Espy might join Padres

Steve Guiremand

Friday, May 26, 2000 | 9:46 a.m.

After concluding a nine-game road trip at Edmonton tonight, the Las Vegas Stars return home to Cashman Field on Saturday night to open a brief four-game homestand with the Fresno Grizzlies.

It also could mark the end of the brief managing career of Duane Espy.

There is mounting speculation in San Diego that Espy, who has helped guide the Stars to first place in the Pacific Coast League's South Division, will be called upon to take over the hitting coach duties with the parent San Diego Padres, perhaps as early as this weekend.

Espy would take over the duties of first-year hitting coach Ben Oglivie, who has had trouble establishing a rapport with San Diego players in his first major league teaching job. Oglivie replaced popular Merv Rettenmund, who moved on to become the hitting coach with the Atlanta Braves in the off-season.

Meanwhile, Espy, the team's minor league hitting instructor for five years before taking over as manager of the Stars this year, has drawn rave reviews from Padres' players, especially from blue chip prospects Mike Darr and Ben Davis.

"That would be very unconventional for something like that to happen in the middle of a season, and I'd be very surprised if that were to happen," Stars president and general manager Don Logan said when asked about the rumors.

However, Espy's possible promotion has been a hot topic in the San Diego media for more than a week. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that several Padres players have told players and coaches on opposing teams that they had yet to mesh with Oglivie and speculated that Espy could be the man brought in to keep the peace.

Meanwhile, the Stars (26-18) had their four-game winning streak snapped on a chilly and damp Thursday night in Edmonton when they lost, 7-1, to the Trappers in the first game of a scheduled doubleheader.

The second game, which saw Las Vegas holding a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth, was suspended because of rain. That contest will resume at 5:05 today and will be followed by another seven-inning game in the series finale.

* STARS NOTES: Right-hander Carlton Loewer, sidelined all of this season thanks to a broken leg sustained in a hunting accident during the winter, will make an injury rehab assignment for the Stars on Saturday night against Fresno. The hard-throwing 6-6 Loewer was obtained by the Padres in the Andy Ashby trade. ... Pitcher Will Cunnane was demoted by the Padres and is scheduled to rejoin the Stars here on Saturday. ... To make room for pitcher Carlos Reyes, signed to a triple-A contract by the Padres this week after getting cut by the Phillies, the Stars returned pitcher Jayson Durocher to double-A Mobile. Durocher was 2-3 with a 5.47 ERA in 17 appearances with Las Vegas. ... The Stars will have to make another move when Cunnane joins the squad. ... Junior Herndon saw his record drop to 5-4 when he allowed nine hits and seven runs in 4 1/3 innings in the S tars' 7-1 loss on Thursday.