O's ace gives jay his vote

By MIKE ZEISBERGER
Toronto Sun

Give the Cy Young award to Pat Hentgen, says Baltimore ace Mike Mussina.

After falling short in his own attempt to win his 20th game of the season Saturday, the Baltimore ace watched Hentgen accomplish that feat yesterday. That was proof enough for Mussina.

"If I was voting, he would win," Mussina said afterward. Unfortunately for Hentgen, his peers have no input into the award. That decision will be left up to members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

This was the second time in his career that Hentgen had the opportunity to beat the Orioles for his 20th victory. In his final start of the 1993 campaign, he lost 8-4 at Baltimore's Camden Yards to finish 19-9.

Yesterday, Hentgen finally managed to make history. "I've always thought he was that type of (top)-calibre pitcher; not just this year," Mussina said.


Standing (for) Pat: He's AL's best

By Bill Koenig, Baseball Weekly

O'Brien knows Cy Young form when he sees it

IT IS AN IMPRESSIVE list, one that includes the likes of Greg Maddux, David Cone and Dwight Gooden. Catcher Charlie O'Brien has caught seven Cy Young Award winners in his career. He figures the list ought to get even longer after this season. There's former Atlanta teammate John Smoltz, of course. He's the probable winner in the National League.

Then there's right-hander Pat Hentgen, whose locker is about three feet from O'Brien's current residence in the Toronto Blue Jays clubhouse.

People think he's just promoting a teammate, O'Brien said. "But I've caught enough Cy Young winners to know this kid is as good as any of them.

"He has the same competitive nature, that tenacious drive and desire to do well. Maddux had that. Gooden had it. The way they compete is what sets them apart."

No Blue Jays pitcher has won the Cy Young. Left-hander Jimmy Key (17-8, 2.76) came closest in 1987, finishing second to Boston's Roger Clemens (20-9, 2.97).

The question north of the border is: Will voters look beyond Hentgen's modest 18-10 record on a fourth-place team? Will they consider his overall numbers?

He is second in the league with a 3.34 ERA, first with 10 complete games, tied for first with three shutouts, is first with 2501/3 innings pitched and opponents are batting .240 against him, tied for the second-best figure in the league. He has allowed just 224 hits, walking 91 and striking out 163.

He has recorded 26% of his team's victories, and has beaten every team in the league except Texas.

"He's been phenomenal," O'Brien said. "Our team has been 12-14 games under .500 all year. We're next to last in offense. What are you telling me? Look at all the stats. The only thing (New York's Andy) Pettitte has more of is wins. But his ERA is four and a half (actually 4.05)."

Double-digit defeats don't automatically disqualify you from Cy Young contention. Maddux won the award with 10 losses for Atlanta in 1993 and 11 defeats with the Cubs the year before. The Braves' Tom Glavine had 11 losses in 1991. They had ERAs of 2.55 or lower those years.

Cone won the 1994 American League award for overall excellence with Kansas City; he didn't lead the league in any major pitching category. Hentgen, who will receive a $50,000 bonus for winning the Cy Young or $25,000 for finishing in the top five in balloting, is noncommittal about his chances.

"I feel like my stats are right there with anybody in the league," he said. "Sometimes you don't have control over the wins."

Hentgen, 27, was 17-7 before getting bogged down in a three-game losing streak. The Jays supported him with just six runs in those losses.

He figures to get two more starts, one each against Baltimore and Detroit. If he wins them both he'll post his first 20-win season. He was 19-9 as a rookie in 1993 before tacking on a World Series victory in Game Three against Philadelphia.

The late-season skid cost him a shot at Jack Morris' club-record 21 victories. Hentgen was just 7-6 with a 4.14 ERA on July 1 before he caught fire.

He was the American League Pitcher of the Month in both July (5-1, 2.72 ERA) and August (5-1, 2.60), the first pitcher to win the honor in consecutive months since Kansas City's Bret Saberhagen in 1989.

Between July 6 and Aug. 2, he became just the third pitcher in Jays history to win six consecutive starts (joining Doyle Alexander in 1983 and Dave Stewart in 1993).

"He's one of the better pitchers I've faced this year in either league," Yankees third baseman Charlie Hayes said after facing Hentgen Sept. 14 at SkyDome. "And the thing is, he doesn't try to fool you. He's coming right at you. "He gets ahead of hitters for the most part. When he does fall behind, he can throw his breaking pitch for strikes." Hentgen's hallmark has been his durability, both short term and over the long haul.

He has gone at least eight innings in each of his past 11 starts, including five consecutive complete games between Aug. 7 and Aug. 28. Opponents were hitting just .206 against Hentgen from the seventh inning on.

"I just try to go as long as I can," he said. "Complete games are a bullpen-saver. I take pride in the fact I finished a game. I try to keep my pitch count low. I've been able to pitch ahead in the count and get some groundouts early in the count."

Hentgen, who earns $2.2 million this year, also is the pitchers' version of Cal Ripken in the American League. In this age of inflamed rotator cuffs, tendinitis and impingements, he hasn't missed a start in his career since moving into the Toronto rotation April 17, 1993.

A Detroit native, he has answered the bell 119 consecutive times, posting a 65-43 lifetime record with 21 complete games.

"I've tried to be consistent with my mechanics and maintain good work habits," he said. "You do that, you can go out and pitch game after game. I've been fortunate with injuries."

He doesn't have any secret exercises. "I try to run between starts and keep my legs strong," he said. "And I have some exercises for shoulder and elbow strength. That's about it."

Hentgen has bounced back from a disappointing 10-14, 5.11 season when he experienced control problems. "Last year I struggled with my command. I'm spotting it better this year," he said. "And when guys have gotten into scoring position, I've been able to make the big pitches. I've been able to stay focused for a good length of time."

Hentgen and O'Brien frequently quibble good-naturedly about pitch selection. Hentgen believes O'Brien calls too many fastballs. "He's a fastball catcher and I'm a fastball pitcher," Hentgen said. "If you get beat, he wants you to get beat with your best pitch." Counters O'Brien: "He doesn't have to paint people (on the corners). He didn't realize how good his fastball is. He can't argue with the success he's having."

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