Reds Have a Wealth in Reserve : Baseball: After injury to Sabo, Doran comes off bench to deliver game-winning hit in Cincinnati's 4-2 victory over Padres.

Reds Have a Wealth in Reserve : Baseball: After injury to Sabo, Doran comes off bench to deliver game-winning hit in Cincinnati’s 4-2 victory over Padres.

By BOB NIGHTENGALE

April 8, 1992 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

CINCINNATI — It was supposed to be good riddance, remember? Bip Roberts was called a malcontent in the Padre clubhouse, a guy who couldn’t excel at any one position. Several teammates openly rejoiced at his departure.

Funny, then, how Roberts enabled the Cincinnati Reds to turn a potentially disastrous situation Tuesday night into a 4-2 victory over the Padres at Riverfront Stadium.

“Everyone talks about how versatile and deep this team is,” Reds Manager Lou Piniella said. “Well, the guy who makes that all possible is Bip Roberts. He turned out to be a lifesaver tonight.”

Piniella looked on in horror in the second inning when third baseman Chris Sabo jammed his right ankle into the first-base bag. Sabo yelped and hopped around foul territory, trying to dance away the pain, but it was no use. He left the game and went to the hospital for X-rays, and the injury was diagnosed as a sprained ankle.

The news could have been worse, but it provided little solace for Piniella. In one step, he lost his starting third baseman and No. 5 hitter.

It might have been catastrophic for any other team in the division, but Piniella simply looked down the bench and called upon second baseman Billy Doran. What would he do for a third baseman? Just slide Roberts over.

Presto: Doran came into the game, hit a home run on his first swing of the season off Padre starter Greg Harris, drove in two runs on a bases-loaded single in the fifth inning, and Roberts played flawlessly at third.

Game. Set. Match.

“Bip’s really going to help that team,” said catcher Benito Santiago, who has yet to throw out Roberts in two stolen-base attempts. “That little man can do it all. He can play everywhere. . . . Well, I don’t know he can play first base because he’s not tall enough to reach the ball.

“But you can already tell he’s their spark plug.”

Said Roberts: “What do you mean I can’t play first? Look at (Steve) Garvey. I can scoop balls out of the dirt, at least.”

Roberts was laughing, relishing his versatile role with the Reds. He certainly welcomed the opportunity to come back and haunt his former teammates, particularly after Monday’s incident in which he and Padre pitcher Bruce Hurst traded verbal taunts.

Exactly what was it that Hurst said in the seventh inning Monday that enraged Roberts, anyway?

“Play in 100 games before you pop off, meat!”

Hurst was referring to Roberts’ chronic injuries, particularly last season, when he played only 117 games.

“Hey, I’m not doing anything to show a guy up,” Roberts said. “But if somebody don’t like you, it don’t matter what you do. I’m glad it came out, because it had been building a long time, anyway.

“I consider it over, unless someone wants to keep it going. Then I’m game.”

Roberts wasn’t the only pest in the Reds’ lineup. Remarkably, the Reds led off every inning except the seventh with a hit, including two leadoff singles by starter Tom Browning.

“You know, I had better stuff than I had all last year,” Harris said, “but pitching out of the stretch all night is tough, man. It finally caught up to me.”

Harris was knocked out of the game after five innings, surrendering eight hits and four runs. It was a single pitch that got away from him in the fifth inning that proved to be his undoing.

There were two outs in the fifth, the game tied, 2-2, two strikes on Barry Larkin, and Browning on second base. Harris’ next pitch plunked Larkin in the left elbow, and Larkin slammed his helmet to the ground in disgust.

Paul O’Neill followed with a sharp single to right, loading the bases and bringing up Doran. Doran, who was benched to start the season because of his .197 batting average, took the first pitch for a ball. He lined the second pitch up the middle, Browning and Larkin scoring, and the Reds had a 4-2 lead.

They might as well have ended the game right there with the way Browning was pitching. After Fred McGriff’s solo homer in the fourth inning, Browning and reliever Norm Charlton combined to retire 16 of the next 17 Padre batters. Tony Gwynn was the only batter to reach base the remainder of the game with his two-out single in the sixth.