All Davey Lopes has asked his troops to do this season is play hard every day, win or lose. They did that not once but twice on Monday, which earned them an afternoon of leisure Tuesday.
''They spent a lot of time out here (Monday),'' said the Milwaukee Brewers' manager, who canceled batting practice and allowed his players to report at 5:30 p.m. for a 7 p.m. game.
Lopes realized that his players deserved a perk after sweeping a doubleheader from the Houston Astros, including a seven-run rally in the bottom of the ninth of the opener. Displaying the work ethic endorsed by their manager, most of the players showed up early anyway.
''That shows you the respect the guys have for him,'' outfielder Lyle Mouton said. ''He treats you like a grown-up, and everybody appreciates that.''
Less than two months into his first big-league managerial job, Lopes already has made a strong impression with his players. Few knew what to expect when the team gathered in Arizona in mid-February, but Lopes' fiery, intense reputation as a player had some wondering if there would be fireworks at times.
Instead, Lopes has remained remarkably steady and calm, even when the club was spiraling downward at a rapid pace in late April.
''He has shown a lot of patience,'' shortstop Mark Loretta said. ''Everybody knew he was one of those old-school, tough guys, but he hasn't thrown any thing around or anything like that.''
Beginning with an inspirational clubhouse speech the day before the season opener in Cincinnati, Lopes has tried to instill a fighting spirit in a club that was a consensus pick to finish last in the N.L.Central but stood in a tie for third as play began Wednesday. He told them to forget about the low expectations of others and go out and play for pride.
''All he wants you to do is play hard every single day,'' said catcher Henry Blanco, who quickly became a Lopes favorite with his ''gamer'' approach. ''There's nothing wrong with that. That's good when the manager lets you go out and play. I think Davey knows how to handle it when things are tough. It's good to have a manager like that.''
Lopes' players quickly learned one thing they could count on from their new manager: the truth. Lopes pulls no punches when telling a player where he stands, whether that certain someone wants to hear it or not.
''Nothing is a secret,'' Mouton said. ''He tells you the blatant truth, like it or not. There are no guessing games. Really, all a player wants from his manager is honesty.''
Lopes also has shown that he knows how to delegate authority to his coaching staff, and why not? Each of them played in the majors and one - hitting coach Rod Carew - is in the Hall of Fame.
''I think the team has responded to him very well,'' Loretta said. ''He has been very supportive of us, yet he makes it very clear that he expects you to play better when you're playing poorly. Everybody said he had a fiery nature as a player and I'm sure he's had to work at that at times as a manager. He knows it's a long season.''
Bench coach Jerry Royster has known Lopes for nearly 30 years, back to when the two were teammates with the Dodgers in the early 1970s. Royster said he never had any doubt that Lopes would be a good manager in the big leagues if a team would just give him the chance.
''He has to be a successful manager,'' Royster said. ''He has the qualities to be as good as he wants to be. That's what careers are made of. He's a leader. He was meant to have this job. He knows the game and he has the leadership qualities that you want. And he's got an agenda.''
That agenda is to get every thing possible out of his team every day, even if it means squeezing blood from a turnip on occasion. It was no accident that he sent the very same line up onto the field in the second game of the doubleheader against Houston, even though many managers would have given some bench players a chance.
''Everybody's adrenaline was flowing and they all wanted to go back out there,'' Lopes said. ''Everybody said they felt fine; nobody was hurt. Nobody said they needed a rest.''
Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.
