Thursday, March 20, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
PEORIA, Ariz. -- Long after he retires from baseball, what Doug Dascenzo will remember most about the 1996 season won't be his contributions off the bench for the National League West Division champion San Diego Padres.
What Dascenzo will carry for life is the valuable education in life that he received playing in 86 games for the Las Vegas Stars. It took the tragic death of teammate Mike Sharperson to snap Dascenzo's priorities into perspective.
"Baseball is all of our lives but Mike Sharperson's death ... that's the first time that's ever happened to me, a teammate passing on during the season," Dascenzo said.
"When they pay you money to play baseball, that's all great and dandy but when you start looking at the real world and life and death, that really puts life in perspective. Baseball is definitely at the top of our list, but it's not the number one thing."
On a more upbeat note, 1996 marked Dascenzo's return to the major leagues after a two-year absence many observers speculated might be permanent.
After hitting .284 with 17 doubles and 15 stolen bases as the Stars' starting center fielder, Dascenzo returned to the big leagues with the Padres in two late-season stints.
Although Dascenzo appeared in 21 games with the Padres as they battled the Colorado Rockies and the Los Angeles Dodgers for the NL West crown, the 32-year-old outfielder was used primarily as a late-inning defensive replacement and had only 10 plate appearances.
"Hey, my job was to be ready to run and play defense," Dascenzo said of his limited playing time. "These guys were healthy and nobody was hurt, we had a lot of ninth-inning comeback wins and very exciting ballgames and there was no need for me to be out there -- you're not going to sit anybody down to put Dascenzo in there."
When it came time for San Diego manager Bruce Bochy to submit his 25-man postseason roster, Dascenzo was relegated to the inactive list -- the same spot he occupied with the Cubs when Chicago made it to the postseason in 1989.
"I got to dress out and be there on the bench and yell for the guys," Dascenzo said, recalling the St. Louis Cardinals' three-game sweep of the Padres in the N.L. Division series. "You would like to participate, but (the Padres had) to take the best 25 guys."
The defensive wizard who once held the National League record for most consecutive outfield appearances without an error (242 with the Cubs) is faced with a similar plight this spring. Although he is having an excellent camp, Dascenzo may not make the 25-man major-league roster because San Diego is loaded with talented outfielders.
"You bring 50, 60 guys into camp but 50, 60 guys aren't going to go on opening day; there will be 25 guys," Dascenzo said. "It's not easy. You come in, you can have a good, solid camp and you show you can still participate and contribute at the major-league level, but there still may not be a spot for you.
"That's kind of hard to swallow at times, but you don't have any control over that. All you can do is come out and play and I enjoy doing that."
Dascenzo is battling Chris Jones, Phil Plantier and Mark Smith for the Padres' final outfield spot. Although Dascenzo is hitting .300 and playing flawless defense, the other three are having outstanding springs as well.
"That's been a tough battle, it really has," Bochy said of the fifth outfielder's spot. "Smith has played very well, Plantier has swung the bat well and Dascenzo does everything right ... it's going to be a tough cut. He really is the perfect guy for the fifth outfielder's spot because he's solid defensively, he can run and he can get the bunt down."
But it still might not be enough, Bochy conceded.
"We're not even sure we'll carry five (outfielders)," he said. "If we decided to go with 11 pitchers, that means we'll take only four outfielders."
And that would mean a return trip to Las Vegas for Dascenzo. Perhaps as a result of his admitted emotional growth last season, Dascenzo is taking the uncertainty of his situation this spring in stride.
"It's out of my control," Dascenzo said. "I'm just trying to get ready for the season and put my game together and hope it fits in the puzzle. It's the same year to year -- just try to get better at the things that might make your game more complete and be ready, that's all you can do."
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