Dr. K Is King of the Hill in a Boulltz/U/ Pitching Crop, There Is Good, Very Good and Gooden a Baseball Pitcher Whom Not There Is a Wonderful Ride Ahead
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Dr. K Is King of the Hill In a bOUlltZ/U/ pitching crop, there is good, very good and Gooden A baseball pitcher whom not there is a wonderful ride ahead. "Dwight baseball city that, like the spring-training even New York City can en Gooden." teams that invigorate the region every large or exaggerate stands atop Being Bret Saberhagen, 21, would not March, seems to specialize in the unlike the hill and the heap at 21. be too terrible either. Saberhagen and his liest dreams. "Kids are always chasing counting the mound, which is wife both delivered dramatically last Oc rainbows," says Johnny Vander Meer, 71 , also situated about ten inches above the tober, a bracing baby boy and a bouncing a local resident, " but baseball is a world rest of the field. Dwight Gooden in just Kansas City championship. (And she's where you can catch them." While he had two major league seasons has risen like an pregnant again.) Or how about Cincin a losing record overall with the Reds, illusion of a fastball to a height somewhat nati's Tom Browning, 25, the first rookie Cubs and Indians, Vander Meer pitched loftier than 6 ft. 3 in., and a level nearly 20-game winner in more than 30 years? two consecutive no-hitters in 1938. As a beyond imagination. When Sandy Kou Or Orel Hershiser, 27, of the Los Angeles craftsman, Gooden puts him in mind of fax says, ''I'd trade anyone's past for Dodgers, in his third season already a mil Ewell Blackwell; as a hard thrower, he re Gooden's future," that includes Walter lionaire? All of them have realized in a calls Van Lingle Mungo. ;' But no one I Johnson's, Grover Cleveland Alexan short time things that have eluded good ever saw was the thinking pitcher at a der's, Bob Feller's and his own. "Who pitchers over long careers, and one of young age that this kid is now." Owing to wouldn't?" growls Don Drysdale, winding them is more than special. Gooden is not up for his famous knockdown pitch. alone among men, or even among Mets, "Gooden makes $1.32 million a year." just among pitchers. On their own hooks, Since arguing with pitchers is no more All-Stars Darryl Strawberry and Keith sensible than arguing about them, let a Hernandez are entitled to dream of the hitter take his swing, a slugger with an pennant, as long as Dwight dreams too. eternally simple view of life (especially He is from Tampa, a small but fertile New York living), but a profound knowledge of athletic gifts (and the pleasures they afford). "If I could pick somebody to be," says Mickey Man tle, "that's who I'd be." He knows The rich young class of fast starters: Browning, a 20-9 1985 rookie season Hershiser, 30-11 after two years of toil Saberhagen, the World Series MVP with a 30-17 two-year record And, above all, the towering Met 54 Ph otographs for TIME by Mickey Pfleger batter's box, I'd think, 'I'm Pete Rose, I'm AI Kaline.' " For hitting two home runs in a forgotten spring-training game I 5 years ago at Lakeland. Detroit's HaLl of Fame rightfielder is Gooden's ideal still. "I just fell in love with him for the way he played that one game when I was six." Why? "He dominated." From the age ofeight. Gooden and his closest neighborhood friend. Floyd You mans, filled Tampa's afternoons with pepper. Using a battered aluminum can for a ball. they waged endless rounds of home-run derby or argued themselves an gry over a game called Strikeout that fea tured a hard rubber ball, a red brick wall and a chalk-drawn strike zone. "Just me and him," Youmans whispers conspirato rially. "We weren't supposed to- the coaches all the way down the line told us not to- but we'd sneak out and practice throwing curve balls. When he was twelve, I knew. By twelve he had com In St. Petersburg, fielding grounders with other Mets hurlers mand. Almost nobody couId catch his "1 never wanted to pitch. 1 wallted to be involved. Even now, I'd rather play every day. .. fastball either: he broke one guy's hand, another guy's wrist." Without irony, a wisdom that has comforted him for al "all the adults were your parents." though Gooden's playmates took to calling him most 50 years, Vander Meer has no fear he was not shortchanged in any respect. Doctor. Dan Gooden believes his son's for his memories. "Gooden's the guy who Ella Mae and Dan Gooden were as solid nickname came from an infielder's chat could tie my record," he says with a twin as the rocks that-their son acknowledges ter: "C'mon. Dr. Dwight, operate on kle. " but to break it. don't forget, he'll both uneasily and proudly- he llsed to him'" Youmans says, "It was just always have to pitch three no-hitters in a row." hurl at passing cars with resounding accu Dr. D, or Doc." It evolved naturally into Until recently, Tampa's most promi racy. "I knocked out a lot of windows, got Dr. K the initial taken from the score nent baseball dreamer has been the San a lot of whipPu1gs." Dwight says. "And at book shorthand for a strikeout. Diego first baseman Steve Garvey, for night I'd lie in bed throwing a tennis ball There were other good athletes merly of the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose up in the air and catching it. throwing it father served as the Brooklyn Dodgers' up in the air and catching it. throwing it springtime bus driver in the '50s. Rising up in the air and catching it. until I fell The Pitcher's from Dodger batboy to star of the team, asleep." Garvey prepared Tampa well for its im His baseball heritage is easy to trace. Triple Crown probable position now as producer of both Etha Talbert. Gooden's paternal grand in 1985 led both the most effective pitcher and the most ef mother, swore it was spiritual. She died ficient hitter in baseball: the Mets right this year, convinced that Dwight was " his leagues in wins, hander Gooden and the Boston Red Sox granddaddy come back alive." The boy strikeouts and third baseman Wade Boggs. One, the Na never knew Uclesee Gooden but loved to earned run average, tional League Cy Young Award winner hear his father's energetic accounts of the by acclamation last year (24-4 record, 268 angular. strong-legged. long-armed Geor the youngest ofonly strikeouts, 1.53 earned-run average); the gia pitcher whose fastball had been con seven to do it other. the American League batting signed by the times to a black sandlot in champion by 33 points (,368). Albany. " 'Could he bring it. Dad?' Like bookends in a trophy case, they Dwight would say to me, and I'd laugh. around the neighborhood. Without Good are apt to appear opposite each other in 'Yeah. he could bring it.' " en, whose birthday came just a little too their old schools' respective bleachers at A round man on a cane. Dan has lost late for the 1975 Williamsport World Se a hip to arthritis. actually to a childhood ries. the Belmont Little Leaguers made it of peanut and cotton farming. compound all the way to the finals before losing to ed by adult years operating a belt in a Taiwan. But Gooden could be so critical phosphate factory. Still. something visible of his teammates' mistakes that a visitor The Statistics remains of the athlete, the first baseman to the practice field might have taken who followed Uclesee to the Albany Red him for the only competent player. Oue Sox and later coached semi-pro teams in day nobody remembered to bring a ball. Tampa. "My daddy carried me around The team was awkwardly waiting when after two seasons like I carried Dwight around," says Dan. Gooden suddenly said, ''I'm sorry for the noting that none of the three sons from his way I act sometimes." After that he first marriage ever embraced the game. seemed not to notice any errors but his "Oh, but it pleased me when Dwight took own. The scouts' word for this tolerance. the Hillsborough High and H .B. Plant it up. 'Baseball, baseball,' his mother liked consideration and grace is poise. games. At least Boggs, 27. offers a theory to tease, 'that's all you two talk about.' But "1 never wanted to pitch," Gooden as to the source of his powers: he eats little that was my whole dream." says. "I wanted to be involved. Even now, else but chicken and eggs (leaving it to At home alone, Dwight devised a va if I had my choice, I'd rather play every others to ponder which came first). As for riety of phantom baseball games, some day. Given the chance, I honestly think I Gooden, nobody knows exactly where he times flipping ordinary playing cards. could put up some hitting statistics." His got what he has or, for that matter, pre Nobody else was ever able to make much preference would be to swing lefthanded, cisely what it is. sense of it, but he could always see a dia but to safeguard his priceless arm from in In the black working-class communi mond. "I was a daydreamer," he confess side pitches. the Mets require him to bat ty of Belmont Heights, Gooden explains, es.