There has been all this talk about Albert Belle and Frank Thomas equaling or surpassing the Roger Maris-Mickey Mantle one-season home run record of 115.
It could happen, but at the moment the leading White Sox power duo is Belle and Norberto Martin. Together they hit 49 home runs last year–Belle 48, Martin one.
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Belle, homerless in 67 spring-training at-bats, connected in the eighth inning with a man on in Tuesday’s 6-5 Opening Day victory. Martin, a utility infielder not known for the long ball, connected in the ninth for a 5-5 tie. The Sox won in the 10th when Ray Durham came all the way home from first on a scratch infield single accompanied by an error.
“It’s only one of 162,” Tony Phillips was saying an hour before the Sox began pursuit of the American League pennant, an achievement that has eluded them for the last 37 years. “But you get a little more excited for this one. Opening Day is always special.”
It was particularly special to the Sox’s bullpen, which finished with four scoreless innings, and to Phillips, who made a sensational defensive play in right field to supplement three hits and a walk in five plate appearances.
Belle and Thomas, meanwhile, had two hits each–Thomas two singles, Belle an RBI double to go with his two-run homer.
Belle acknowledged during a postgame interview that he had had a poor spring–a .209 batting average with no home runs–but said he wasn’t concerned because he knew he would come around.
A reporter, noting Belle and Martin were tied for the home run lead with one apiece, asked if they might break the Maris-Mantle record. “I don’t think so,” Belle replied, going along with the gag.
Later, when Thomas was asked the same question, he said, “One is a possibility,” referring to Belle. “But I don’t think `Paco’ will get enough at-bats.”
“Paco” is Martin’s nickname. And the ninth inning was “Paco Time,” manager Terry Bevington said.
“In Seattle, inside the Kingdome, there is a clock that says `Taco Time.’ We changed it to `Paco Time.’ Often when he comes in a game, things happen. He doesn’t hit many home runs (four in 445 previous Sox at-bats). He gets a lot of singles and he walks. He has been a very valuable player for us.”
Bevington also was pleased with his bullpen, which often was shaky last season. Three relievers worked the final four innings. Alan Levine pitched the seventh and eighth, Tony Castillo the ninth and Roberto Hernandez the 10th. “Four scoreless innings, that’s the key,” Bevington said. “You have to shut them down in the late innings. The team that does that consistently all year will win.”
Bevington conceded it was only one game and “one game doesn’t tell you much. We played hard. That didn’t surprise me.”
Thomas said he wasn’t surprised, either.
“When we were down 5-2 (after the sixth inning), there was a lot of yelling on our bench,” he said. “We never gave up. We know we can score runs.”
The only disappointment was the general ineffectiveness of starter Jaime Navarro, who gave up all five Toronto runs and never had a 1-2-3 inning. Best evidence of Navarro’s difficulties is that 13 of the first 28 batters reached base against him.
He was wild throughout, issuing five walks and throwing two wild pitches in succession in the third, when Toronto scored two runs to overcome a 2-1 deficit. One run was unearned because of an error unjustly charged to third baseman Chris Snopek.
Navarro, who as a Cub last season complained to manager Jim Riggleman about being yanked in midgame, had no such beef with Bevington. There was ample opportunity for Bevington to give him an earlier hook.
Despite a strong offensive finish–four runs in their last three turns at bat–the victory didn’t alleviate the Sox’s concerns over their suspect starting pitching. But one negative aspect was overshadowed by the triumph. And no one seemed more pleased than Belle.
“I’m just happy to come over here and be productive in the first game,” he said.