Stargell Ends Mvp Season In Grand Style
Tim Stargell wound up his third consecutive MVP season with a flourish, hitting a grand slam as the San Bernardino Spirit drubbed Palm Springs 11-3 in their California League finale.
Stargell's bases-loaded homer gave him 17 home runs and 96 runs batted in to go with a .262 batting average, 22 doubles, three triples and 20 stolen bases. He finished No. 2 in the Class A league in RBI, topped only by his teammate, third baseman Frank Bolick, who drove in 102 runs.
Stargell, a nephew of Hall of Famer Willie Stargell, was voted San Bernardino's most valuable player, an honor he previously had won at Bellingham in 1988 and at Wausau in 1989.
Strictly a second baseman in his first two professional seasons, he played many positions this year - 52 games at second base, 17 at shortstop, 14 at third base, 11 at first base and 36 in the outfield. He was charged with 36 errors, but Spirit Manager Keith Bodie said he ``did a good job.''
Stargell, 23, was drafted by Seattle in the 33rd round in 1988 out of Southern University.
SUCCESSFUL START
-- Williamsport's Dana Ridenour, a right-hander acquired by the Mariners from the New York Yankees in last year's Steve Balboni trade, made his first start in 172 games as a professional Monday night. In the second game of a doubleheader sweep of Reading, Ridenour (4-7, 2.93 earned-run average) pitched a 6-0 victory, allowing only three hits, striking out five and walking none. He last previous start was in 1985, when he was a UCLA sophomore.
INJURIES RIDDLE CANNONS
-- A nagging muscle injury (strained quadricep) did what Pacific Coast League pitchers couldn't do consistently - stop Calgary's Todd Haney. The Cannon second baseman, the PCL's No. 3 hitter at .339, was sent home to rest last week because the muscle hadn't healed. The Calgary sparkplug had only nine at-bats in August after missing only one game in the first four months of the season.
-- Calgary left-hander Bryan Clark (4-3, 3.95 ERA) underwent arthroscopic surgery. Cannon designated hitter Tom Dodd, who leads the PCL with 114 RBI, was sidelined by a strained shoulder muscle. . . . Outfielder Ted Williams hit two inside-the-park home runs in Portland last weekend. . . . Right-hander Pat Pacillo (5-4, 5.31) hasn't lost since June 7 and is 3-0 with a 1.40 ERA in his past three starts.
AROUND THE FARMS
-- Tempe's Marc Newfield (.324, 6 HR, 38 RBI), Seattle's top draft pick this year, was named Arizona League MVP. . . . Frank Bolick (.324, 18 HR, 102 RBI), San Bernardino Spirit third baseman acquired from Milwaukee in the Mickey Brantley trade, was named the California League's best hitting prospect. Teammate Roger Salkeld (11-5, 3.40 ERA, 167 strikeouts), Seattle's No. 1 draft pick last year, was named the league's top pitching prospect. Manager Keith Bodie said outfielder-second baseman Brian Turang (.296, 12 HR, 67 RBI, 25 steals) was the Spirit's most improved player.
-- Bellingham right-hander Dave Adam (4-4) lowered his ERA to 1.43, second best among Northwest League pitchers, with a four-hit, 1-0 victory over Southern Oregon. Adam was drafted out of Central Connecticut State in the 18th round in June. . . . Peninsula center fielder Jesus Tavarez was out the past week with a groin strain, an injury that cost him a shot at the Carolina League stolen-base title.