Hoffman Tries To Keep The Fire Burning As Dodgers Continue Slide, Manager’S Face Grows Longer

You look at Glenn Hoffman’s face and don’t have to ask who won or lost. Two months after Hoffman took over for Bill Russell as Dodgers manager, the season has slipped away and so has his smile.

This was his summer to show he belonged in the big leagues, that he was more than some minor-league bureaucrat with good people skills and a knack for detail.

He just never thought it would come to this, a 6-5 loss Wednesday night in front of 27,259 at Three Rivers Stadium that completed a two-game sweep by the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates.

Hoffman never expected to be eight games back in the wild-card race with 36 to play. Or to lose 10 of the last 13, mostly to teams worse than his own.

“I look at him in the dugout and I can see he is depressed,” right fielder Gary Sheffield said. “He brought a lot of energy here, but we didn’t do the job for him.”

Like everyone else around the Dodgers, Hoffman’s future will be decided this winter when the new owners at Fox decide the extent of the purge. Hoffman’s work ethic has won him supporters, but the team remains a mess. He is expected to be reassigned at the end of the year and given a top position in the farm system.

“What happens after the season honestly is not my concern,” said Hoffman, whose honesty was one of the traits that earned him a promotion from manager at Triple-A Albuquerque. “I take what is happening personally. But there are five weeks, and I truly think we can turn it around.”

Wednesday, Hoffman, 40, looked like the only one who still believed.

Like Tuesday’s loss, the Dodgers jumped out to an early lead, then let the Pirates’ youngsters run away with the game.

Now, the team heads onto Florida to play the Marlins, who took two of three from the Dodgers last week in Los Angeles. Hoffman said then it couldn’t get worse, but it has.

“I remember my first full year managing with the Cubs (1981),” said third-base coach Joey Amalfitano.

“After winning the first game, we lost the next 11. It was a helpless feeling. That was the strike year and things got better in the second half, but it was a difficult time. This has to be a difficult time for Glenn.” Amalfitano was fired after that season.

When he was a manager, Tom Lasorda used to say all that mattered in his job was winning. Lasorda, now the interim general manager, appears ready to slip into a consulting role after the season. But he feels for Hoffman.

When Lasorda went to spring training last February with only minor-league duties, Hoffman and vice president Ralph Avila were among the few who sought his advice. The two remain close, but there is little Lasorda can do now.

“He’s down, you can see that,” Lasorda said. “But the manager can only do so much. It’s the players who are on the field. What Glenn has done is make the players more proud about the name on the front of the uniform instead of the back. That is important.”

Expect changes

The Dodgers are planning to make sweeping front-office changes after team president Bob Graziano hires Tom Lasorda’s successor as general manager.

The new player-personnel chief will have significant input in the long-overdue reshaping of the scouting and development departments. Jim Bowden and Dave Dombrowski, general managers of the Cincinnati Reds and Florida Marlins, respectively, are the leading candidates.

Longtime Dodgers executives Charlie Blaney, vice president of minor league operations, and Terry Reynolds, scouting director, are on the hot seat because of numerous poor decisions. Blaney and Reynolds have applied for the general manager’s position but aren’t expected to receive consideration.

M’s designate Lira

The Seattle Mariners on Wednesday designated right-hander Felipe Lira, who has been pitching in the minors, for assignment. The team has 10 days to trade, outright or release him.

The team called up right-hander Jose Paniagua from Triple-A Tacoma of the Pacific Coast League and sent right-hander David Holdridge to their PCL farm club.

Lira, 26, came to the Mariners in a trade with Detroit on July 18, 1997. He had a 5-8 record with a 4.39 ERA in 19 starts in Tacoma this season.

Paniagua, 24, claimed on waivers by the Mariners from Tampa Bay in March, was 3-1 with a 2.77 ERA in 44 relief appearances this season.

In 1996 and 97, Paniagua was 3-6 with a 5.74 ERA in 22 games, including 14 starts with Montreal.

Holdridge pitched in two games and allowed two earned runs in 1-1/3 innings with Seattle after being recalled recently from Tacoma.

Drabek nears rehab assignment

Pitching coach Mike Flanagan will check with Doug Drabek today to see whether the right-hander will pitch a simulated game in the Orioles’ bullpen or throw batting practice, with the next step most likely taking him to the minor leagues on a rehab assignment. Rosters can be expanded on Sept. 1, and he may have to wait until then unless the discomfort in Scott Kamieniecki’s upper back would knock him from the rotation.

Drabek, 36, has one victory since May 28, and it came more than a month ago. A free agent again after the season, Drabek said how he pitches and feels upon his return will help determine whether he retires. He’ll also sit down with his wife and three children and see if he’s needed more at home.

This is Drabek’s 13th season in the majors, beginning with the New York Yankees in 1986. He is 6-9 with a 7.07 ERA.

Blue Jays 16 Mariners 2 On deck: Toronto at Seattle, tonight, 7. TV: (FSN)