Sandberg’s Special Day a Bad One for Dodgers

CHICAGO — On Saturday morning, Chicago Cub second baseman Ryne Sandberg announced his retirement. Unfortunately for the Dodgers, it didn’t take effect immediately.

Four hours after telling the baseball world he would be ending his storied career at the conclusion of this season, Sandberg ended the Dodgers’ seven-game winning streak and the Cubs’ nine-game losing streak by smashing two home runs and driving in three in a 5-1 victory at Wrigley Field in front of a sellout crowd of 39,953.

Because the San Francisco Giants also lost, however, the Dodgers remain tied for the NL West lead.

The defeat against the Cubs wasn’t the only loss suffered Saturday by the Dodgers who, after going through a month when everything seemed to go right for them, went through a miserable day when everything seemed to go wrong.

They learned after the game that outfielder Todd Hollandsworth will be out two to four weeks because of a broken bone above the right elbow, an injury Hollandsworth suffered Friday. He didn’t, however, realize how serious it was until after he had finished Friday’s game and his condition had worsened by Saturday morning.

The Dodgers also lost their starting pitcher, Tom Candiotti, after two innings Saturday because of a cracked nail on the middle finger of his throwing hand.

Although he is not expected to miss a turn, the Dodgers sure missed him Saturday.

Candiotti took the loss, falling to 7-4, after giving up the first of Sandberg’s home runs, a drive that cleared the wall in left-center at the 368-foot sign with Kevin Orie aboard in the second inning.

But Candiotti didn’t get much help from the bullpen.

Reliever Mark Guthrie, who entered the game with an 8.05 earned-run average to show for his previous 19 innings of work, gave up two runs in his three innings of work, including Sandberg’s second home run in the fourth inning, which didn’t land very far from the first in the bleachers in left-center.

Sandberg also had a single and an intentional walk to give him a perfect day.

“I felt something really special,” he said. “I felt like I got something off my back. I don’t feel like I have anything to prove in the next two months. I’m not going to change my mind [about retiring] no matter what happens.”

Sandberg, of course, did change his mind once before.

A 10-time All-Star, a nine-time winner of the Gold Glove award and the owner of 273 home runs, most ever by a major-league second baseman, the 37-year-old Sandberg retired in June 1994, sat out the ’95 season, then returned in 1996.

But now, batting only .256 with eight homers and 43 RBIs, Sandberg says he’s ready to devote himself fully to his wife and five kids.

“When I came back two years ago, I decided on two years,” Sandberg said, “and I’m going to stick to that.”

Sandberg had plenty of help in handing the Dodgers their first loss in this four-game series after back-to-back victories.

Although first baseman Mark Grace doubled in a run and left fielder Doug Glanville added an RBI single, both of them, along with two of their teammates, came up with defensive plays worthy of any highlight reel to turn back the Dodgers time and again.

The plays were as follows:

--In the fifth inning, with Dodgers on first and second, Todd Zeile hit a sinking fly ball in left near the foul line. Glanville, coming over at full speed, leaped, stretched his body out, turned his glove in midair and backhanded the ball.

--In the sixth inning, Greg Gagne, leading off, hit a one-bouncer that shortstop Shawon Dunston got by stretching out his body, and making a backhand stab. He then got up and threw out Gagne.

--In the eighth inning, with Raul Mondesi on second and nobody out, Zeile first hit a bouncer that appeared to curve fair before it passed the first-base bag. Despite a protest by Dodger Manager Bill Russell, the ball was ruled foul.

Zeile then hit a shot past first that Grace backhanded as he dove to the infield dirt.

--In the ninth inning, Rey Sanchez, in at short for Dunston, went behind second to grab a bouncer by Brett Butler. Sanchez did a 360-degree spin to throw out the Dodger outfielder.

It was that kind of a day for the Dodgers. They were even beaten by a former teammate, Kevin Tapani (2-1).

But most of all, it was Sandberg’s day. He doesn’t have many left in his playing career. He may never have another like this.

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* HOLLANDSWORTH’S WOES

Outfielder’s arm injury comes at a time when things were looking up. C9