Ignore his record when judging the Stars’ Lomon

Steve Guiremand

Friday, June 26, 1998 | 9:01 a.m.

The statistics say that Las Vegas Stars pitcher Kevin Lomon is having a season to be pretty proud of.

He ranks fifth in the Pacific Coast League in strikeouts with 78, which is one more than the number of innings he has pitched.

During one two-week stretch at the end of April, he was as dominant as any pitcher in the PCL, allowing just 11 hits and three runs in 16 2/3 innings (1.62 ERA) while striking out 13 and walking just four. Twice in his 13 starts he has struck out 10 or more batters.

But Lomon finds himself demoted to the Las Vegas Stars bullpen these days for one big reason: 0-8.

That's Lomon's record as the Stars (35-36), who whipped the Omaha Royals 6-1 Thursday night at Cashman Field, open a short four-game road trip tonight at Tucson.

"I feel liked I've pitched pretty well overall," Lomon said. "I think I've had two bad outings in 13 starts. But it just seems like when I need a break in order to get a win, I haven't been able to get it."

Take Lomon's last start, a 5-3 loss at New Orleans on Sunday, for example.

Lomon give up just six hits and a walk in six innings on the mound while striking out seven. But he also allowed five runs, including three in a third inning that was prolonged when Zephyrs first baseman Daryle Ward reached first base safely on what was ruled a wild pitch after striking out.

At worse, Lomon should have allowed three runs during his stint. Instead, he ended up giving up a two-out, two-run single to catcher Matt Ronan that turned out to be the difference between a no-decision and loss No. 8.

But lack of support is nothing new for the 26-year-old right-hander from Fort Smith, Ark.

That impressive end-of-April stretch that saw Lomon put together a glossy 1.62 ERA? He went 0-1 with two no-decisions during that span.

Lomon admits he has begun to press recently as the losses, fluky as some may be, begin to mount.

"There's been a lot of bleep running through my mind," he said. "I'd make a good pitch and a guy would bloop it over someone's head for a hit. I strike out a guy and he's safe because of a wild pitch. It's getting old."

Stars manager Jerry Royster remains a Lomon fan despite the 0-8 record.

"This conversation wouldn't even be happening if he got a little better support at the start of the season," Royster said. "There was one time earlier this season when Kevin was 0-3 and we had a couple of guys on the staff who were 3-0. But Kevin had pitched better than any of them.

"We're trying to take some of the pressure off of him now," Royster said. "I don't think he's pressing. I know that he's pressing. At this point in time we've taken him out of the rotation and put him in the bullpen. We're trying to get him a win. We need to get him some runs."

If Lomon is looking for a bright side to his 0-8 record, he need only look to his road roommate, Paul Menhart.

A year ago, it was Menhart who had a big goose egg in the win column with the Stars, going 0-7 in 11 starts. But he pitched well enough in a loss before Padres GM Kevin Towers that he was called up and spent the last seven weeks of the season in the big leagues where he compiled a 2-3 mark in nine games at San Diego.

"This is minor league baseball," Royster said. "The scouts want to see how you pitch in a game. They don't really care about the numbers. What happened to Paul last year is a perfect example of that."

"The whole team has been trying to help me through it," Lomon said. "It takes a toll. People tell you not to worry about it, but you do worry about it. It will be nice to finally get a win again, that's for sure."