3 1.99 Ballard BIt 65 61 12 15 8 1 2.07 Blyleven Cal 72 70 13 34 2.36 Moore Oak 79 52 40 56 6 4 2.40 Gubicza KC 104 99 23 56 5 4 2.51 TGordon KC 42 19 23 45 2.59 Plesac Mil 24 7 29 2 2 2.62 Bosio Mil 84 85 12 60 6 3 2.67 DWard Tor 40 2.68 Swindell Cle 87 61 2:68 Oliveras Min 30 5 15 ON 2.73 Alexandr Det 78 32 4 2.78 Sabrhgn KC 87 55 2.78 Clutterbck Mil 51 20 2 2 2.82 Aquino KC 35 30 2.83 Wells Tor 32 12 33 2 2.84 Clemens Bsn 88 28 78 2.85 Candiotti Cle 73 66 23 46 2.96 Key Tor 90 82 7 46 3.10 Guante Tex 32 25 15 39 CNN 3.09 KBrown Tex 70 52 32 35 2.97 Welch Oak 75 58 35 49 3.12 Williams Det 40 30 28 19 3.15 Cerutti Tor 68 63 18 19 3.19 Wiliamsn Bit 36 31 7 18 3.25 King Chi 73 59 38 42 6 3.31 Abbott Cal 55 54 23 35 3 3.42 Stewart Oak 84 90 26 39 3.42 Langston Sea 73 59 19 60 3.44 Crim Mil 34 38 8 18 3 3.44 Berenguer Min 36 25 16 28 2 3.53 Ryan Tex 33 89 3 3.53 RSmith Min 2 3.61 JeReed Sea 35 16 23 3 3.65 Tanana Det 74 25 45 4 3.66 010 Holton Bit 46 10 16 4 3.69 Black Cle 19 22 6 3.72 Milacki BIt 34 34 3.73 Hanson Sea 23 40 4 4 3.75 Dopson Bsn 23 42 5 4 3.80 Lebrndt KC 24 27 3 5 3.82 Gonzalez Min 8 2 3.94 AAndeson Min 72 21 26 6 3 3.99 Bankhead Sea 68 18 45 2 4 4.07 Fraser Cal 16 8 10 1 3 4.09 Rawley Min 65 23 30 3 4 4.16 Flanagan Tor 67 16 20 5 4.25 Moyer Tex 53 26 37 5 4.39 MWitt Cal 91 16 33 5 4.42 Candlaria NY 8 32 2 4.46 Farrell Cle 47 20 32 3 5 4.55 Viola Min 94 18 64 7 4.63 CYoung Oak 50 20 23 4 4.68 August Mil 81 21 25 4 4.71 Gibson Det 50 25 25 3 4.80 Bannister KC 65 77 16 28 4 4.82 Smithson Bsn 48 63 10 26 2 4.91 Morris Det 62 74 24 48 4.94 Henneman Det 20 14 8 13 4.95 Yett Cle 53 55 24 28 4 3 4.96 Schmidt BIt 68 76 16 26 5 4 5.00 Bautista BIt 54 56 11 16 2 4 5.03 Boddicker Bsn 62 63 28 45 3 4 5.40 Henke Tor 18 16 13 18 3 3 5.40 Birkbeck Mil 45 57 22 31 0 4 5.44 Stieb Tor 64 63 22 31 3 3 5.46 Dotson NY 33 45 9 12 2 5.51 LSmith Bsn 15 19 7 20 4 5.52 LaPoint NY 64 75 30 32 5 4 5.60 John NY 64 87 22 18 2 7 5.80 Hough Tex 52 60 35 30 3 5 5.85 Long Chi 43 52 15 20 2 5 6.12 SDavis Oak 37 53 22 20 3 3 6.14 Hawkins NY 69 88 32 27 6 6.29 Trout Sea 30 41 17 17 3 6.30 BWitt Tex 62 70 36 48 5 6.39 Hillegas Chi 57 69 30 31 1 6 6.35 Dunne Sea 27 38 16 10 1 3 6.41 Perez Chi 54 73 29 40 6 6.46 Wegman Mil 51 68 21 27 2 6 6.71 Reuss Chi 48 67 12 13 3 2 6.94 Gardner Bsn 30 39 19 25 1 47.12 ed NATIONAL LEAGUE Team Batting AB HR RBI Pct StLouis 1681 182 427 20 172 .254 San Francisco 1772 226 445 46 206 .251 Cincinnati 1680 199 417 35 187 .248 Chicago 1706 185 420 21 169 .246 Houston 1833 216 440 27 195 .240 Montreal 1747 216 420 29 202 .240 San Diego 1805 178 429 31 165 .238 Atlanta 1804 193 428 37 176 .237 Pittsburgh 1700 204 401 28 186 .236 New York 1691 175 396 40 161 .234 Philadelphia 1662 186 386 37 180 .232 Los Angeles 1699 166 390 22 150 .230 Individual Batting 125 or more at bats. AB HR RBI Pct WClark SF 189 40 68 10 43 .360 Larkin Cin 175 28 59 2 20 .337 LSmith Atl 145 30 47 6 18 .324 TGwynn SD 214 32 68 2 19 .318 VHayes Phi 160 26 50 30 .313 Butler SF 190 32 59 13 3 .311 Grace Chi 181 20 56 26 .309 Coleman StL 182 31 55 11 .302 Guerrero StL 179 19 54 36 .302 Treadway Atl 137 16 41 8 .299 EDavis Cin 131 14 39 34 .298 Mitchell SF 198 30 59 51 .298 Wilson Pit 148 23 44 27 .297 Sandberg Chi 192 28 57 17 .297 Herr Phi 184 19 54 13 .293 Bass Htn 162 21 47 21 .290 Raines Mon 183 35 52 28 .284 Doran Htn 202 23 57 30 .282 Thopson SF 181 36 51 16 .282 McReylds NY 176 19 49 18 .278 Bonilla Pit 196 32 54 24 .276 RReylds Pit 134 22 37 11 .276 Wallach Mon 190 52 24 .274 Salazar SD 133 36 4 7 .271 GDavis Htn 197 35 53 35 .269 ONeill Cin 175 22 47 33 .269 Randolph LA 193 26 52 11 .269 OSmith StL 165 19 44 18 .267 RAlomar SD 217 25 58 11 .267 Brooks Mon 193 20 51 20 .264 Murray LA 183 19 47 33 .257 Scioscia LA 148 12 39 12 .264 Oquendo StL 175 15 46 11 .263 TNO0 Caminiti Htn 195 23 50 24 .256 Jordan Phi 141 14 36 13 .255 Ramirez Htn 193 15 49 14 .254 HJohson NY 167 26 42 10 27 .251 Reed Cin 128 32 12 .250 GPerry Atl 185 46 15 .249 Thomas Atl 189 29 .249 20 DaMrphy Atl 202 22 50 25 .248 Webster Chi 133 15 33 .248 TPena SIL 155 12 38 9 .245 Bonds Pit 201 32 49 19 .244 Marshall LA 148 18 36 13 .243 Santiago SD 166 17 40 24 .241 Galarraga Mon 175 20 42 33 .240 Hamilton LA 146 14 35 15 .240 Pndltn StL 195 24 46 21 .236 Benzinger Cin 183 22 43 3 24 .235 Thon Phi 132 31 14 .235 Uribe SF 171 14 40 12 .234 Sabo Cin 186 24 43 20 .231 Strawbry NY 170 22 39 24 .229 BHatcher Htn 177 25 40 20.226 Foley Mon 151 15 34 15 .225 JaClark SD 160 19 36 27 .225 Lind Pit 187 19 42 16 .225 Brunansky StL 170 18 38 27 .224 Law Chi 152 10 34 15 .224 Templetn SD 161 8 36 10 .224 Owen Mon 145 22 32 17 .221 Elster NY 139 14 30 10 .216 CJames Phi 179 14 37 19 .207 Samuel Phi 146 23 30 8 .205 Schmidt Phi 148 20 30 28 .203 Martinez SD 135 13 27 19 .200 Oester Cin 129 10 25 7 .194 Young Htn 183 29 35 9 .191 Dunston Chi 130 12 24 10 .185 Gant Atl 180 15 32 ONONO- 19 .178 Jefferies NY 151 12 28 15 .185 Midndo SF 144 11 26 16 .181 JDavis Atl 137 8 23 13 .168 Shelby LA 153 12 25 4 .163 A Jay Howell ERA of 0.98 Los Angls New York San Frncsc Chicago Houston StLouis San Diego Atlanta Pittsburgh Cincinnati Montreal Philadelph Myers NY JHowell LA Searage LA Morgan LA Bielecki Chi Lefferts SF BSmith Mon Alvarez Atl LaCoss SF Drabek Pit Darwin Htn Rio Cin Gooden NY Whitson SD Smoltz Atl Scott Htn Dibble Cin Hill StL Garrelts SF Reuschel SF Lilliquist Atl Hershiser LA Dayley StL Boever Atl Deshaies Htn Bedrosn Phi Smiley Pit Terry StL DeMrtinez Mon DeLeon StL Belcher LA Hamaker SF Mahler Cin Carpntr StL McWillms Phi GMaddux Chi Glavine Atl Burke Mon Leary LA DRobison SF Oieda NY Hurst SD Krukow SF Frndez NY Sutcliffe Chi Walk Pit Cone NY McDwIl NY Kilgus Chi Terrell SD Gross Mon KHowell Phi Show SD Darling NY Browning Cin Valenzla LA Heaton Pit Sandrsn Chi Magrane StL Knepper Htn PSmith Atl ZSmith Atl Rasmusen SD Clancy Hin Robinson Pit Perez Mon Downs SF Carman Phi Youmans Phi DJackson Cin Johnson Mon Hesketh Mon WITH LESS TALK Doug State Throwing darts: Mets right-hander Andy Reich delivers to the plate Unexpected Mets' right-hander Reich surprisingly tough Sports Writer Andy Reich keeps showing up in unexpected places. Before spring training, the Mets right-hander didn't expect to be in Columbia.

Once he got to Columbia, he wasn't expected to be in the starting rotation. Now that he's a starter, he's showing up among the South Atlantic League leaders with eight wins and a 1.69 ERA. Reich, a 6-foot-3, 185-pound Raleigh, N.C., native, is merely picking up where he left off last season when he posted a 9-2 record and a 2.64 ERA for Kingsport in the rookie Appalachian League. Despite that success, Reich, 20, wasn't so sure he would be with Columbia this season. An injured hand kept him from pitching much in the early part of spring training, and he didn't pitch much after the hand improved.

"When it got down to the end of spring training, I kept looking for that little note in my locker telling me I was sent down to Pittsfield (in the New York-Penn League)," Reich said. When Columbia broke camp without a set starting rotation, another door of opportunity opened for him. The Mets were rotating starts and relief appearances among eight pitchers, with the starter going five innings and the reliever going four. "At first, I wasn't going to be a starter. If the coaches had sat down and decided who was going to be in the starting rotation, I don't think I would have been considered," Reich said.

"That 5-4 rotation gave me a chance to prove myself. Neither of them (the coaches) had seen me throw in actual game situations. I started off real well, and that helped me a lot." Pitching coach Jack Fisher said although he believes that Reich's long-term success will come as a reliever, he's been pleasantly surprised by his ability as a starter. "We (Fisher and manager Bill Stein) both thought he had the kind of stuff that would be perfect for a relief pitcher," Fisher said. "In fact, I've talked with Andy and said that as he moves up the ladder, he'll move to the bullpen and be very effective." However, nothing is set in stone, especially after Reich tossed a complete-game shutout Tuesday night over Gastonia.

"After that game, I said to Bill that maybe we both were wrong," Fisher said. "School's still out, and as long as he keeps winning and shows he can go nine innings, there's no thought of moving him to the bullpen." Once Reich settles into a game, he's proven very tough to hit. In innings, he's allowed 56 hits and 23 walks. He is especially tough on right-handed hitters. "He's got a little bit of an advantage by throwing different than most people do," Fisher said.

"He's almost a side-armer. He's got tremendous movement on the ball. It really sinks, and he's got a command over where he's throwing." What makes Reich tough to beat as much as his ability is his determination. "He's all business, and he comes at you," Fisher said. "Most of the time he doesn't beat himself.

Here it is, you hit it. I get you or you get me, but I'm not going to walk you or give into you. "He's in command of his emotions. He doesn't get excited. That is almost a prerequisite for a successful pitcher." That confidence manifests itself in Reich's attitude.

"To be honest, I think I'm pitching right up to my ability right now," Reich said. "I'm more disappointed with the three losses than I am excited about the eight wins." After the excellent start, Reich has his sights set squarely on at least 15 wins and a 2.00 ERA for the season. He admits that 20 wins aren't out of the question. While that may be an unreal expectation for most minor league pitchers, Reich might just add that to his listed of unexpected accomplishments this season. Fans, weather warming up to Mets MINOR LEAGUE STATISTICS COLUMBIA METS STATISTICS Through Friday's Games Batting Batter Howard, util Morrisette, of Lemle, of Jimenez, 1b Hundley, Joiner, SS Baez, sS DYoung, of Olah, 1b Saunders, 2b Walker, of Piskor, Polanco, 3b May, of Others Totals Pitcher Reich Newton Hill A Young Schourek Perez Wenrick Rogers Vasquez Corbin Others Totals AB HR RBI AVG 2 0 0 2 .500 182 31 61 4 23 .335 116 26 36 7 .310 177 34 53 35 .299 184 27 55 31 .299 25 4 0 .280 184 35 51 4 19 .277 175 20 46 32 .263 202 28 49 30 .243 173 21 41 17 .237 128 17 30 12 .234 23 3 5 2 .217 135 17 28 15 .207 105 12 16 7 .152 105 8 27 2 14 .257 1916 281 506 33 245 .264 Pitching IP BB SO W-L ERA 75 56 23 47 8-3 1.69 16 13 10 15 1-2 2.20 65 51 25 70 5-1 2.22 72 67 27 77 5-3 3.38 46 52 29 55 1-3 3.50 56 51 23 37 3-3 3.54 40 42 14 25 3-4 3.57 15 15 6 17 1-1 3.60 18 21 8 25 0-1 4.58 60 61 36 54 3-3 5.55 34 28 21 33 2-1 1.87 497 457 222 455 32-25 3.19 SUMTER BRAVES Through Thursday's Batting Batter AB Relaford, of 90 16 Hall, ss 92 10 Goselin, inf 126 15 Gardner, of 174 29 Simmons, of 194 31 Minaya, of 182 17 Lopez, lb 176 26 Culberson, of 181 23 Perez, 155 19 Reis, 2b 198 24 Urman, 43 3 Rizzo, ss 106 13 Harper, 34 Others 47 Totals 1799 232 Meta STATISTICS Games HR RBI AVG 27 0 4 .300 26 0 5 .283 35 19 .278 48 19 .276 51 35 .263 46 17 .253 44 24 .249 42 .232 36 000 .232 44 19 .222 co 3 .186 .160 NO .088 10 .213 437 21 192 .243 Pitching Pitcher IP BB SO ERA Richey 29 14 11 43 Pittsfield, in mid-June and hit leadoff for that team in hopes of improving his batting stroke.

Utilityman Mike Noelke was promoted to St. Lucie of the Class A Florida State League. Noelke, who was hitting .253 with two home runs and 11 RBI, was sent up after St. Lucie was hit with some injuries. Replacing Noelke was Tim Howard, who was in extended spring training.

Howard, 19, hit .280 with 46 RBI for Kingsport of the Appalachian League last season. His first at-bat in Columbia produced a two-run single that was the difference in a 3-0 win Thursday. McDonald can expect big change By AUSTIN WILSON AP Sports Writer By NEIL WHITE By NEIL WHITE Sports Writer Attendance at picking up after start. The Mets worst springs in terms of weather. That extended weather resulted coming out to the ballpark through the first 17 dates, an average of 765.

That total was about 50 percent behind last season's pace. The Mets also had four rainouts in that stretch, which equaled the total number from last season. The Mets' latest 10-game homestand, Capital City Park is an extremely slow ran into one of the recent memory in period of cool, wet in only 13,001 fans NEIL WHITE METS NOTES which ended Thursday, gave the attendance numbers a boost to 26,753, an average of 991. For seven of the games over 1,000 fans came out, with a season high of 3,861 last Sunday. General manager Skip Weisman said he wasn't too concerned about the slow start at the gate.

Besides the poor weather, he cited five conflicts with the South Carolina baseball team. "I'm happy people are starting to come out," Weisman said. "It was just a matter of the weather. It's been a lot more comfortable out here, and there's been no threat of rain. That makes a big difference.

Hopefully, we'll be able to continue the increase." Roster shuffle: The great Lee May experiment was moved to extended spring training until the New York-Penn League season begins, when May will be assigned to a shortseason team for the fourth consecutive season. Columbia manager Bill Stein said it would be better for May, the son of former major leaguer Lee May, to get the additional work in St. Lucie with the availability of equipment and instructors. He will report to OMAHA, Neb. Before the month i is over, Ben McDonald expects to be eating crab cakes and clam chowder, instead of the crawfish etouffee and squirrelhead gravy he grew up on.

McDonald, the 6-foot-7 ace of the Louisiana State University pitching staff, is expected to be the first player taken in Monday's major league baseball draft, and the Baltimore Orioles have that pick. "Crawfish is probably his favorite food. He'll eat it fixed any way, but his mother will fix him an etouffee before every game. That's his pregame meal," said McDonald's father, Larry McDonald. "Mustard sardines is his pregame snack," the elder McDonald said.

"But when he gets serious about eating, he goes for his etouffee. "His mother will probably fix it for him and mail it to him, wherever he goes in the draft." Etouffee is a Cajun dish in which the crawfish are smothered in onions, bell pepper and celery, well spiced with cayenne pepper and cooked in a brown gravy. And that's a lot like the recipe for squirrel head gravy. "Me and Ben fight over the heads," Larry McDonald: said. That revelation drew disbelieving gasps from sports writers assembled for the College World Series.

Three All-America teams were announced here, and McDonald was on all three. He was also recognized by Baseball America as the outstanding player in the college game this year. Larry McDonald was taken aback at the reaction of the reporters. "Is it that unusual a dish?" the elder McDonald asked. "It doesn't have a wild taste, like most other game.

"His mother and sister won't eat it, but we eat the brains, the tongue, the jowels. 'A lot of people eat rabbit heads that way, but I've never done that, because they look so ugly cooked in the pot. They look like mule heads. Squirrel heads look pretty." The spicy diet may have had something to do with McDonald's athletic prowess. His fast ball is consistently above 95 miles an hour.

His curve ball snaps off his big hands and makes a vicious bend at the plate, and he's added a changeup and a fork ball to his repertoire under the tutelage of LSU coach Skip Bertman. Pro scouts compare him to Roger Clemens when the Red Sox star was a college pitcher. McDonald traces his emergence as a dominant college pitcher to two traumatic experiences a grand slam home run given up in 1987 in his first world series appearance and his decision to give up basketball. Team ERA 2.72 395 2.81 379 2.82 410 2.99 387 3.15 428 3.15 415 3.32 462 3.33 429 3.36 413 3.45 402 3.94 461 4.26 418 Individual 4 or more Pitching ER BB SO ShO SA 140 153 325 -0 12 142 174 357 15 149 172 258 7 18 151 157 277 4 20 172 184 289 5 12 159 153 263 6 12 181 155 297 3 20 176 150 314 2 10 170 171 218 4 173 174 298 4 16 208 185 317 3 14 207 201 262 5 6 Pitching decisions. IP BB SO LERA 30 16 12 37 5 1 0.89 28 22 12 13 2 3 0.98 16 9 9 12 3 2 1.12 64 45 12 43 4 3 1.40 55 44 17 41 4 2 1.63 39 32 7 26 1 3 1.83 69 49 18 33 5 1 1.97 32 25 16 30 3 1 1.97 36 26 21 15 2 3 2.00 77 63 28 33 3 5 2.09 45 36 19 34 4 1 2.20 69 54 29 59 5 1 2.23 87 64 36 74 6 2 2.27 83 74 17 36 8 2 2.27 81 56 28 62 7 3 2.32 89 63 19 68 8 3 2.33 35 23 15 52 4 1 2.34 64 53 26 42 2 4 2.38 75 60 26 47 3 1 2.40 86 79 25 48 10 2 2.41 55 54 11 21 3 3 2.45 84 64 24 59 7 4 2.58 24 27 8 10 3 1 2.59 31 24 10 25 2 2 2.64 85 65 31 48 6 3 2.65 27 16 13 21 2 2 2.70 82 72 20 53 5 2 2.74 59 52 15 22 4 4 2.76 80 78 17 44 4 1 2.81 86 64 27 70 6 3 2.83 76 58 23 63 4 2.95 39 29 12 15 4 3 2.97 82 85 22 34 6 5 2.98 36 39 13 16 4 3.00 50 45 21 19 2 5 3.04 74 68 25 38 4 5 3.05 66 60 12 27 5 2 3.12 32 31 11 19 4 1 3.13 68 62 23 40 3 4 3.16 70 69 18 34 3 4 3.21 61 59 25 33 5 3.23 80 63 19 63 5 3 3.26 38 29 16 17 4 2 3.29 26 43 2 3.34 23 55 3.35 22 23 5 3 3.38 67 58 26 58 3 4 3.48 23 11 4 3.52 67 22 24 4 5 3.65 75 13 43 3.72 23 60 5 3 3.84 64 31 49 5 3 3.94 29 44 6 5 4.02 59 25 47 3 4 4.10 50 30 34 5 5 4.22 89 26 32 5 5 4.20 60 19 16 6 4.23 45 5 32 5 3 4.28 58 59 21 35 3 4 4.34 34 19 6 4.38 59 60 26 58 7 4.73 62 65 19 38 1 7 4.76 61 72 24 23 2 5 4.87 52 54 22 39 2 4 4.88 28 32 11 17 5 4.88 60 69 18 42 1 7 5.10 28 33 13 18 2 3 5.46 64 67 32 31 1 8 5.48 29 35 19 14 3 5.90 69 72 31 41 3 8 6.16 30 29 26 26 0 4 6.67 19 26 16 15 4 2 9.31 Smith 70 60 32 41 6-2 2.83 Vazquez 70 68 23 41 4-5 3.62 Meier 30 26 13 16 1-1 3.64 Deleon Duncan Mitchell Grove Maldonado Wohlers Meister Dickman Others Totals 43 53 19 24 1-4 4.15 17 15 5 11 1-2 4.15 27 29 20 17 1-1 4.33 54 64 21 32 4-4 4.50 27 26 16 25 0-2 4.73 55 60 45 43 2-4 5.93 18 22 14 12 1-2 7.64 13 11 30 5 0-1 10.13 26 20 6 25 3-2 2.10 478 468 255 335 24-31 4.18 SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE LEADERS Through Friday's Games Batting Average Cudio, Gbo .361 Frye, Gas .346 Morandini, Spt .339 Morrisette, Col .335 McCoy, Gas .332 Home Runs McKoy, Gas 11 Raisanen, Aug 10 Mulvaney, Gas 10 Runs Batted In Mulvaney, Gbo 54 Raisanen, Aug 52 McCoy, Gas 45 Kuehl, Csc 42 Nunez, Sav 37 Stolen Bases Lamphere, Ash 36 Ansley, Ash 35 Fuller, 27 Nunez, Sav 22 Wins Blohm, Aug 10 Reich, Col 00 Martinez, Csc 00 Sanford, Gbo 00 Ogliaruso, MB Strikeouts Ericks, Sav 83 A.

Young, Col 77 Felix, Aug 74 Farmer, Ash 71 Saves Richey, Sum Rivera, Fay Hvizda, Gas The Mets have been playing shorthanded, though. Outfielder Rob Lemle, who has a .310 average and a team-high 18 stolen bases, has not played since May 22. First he was bothered by a nagging groin pull. Then he had to return to his Compton, home to testify in a trial. Lemle was shot in the leg in an incident during the off-season.

He was expected back for the current Fayetteville series. 0 Numbers game: The New York Mets have retired three numbers in their history, one of a player Tom Seaver's No. 41, plus the numbers of two late managers the 14 worn by Gil Hodges and the 37 worn by Casey Stengel. Evidently, the Mets don't see that the honor is extended throughout their organization. Columbia pitcher Pete Schourek wears No.

41 and second baseman Doug Saunders wears No. 14. Weisman, a New Jersey native who is a long-time Seaver fan, was stunned to see the number on Schourek's back at the start the season. He even asked New York general manager Frank Cashen and Vice President of Baseball Operations Joe McIlvaine about the matter when they visited Columbia, but both expressed a lack of concern. That seems to be a little odd, considering how important tradition is in the game of baseball.

If an organization retires a number, it should be that way throughout the system. 0 Stat facts: After being shut out three times in their first 12 games, the Mets haven't been blanked in the following 45 games, an indication of how much this team has improved at the plate. Some of the hottest hitters include two who are being considered for South Atlantic Player of the Month, James Morrisette and Alex Jimenez. Morrisette hit .382, and Jimenez hit .361 in May. Catcher Todd Hundley knocked in 11 runs in the recent 10-game homestand to raise his total to 30.

0 Going home: Columbia trainer Rich Bomgardner has resigned for personal reasons to return to his home in Kansas. He is being replaced by David Fricke, an Eastern Kentucky University student with one year of school remaining. 0 Bring shoes and a glove: The New York Mets will hold a tryout camp at Capital City Park Saturday, June 24 at 9 a.m. The camp is for players ages 16-22 only, and all American Legion players must bring a permission slip from their coach to try out. New York scouts Jim Woodward and Craig Kornfield will conduct the camp.

For more information, contact the Mets office at 256-4110..