National League Roundup : Cubs’ Comeback From a 7-0 Deficit Takes the Fight Out of Padres, 12-8

Andre Dawson showed up with a swollen face, Eric Show didn’t show up at all, and it was all quiet on the baseball war front Wednesday in Chicago.

After Tuesday’s beanball incidents and brawl at Wrigley Field, the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs reverted to baseball.

It was a wild one in which the Padres jumped off to a 7-0 lead and were still in front, 8-4, when the wind started blowing out in the eighth inning. Then Jim Sundberg hit a pinch grand slam to highlight an eight-run rally that gave the Cubs a 12-8 victory and a sweep of their six games at home against the hapless Padres.

Dawson, who needed 24 stitches to heal wounds around his mouth, was hit in the face by one of Show’s pitches in Tuesday’s game after getting a first-inning home run. He did not play Wednesday, but his replacement, Bob Dernier, singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning.

League President A. Bartlett Giamatti is studying tapes of Tuesday’s game, and both teams were warned about brushback pitches. There were none.

Manager Larry Bowa of the Padres ordered Show to remain at the team’s hotel and skip Wednesday’s game.

“I will wait until I get the umpires’ report,” Giamatti said, “but I think the general situation is not a good one.

“There is a difference between a brushback pitch and an intent to hit a batter. When you have all those home runs and the allegations about a lively ball, there are a number of pitchers who believe they have to brush batters back.

“I understand that, but the margin between a brushback and a pitch that hits somebody is slight. The talk about the lively ball is part of the reason for the increase in a type of activity we haven’t had to this degree before.”

Before the game, Bowa said he told his players, “Go out, be aggressive and have fun.” With seven runs in the first three innings, the Padres were having fun. But Ed Whitson couldn’t stand prosperity and was knocked out in the sixth. The bullpen couldn’t hold the lead.

Sundberg’s home run with the bases loaded came off Lance McCullers and tied the game, 8-8, with nobody out. Dernier’s single with two on came off Keith Comstock and broke the tie. Before the rally was over, Leon Durham had doubled and Jody Davis had tripled.

“We know that in this park, we are capable of scoring runs,” Cub Manager Gene Michael said, “but you have to be fortunate to overcome a 7-0 deficit.”

Sundberg, who doesn’t get to play much as the backup to catcher Jody Davis, hit McCullers’ first pitch onto Waveland Avenue with help from a wind that was blowing in until the eighth inning.

“With me being the tying run, I had one thing in mind: to look for a fastball and drive it,” Sundberg said. “He (McCullers) had trouble getting his breaking ball over to the guy in front of me, so I was expecting a fastball. I don’t think he got the fastball where he wanted it.”

Montreal 1, Houston 0--Floyd Youmans, coming back strong from a back injury, flirted with a no-hitter at Houston but settled for his second career one-hitter.

Kevin Bass opened the eighth inning with a line drive that banged off the right-field wall so hard he was held to a single, and Youmans (6-3) settled for his fifth victory in a row.

The loser for the fifth time in a row was Nolan Ryan (4-10), who usually is the pitcher bidding for a no-hitter. Ryan gave up only four hits in seven innings, but two of them came in the first to account for the Expos’ run.

Ryan struck out nine, and the all-time strikeout leader now has 4,420.

It was only the second start for the hard-throwing Youmans since he came off the disabled list for the second time.

Atlanta 5, New York 3--Gary Roenicke and Graig Nettles each drove in two runs at Atlanta, and Charlie Puleo (3-2) pitched a six-hitter for his first complete game this season.

The Braves ended a string of East victories over the West. Tuesday, the East dominated the West, 8-0, with both the Braves and Dodgers losing doubleheaders.

The way Eastern Division clubs have dominated the West, it is not surprising that only one Western Division player, Eric Davis of Cincinnati, made the starting lineup for the All-Star Game.

Darryl Strawberry hit his 21st home run for the Mets to celebrate being voted to the National League’s starting lineup. But it wasn’t enough to keep the Braves from ending a five-game losing streak.

Philadelphia 7, Cincinnati 2--Glenn Wilson hit a two-run home run, and Von Hayes had three hits as the Phillies completed a three-game sweep of the injury-plagued Reds at Cincinnati.

Bruce Ruffin (6-6) went the distance, giving up eight hits, including Eric Davis’ 26th home run.

In nine games between the teams, there have been 34 home runs. Davis has had eight of them in just 33 at-bats.

Despite losing three in a row, the Reds still lead the West by 2 1/2 games over the Astros.

San Francisco 8, Pittsburgh 4--Chili Davis, released from a hospital earlier in the day at Pittsburgh, hit a three-run home run to climax a four-run 14th inning that carried the Giants to victory.

Davis entered the hospital Tuesday, complaining of abdominal pains. Tests revealed he had an irritation in the upper lining of his stomach.

The home run followed a run-scoring single by Bob Melvin.

The Giants led, 4-3, when Andy Van Slyke hit a home run with one out in the ninth.

Jeff Robinson (6-6) pitched one-hit ball for 4 innings to gain the victory.