BY SCOTT MacGREGOR
The Cincinnati Enquirer
What's up with the Milwaukee Brewers? All of a sudden, they switch to the National League and go from just another small-market team with five consecutive sub-.500 seasons to first place in the NL Central.
A big reason is second baseman - leadoff hitter Fernando Vina, who entered this weekend's series with the Reds hitting .336 -- and that was after cooling off a bit. Last week he was above .400. He already has two five-hit games this season.
A year ago this month, Vina fractured his left fibula sliding into second base in Cleveland. He missed 83 games and didn't have the on-base percentage required for a leadoff batter. A winter meeting with Brewers Vice President Sal Bando and manager Phil Garner reinforced what Vina had to do to reach the next level.
"We flew Fernando down to L.A. (from Sacramento) in December," Garner said. "It was Sal's idea. We went to a restaurant near the airport and talked about him being more patient, getting to a point where he'd be more effective as a leadoff hitter. He's been a good hitter, but to be a top-notch leadoff hitter, it's not necessary to be just a good hitter."
Vina, who turned 29 a few weeks ago, got the message. He has been more selective, taking more pitches and working the count longer. He now has 13 walks, one more than he had in 79 games last season.
"Last year was tough because of the injury," Vina recalled. "Phil and Sal talked about being a little more disciplined and patient. I have a better idea now about leadoff hitting, and I'm excited about the NL. I grew up watching the Giants. I've always felt we were better suited for the NL because of our makeup and Phil. The play is a little quicker, a little more aggressive."
Simply awesome
Padres right fielder Tony Gwynn, the best pure hitter in the game, had to have fluid drained from his right knee last week after being struck by a Mark Clark pitch in Chicago. Gwynn bounced back to record the eighth five-hit game of his career last Tuesday night.
"From my standpoint, it (the five-hit game) was still pretty ugly," Gwynn said after raising his average from .329 to .360 in one night and boosting his career hit total to 2,812. That moved him past Tampa Bay's disabled Wade Boggs (2,810) on the all-time list and into a tie for 36th place with Hall of Famer George Sisler. "The first four at-bats (before a final at-bat home run), I was still flying around," he said. "It's been a struggle for me mechanically, trying to get where I want to be. I still have a ways to go."
Cummings gets going
Reds castoff Midre Cummings seems to have found a niche coming off the Boston bench.
On April 22, Cummings hit a game-winning two-run pinch homer in the ninth inning of an 8-5 win at Detroit. His next at-bat came April 27, another pinch hit appearance and another two-run homer. The next night, he stroked an RBI single off the bench in the eighth inning. He also had a double and scored on an error in Boston's 7-6 loss to Texas Saturday.
Hitting coach Jim Rice has been helping Cummings make the most of his talents.
"You're telling me," Cummings said. "Look at the results. It's been paying off. He talks to me. That's the biggest thing -- getting to know me and making me feel more comfortable."
More stadium politics
New Jersey Governor Christine Whitman and New York City mayor Rudy Guiliani are waging a heated political battle over the future home of the Yankees. After New Jersey allegedly held secret meetings with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, Guiliani threatened to steal the football Giants and Jets, the NBA's Nets, the NHL's Devils from the New Jersey Meadowlands.
Ooops
Pirates play-by-play broadcaster Lanny Frattare made a monumental goof during a recent game, breaking into the coverage with an errant report that actor James Earl Jones had died. Frattare said he misunderstood when his producer relayed news of the death of James Earl Ray, convicted of killing Martin Luther King Jr. Frattare corrected the mistake shortly after it was made.
Nice guy
White Sox third baseman Robin Ventura is giving away one of his jerseys at the end of every homestand. He gave his first to a boy sitting near the Sox dugout after the April 12 game against Tampa Bay.
"Instead of just ragging on us, he was out there and seemed to be having a good time," said Ventura, who is doing what he can to rebuild the White Sox's damaged image -- and attendance.
Around the league
Shawon Dunston, a good hitter whom the Indians got in the hopes of filling their need at second base, is hitting under .200. So is third baseman Travis Fryman, who came over from Detroit in the offseason. The NL West-leading Padres have survived two straight losses by No. 1 starter Kevin Brown (2-2, 2.45 ERA), who ripped a large, metal Padres sign from the outside wall of the clubhouse after having to leave a game against the Pirates last Sunday. . . . Eric Karros is back at first base for the Dodgers after missing a month after knee surgery.
Press box line of the week
From Bob Brookover, who covers the Phillies for the Delaware County (Pa.) Times, on the fight at Cinergy Field during Tuesday's Reds-Phillies game: "The fans showed up to see a baseball game and the Jerry Springer show broke out."
The final words
It's a tie between two classics this week.
From Oakland A's President Sandy Alderson after his team won two of three from the Orioles, the most expensive team in major-league history: "I was in Vietnam. A big payroll doesn't always win." From Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, who is dating pop diva Mariah Carey: "For me to get married, I have to meet my wife first."
