Daulton

PHILADELPHIA -- Aw, no fair. Pitchers duel, boo. What fun is that?Routine outs, good defense, double plays, even. Not to mention dry weather and games ending before midnight.World Series baseball the way it was meant to be played instead of the Bad News Bears meet Abbott and Costello. How anticlimactic. Boring. How dull.Unless you are a Phillies fan, that is. Unless you were standing in front of your seat in the ninth inning last night when Curt Schilling was blowing away the heart of Toronto's batting order.

That was some explanation point Mickey Tettleton left the Orioles, a long, tall one arching into the rightfield bleachers. His game-winning homer last night provided not just a dramatic end to the season, but a fitting opening to what likely will be one of the most scrutinized offseasons in club history.Tettleton is the first major issue confronting the Orioles as they begin their recovery from a year in which they dropped to fifth place, 11 1/2 games behind division champion Boston. The switch-hitting catcher becomes eligible for free agency the day after the World Series.

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- If the Orioles are waiting for Fernando Valenzuela to expose himself as a myth, they may need a lot of patience.What started out as a spring training curiosity has suddenly developed into a subject of intrigue. Can Valenzuela, after an absence of nearly two years, make a successful return to the big leagues?There still isn't anybody willing to make that prediction, but even those who scoffed at that notion when Valenzuela reported to camp are beginning to have second thoughts.

PHILADELPHIA -- They've had to do without their leadoff batter, their third baseman, their first baseman, their shortstop, their opening-day starter, their No. 1 setup man and a guy who once pitched a no-hitter.But the Phillies can't survive this. Can they?How can they get along without Darren Daulton -- iron man, cleanup hitter, zookeeper?This is a man who is more than just an all-star catcher and run-production machine. He is the Phillies' Lion King. He doesn't just lead. He rules."Losing all those other guys -- that was like having tornado warnings," Larry Andersen said Wednesday.

I have spent my entire professional life in sports journalism, and I couldn't be prouder of that profession than I was when ESPN's SportsCenter beat HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel to a story that transcends the mere mortal aspects of sports coverage. And when I say that the Darren Daulton interviews on the two programs - first on ESPN on Sunday night and then on HBO on Tuesday night - were transcendental, I'm not exaggerating. Daulton, you might recall, was a pretty good player for the Philadelphia Phillies until his career was cut short by injuries and his life temporarily spun out of control.

CHICAGO -- Unlike Mark Anthony, I have come to praise, not bury. The Philadelphia Phillies, that is. There will be plenty of time to bury them. As has been said, it's a long season; whether they will make their usual plunge to the bottom in the National League East is not known.What is known is that two weeks into the championship skirmish the Phillies are baseball's surprise team. Also, and this is no surprise, they have the best all-around catcher in the league in Darren Daulton."He is the man on this ballclub," insisted Richie Ashburn, a diamond expert of the first rank.

PHILADELPHIA -- Lenny Dykstra was legally drunk when he and Philadelphia Phillies teammate Darren Daulton sustained multiple injures in a one-car accident early yesterday morning, Radnor Township, Pa., police said.The pair remained hospitalized in fair condition at Bryn Mawr (Pa.) Hospital last night.The accident occurred when Dykstra drove his 1991 Mercedes 500 SL into two trees on the side of a two-lane road in suburban Philadelphia. The players were returning from a bachelor party at a bar in Wayne, Pa., for teammate John Kruk.

TORONTO -- Proclaiming that real progress had been made over the weekend, Orioles general manager Pat Gillick said yesterday that a deal that would bolster the Orioles' depleted lineup with a significant hitter may be only days away.Gillick stopped short of naming a favorite, but he confirmed that San Diego Padres left fielder Rickey Henderson is "in the mix" along with Oakland Athletics hard-handed right fielder Geronimo Berroa and Montreal Expos first baseman David Segui.Philadelphia Phillies right fielder Darren Daulton remains a candidate, but because of financial complications he appears to be a second-tier possibility.

By listening to manager Davey Johnson yesterday, it's obvious the Orioles have more than just a passing interest in Philadelphia slugger Darren Daulton, whom the Phillies are looking to trade. Johnson spoke at length of the benefits of having the left-handed hitter in the lineup or on the bench, bad knees and all."If you look at the mashing clubs in this league, the power potential of Seattle, Cleveland, Boston, New York, those guys can maul you," he said. "They've usually got a mauler sitting on the bench and they can dictate matchups late.

ATLANTA -- After spending most of the past week looking at alternatives, the Orioles have stepped up their search for a replacement for outfielder Eric Davis and appear to be leaning more toward a designated hitter.General manager Pat Gillick said before yesterday's game against Atlanta that he has approached a number of teams about a trade possibility but that many teams are reluctant to discuss major deals while still seeing themselves as playoff contenders.The Oakland Athletics and Philadelphia Phillies have no such thoughts, however, and Gillick and assistant GM Kevin Malone have focused attention on A's right fielder Geronimo Berroa and Phillies outfielder Darren Daulton.