Matthews hopes he’ll follow Darr to Padres

Steve Guiremand

Tuesday, May 25, 1999 | 10:40 a.m.

One down, two to go.

Rightfielder Mike Darr was the first of the Las Vegas Stars' three highly touted prospects to get called up to the parent club San Diego Padres over the weekend.

Now the question is how long will it take the other two, center fielder Gary Matthews Jr. and catcher Ben Davis, to find their way to Mission Valley?

Darr, Matthews and Davis were all rated among the top 100 prospects in minor league baseball by Baseball America prior to the season. And if you think there's any bitterness from Matthews and Davis that Darr beat them to the big leagues, you couldn't be more wrong.

"I'm extremely happy for Mike," Matthews said before hitting his second home run of the season Monday night in the Stars' 4-3 victory over the Memphis Redbirds at Cashman Field. "He's one of my best friends in baseball. It's something we've been talking about for a couple of years."

Matthews, in fact, was one of the first people Darr called after he got the news last Friday night.

"I had just gotten home," Matthews said. "He gave me a call. I stopped by his home and gave his wife a big hug and wished him congratulations."

Darr also called Matthews on Monday to give him the news that he would be making his first major league start for the Padres that night at Arizona.

Most scouts felt it would be Matthews, who slumped badly at the plate following a strong spring training and opening first two weeks of triple-A, who would be the first of the trio to make it to San Diego.

"I think (Darr's promotion) was probably a little tougher for Gary because they had a need for an outfielder, not a catcher," Stars manager Mike Ramsey said. "Gary and I talked (Monday) about it. But he said he understood what he needs to do and that he really wasn't putting up the numbers to go up at that particular time. And he was happy for Mike because they're such good friends. He's taken it like a champ. That's been a good positive.

"Now we just want to get Gary going now."

Matthews went 2-for-4 on Monday night with the home run, which could be a good sign. And with ex-Star Ruben Rivera continuing to struggle badly with the Padres -- he's hitting .175 and now is drawing concern over his fielding problems from San Diego manager Bruce Bochy -- it figures Matthews could be the next one to make the trek to Qualcomm Stadium once his hitting starts heating up.

"I don't worry about getting up there," Matthews said. "The hard part is going to be staying up there and having a long, prosperous career once I do get up there. That's the tough part. And that's why working hard down here and staying focused is so important."

Davis, who has steadily brought his average up to .243 following a disastrous 1-for-27 start, also figures to get a chance in San Diego before the end of the year because of his strong arm and defense.

"I'm not really thinking about it," Davis said. "I'm just trying to come here and play hard every day. In the past (the Padres) have never been in a rush to move me up. Whatever they want to do is fine. I'm just happy to be here right now."

* NEWHAN HONORED: Stars second baseman David Newhan was named the Pacific Coast League's Batter of the Week for the week of May 17-23.

Newhan went 14-for-30 (.467) with three doubles, four home runs, five runs scored and eight RBIs during that span. He hit home runs in four consecutive games including a 5-for-5 performance in a 7-4 victory over Fresno on Friday night.

"It's a nice honor," Newhan said. "I just got hot and strung some games together. I just need to keep it going."

And keep it going he did.

Newhan hit two more solo homers, including what proved to be the game-winner in the fifth inning, in the Stars' 4-3 victory over Memphis on Monday night at Cashman Field. He now has a team-high nine home runs.

"Old Dave is hot," Stars manager Mike Ramsey said. "He's had a nice homestand."

Newhan's recipe for success?

"I'm just trying to find my rhythm out there," Newhan said. "I'm just trying to take my soft toss into the game and relax up there."

* GAME RECAP: The Stars (22-22) clubbed four solo home runs and reliever Will Cunnane extended his scoreless inning streak to 22 with a 1-2-3 ninth in a 4-3 win over Memphis (27-14) at Cashman Field on Monday night.

* UP NEXT: The Stars conclude their series with Memphis as well as their homestand with a 7:05 game tonight against the Redbirds. Right-hander Stan Spencer (0-1, 11.25 ERA) opposes Memphis right-hander Mark Nussbeck (5-1, 4.97).