Stars pitcher gets life on track following tornado

Steve Guiremand

Tuesday, May 18, 1999 | 10:28 a.m.

Matt Whiteside made the most of his first start of the 1999 season Monday night at Cashman Field, hurling 3 1/3 hitless innings and allowing just three earned runs over six innings before departing in a 4-3 Las Vegas victory.

It was easily the best performance of what has been a disappointing season for Whiteside. But it was hardly the highlight.

No, that took place off the field two weeks ago.

That was when Whiteside found out his wife, Stephanie, had managed to survive the devastating F-5 twister that ravaged Moore, Okla.

"It definitely puts things in perspective when you have friends and family involved in the middle of a natural disaster like that," Whiteside said.

The Stars had just finished playing a game at Edmonton when Whiteside entered the locker room and found players glued to the television set watching clips of the twister that destroyed virtually the entire town of Moore.

Stephanie Whiteside had gone to Moore just two days earlier to visit her parents, Ron and Betty Reed.

"It was heading east of Moore at first," she recalled. "It was about a mile long. At the first we thought it might go over Moore. Then we found out it was an F-5 that it was going to hit."

Stephanie Whiteside grabbed her dog, Waffe, and headed for a bathroom in the center of her parents' home. Her mother picked up a few more pets and hid in a closet.

"Everyone in the neighborhood was freaking out," she said. "A lot of people were getting out of their house and leaving in their cars, which is the worst thing you can do. You could hear this loud roar. It was very dark outside."

Luckily for the Reeds, their home didn't suffer any major damage from the twister. However, homes located seven blocks away on the other side of the golf course that bordered their home were among the estimated 7,000 destroyed by the tornado.

Later that night, Stephanie Whiteside was asleep when the phone rang. Matt had finally gotten through from Canada.

"He was like, 'Steph, ohmigod, you're OK,' " she said. "I was like, 'Calm down Matt.' I didn't realize that CNN and everybody was showing what had happened in Moore on television. We didn't have any electricity, so we couldn't watch TV."

"It was scary," Matt Whiteside said. "The phone lines were down, they're showing highlights of all the damage on CNN ... it was a heck of an experience for someone to go through."

It wasn't until two days later, when Stephanie Whiteside could finally leave her parents' housing development and drive on a nearby highway, that she got to see first-hand just how lucky she and her family had been.

"You'd drive by where a gas station or a building was and it would be just flattened," she said. "I was in shock. I was beside myself. I didn't realize just how close it had hit.

"I had volunteered for the Red Cross after the Federal Building bombing in Oklahoma City. That didn't even compare. This made the bombing look like a picnic (as far as property damage). When you've been through something like that, you don't take anything for granted."

* MASCOT EJECTED: Elvee, the Stars' mascot, was ejected after the fifth inning by home plate umpire Tim Pasch for making gestures following a called third strike on Stars' catcher Ben Davis.

Because of Elvee's ejection, the daily race featuring a young fan against the mascot at the end of the sixth inning had to be cancelled.

There were no reports of fans asking for refunds after being "cheated" over the loss of Elvee.

* MURRAY WATCH: Left-hander Heath Murray, rumored to be on the way to San Diego to replace slumping Stan Spencer, had his scheduled Wednesday start moved up to tonight's opener against PCL South Division-leading Fresno at Cashman Field.

Jim Skaalen, the San Diego Padres' Director of Player Development who has been in town over the weekend and is scheduled to leave Las Vegas on Wednesday, denied the move was made so that he could get another look at Murray.

Still, Las Vegas manager Mike Ramsey was coy when asked about the switch. Right-hander Jose Mercedes, the original starter for tonight, made about 30 fewer pitches than Murray during their doubleheader starts last Thursday in Vancouver and seemed the logical man to go first against the Grizzlies.

"It'll make more sense (today)," Ramsey said. "I really can't say anything more than that right now."

If Murray (4-1, 2.43 ERA) isn't about to be called up by San Diego, might he be getting showcased for another team in need for a left-handed starter?

"I'm not going to get my hopes up," Murray said of all the speculation. "I'm not going to read anything into it. I'll just go out there and do my job and we'll see what happens."

* STARS NOTES: Reliever Jeff Darwin, who hasn't pitched since May 1 because of what is believed to be shoulder tendinitis, was given an injection in his shoulder Monday. "We might still have to end up putting him on the disabled list," Ramsey said. ... First baseman Mike Mitchell, on the disabled list since May 7 with a strained quadricep, could be activated as soon as tonight. ... Infielder Carlos Garcia's sore foot is still bothering him and he underwent more X-rays which proved to be negative before Monday night's game.

* RECAP: Second baseman David Newhan's bases-loaded fielder's choice with one out in the bottom of the ninth drove in leftfielder Aaron Guiel with the winning run as the Stars rallied for two runs to pull out a 4-3 victory over the Salt Lake Buzz on Monday night at Cashman Field.

* UP NEXT: The Stars open a four-game series with the first-place Fresno Grizzlies tonight at 7:05 p.m. at Cashman Field. Left-hander Heath Murray (4-1, 2.43 ERA) will oppose Fresno lefty Eddie Oropesa (2-1, 4.45 ERA). The two teams will play a business person's special on Wednesday afternoon at 12:15 with right-hander Jose Mercedes (1-1, 3.68) going against Fresno left-hander Aaron Fultz (2-1, 4.66).