National League Roundup : Andre Dawson Has 2 Home Runs, 7 RBIs as Cubs Rout Astros

The Chicago Cubs’ management must shudder every time it realizes how close it came to turning down the bargain of the year----Andre Dawson.

When the free-agent outfielder and his agent, Dick Moss, offered to let the Cubs fill in the amount of his contract, management thought it was some kind of gag that the players’ union was playing.

After first rejecting the offer, the Cubs, reluctantly, met with Dawson and Moss and learned that Dawson, who had had knee problems playing on artificial turf for 10 years at Montreal, was serious. He wanted to play on real grass for a team that played all its home games in daylight.

The Cubs got him for half the $1.1 million that Montreal had offered the slugger. The Cubs should be embarrassed paying Dawson such a small salary.

The 32-year-old Dawson is having a dream season. He is largely responsible for turning the Cubs from a team that finished 37 games out of first place last season into a contender in the East.

Dawson, in the biggest of many big days this season, hit 2 home runs, 1 triple and 1 single and drove in 7 runs to lead the Cubs to a 13-2 rout of the Houston Astros Tuesday at Chicago.

Even a delay of close to three hours because of rain couldn’t stop Dawson. Before the rains halted play in the third inning, Dawson singled in a run in the first and hit a two-run home run in the third off Nolan Ryan to help the Cubs take a 4-1 lead.

After the lengthy wait, Dawson still had the hot bat. He tripled home two runs in the fifth and concluded his day with a two-run home run in the seventh.

Dawson finished May in a slump, getting only 4 hits, all singles, in his last 25 at-bats. His average tumbled to .283. But there was no need to be concerned, he was just resting up for June.

In the first two games of June, he has hit 4 home runs and driven in 12 runs to take over the major league lead with 53 RBIs. He has 18 homers. In almost 500 at-bats last season, he hit only 20 home runs.

When Dawson came up in the seventh, he had a chance to become only the second player in major league history to hit for the cycle twice in one season. He failed to join Babe Herman, who did it for the old Brooklyn Dodgers in 1931, because, instead of a double, he hit another home run.

“Someone mentioned it in the dugout,” said Dawson, who hit for the cycle (single, double, triple, home run) April 29 against San Francisco. “It was in the back of my mind. I was trying to hit the ball hard.”

The more Manager Gene Michael sees of his new star, the more impressed he is.

“I never really knew just how good Andre Dawson was,” Michael said. “He has just had some phenomenal games already.”

Pittsburgh 4, Atlanta 1--As far as the Braves are concerned, Rick Reuschel is as good a pitcher as there is in the league. They just can’t seem to do anything with him.

The veteran right-hander pitched a two-hitter at Atlanta to improve his lifetime record against the Braves to 17-6. Reuschel was a good choice to end a six-game losing streak.

Andy Van Slyke hit a two-run home run in the third inning to give Reuschel all the offense he needed to hand Rick Mahler (2-7) his seventh consecutive defeat.

Both Atlanta hits, singles by Ken Oberkfell and Andres Thomas, accounted for its run in the fourth.

Cincinnati 3, St. Louis 2--Nick Esasky homered in the fifth inning and singled in the winning run in the sixth at Cincinnati to give the Reds their first win over the Cardinals in five tries.

Three Red pitchers held the high-scoring Cardinals to just two runs and six hits. Guy Hoffman retired nine batters in a row, three on strikeouts, to gain the win in relief.

The Cardinal outfield was composed of catcher Tony Pena, second baseman Jose Oquendo and Vince Coleman, a legitimate outfielder.

Glenn Davis went 0 for 3 and is 0 for 14 since he set a record last Saturday with his record third grand slam in May.

Montreal 6, San Diego 2--Mitch Webster and Hubie Brooks hit home runs at Montreal, and Casey Candaele was prominent in the Expos’ victory.

Candaele singled in a run, then made two brilliant catches in center field to prevent at least two Padre runs.

The Padres’ record, worst in the majors this season, fell to 12-40.

Philadelphia 7, San Francisco 6--Lance Parrish hit a three-run homer, capping a five-run, fifth-inning rally that gave the Phillies the victory. Wally Ritchie, a 21-year-old reliever, got his first major league victory and Steve Bedrosian earned his 12th save of the season.