European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 10, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday May 10, 1992 the stars and stripes b Page 25 both sides agree Clark bats 7.000 in form intensity by Luotta san Francisco a will Clark Steps into the batters Box armed with a Sweet swing and a sour distaste for defeat. He is prepared to do Battle. A a he a one of the biggest competitors in the game a said Cincinnati Pitcher Tom Browning. A a he a probably one of my favorite players to play against. A you know you re going to be in for a Battle when he comes up to the plate. You be got to make Good pitches to get him out. And he a going to capitalize on your  once Clark is planted in the White lined rectangle his intensity his competitive nature captures the moment. To listen to Clark discuss the confrontation Between hitter and Pitcher there is also a hard Learned respect for the Competition. A a it a like Mutual admiration but i take it one step further a Clark said. A i take it More personal especially in bigger  Clark has been confronting pitchers in All kinds of situations the last seven seasons and on april 18 he collected his 1,000th career hit a a first inning rib double off Browning. It came in his 894th game. Of the 16 players who have amassed 3,000 career hits eight a including Tycobb Stan Musial and Willie Mays a were in their seventh season when they stroked their 1,000th hit. Two others a Tris speaker and Eddie Collins a were in their eighth and Cap Anson was in his ninth when the 1,000-hit Barrier fell. Clark approaches hitting with what giants manager Roger Craig Calls the most Beautiful swing he a Ever seen and a levelheaded approach to the fact that seven out of 10 times the Pitcher will prevail. A the other night Cincinnati Pitcher Dwayne Henry gave me a Tough at Bat a Clark said. A the threw me two Tough pitches inside and then caught the outside Corner. I just tipped my Cap. A but he better know that if he leaves one out Over the plate in a going to have a whack at  said Craig of Clarks competitive nature a a he a just one of those Guys who does no to give in to pitchers. He a never intimidated. He intimidates a lot of pitchers but he a never intimidated. And the tougher the situation the More pressure involved the better he  when Clark Steps into the batters Box he certainly looks like a Guy who is about to do a Good piece of hitting. Propped Back on his left leg his hands tucked behind his left ear his Bat waggling Over his Back the left handed hitting Clark stands ready to unleash a swing so pretty it earned him the nickname the natural when he first came up to the major leagues. A id pay to watch this i a pay 10 watch tvs Guy hit and in a his manager a Craig said. A a he a got the most Beautiful swing in be Ever seen. In be seen some great hitters. In be seen Ted Williams and in be seen Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris and Stan Musial and Hank Aaron and Willie Mays and Willie Mccovey. But As far As Beautiful and picturesque he a by far the  before a game Clark Sharpens his swing and his batting Eye seemingly from scratch. Before his batting practice turn Clark applies Pine tar to his Bat before two taps with a Rosin bag. No practice swings. Once he is in the Cage Clark bunts twice then hits six or eight balls to the left Field. On his second turn his hits Are scattered Between left and Center Field. Its not until his third turn in the Cage that Clark even attempts to pull the Ball to right Field. A a he a just a natural born hitter a Craig said. A to me Good hitters Are born. You done to train a Good hitter. He was a Good hitter when he got  if Clark was born a hitter it took him until his Sophomore year in High school to separate himself from his childhood friends in new Orleans. A a in be told this Many times before but will did not make an All Star team until he was 15 years old a said will a father Bill. A people just can to believe that. Fifteen was when he started to Blossom and then he found out that he liked the game and had fun at it. Before that it was just something to do for six weeks in the summer. A your heritage is Hunting and fishing. He probably shot his first Duck before he got Nis first  it was in his final year at Jesuit High school in new Orleans that Clark came to relish the confrontation Between hitter and Pitcher. A i really really started enjoying it when i was a senior in High school a Clark said a because i had some Guys 1 had been playing against All my life and now i was ready to go to College or pros or whatever and i really wanted to prove to them i could  the toughest thing about proving he could hit once he reached the major leagues was not physical or technical but psychological. This was a Guy who won the Golden spikes award a Given to the country a Best College player a and batted .420 with 25 homers and 77 Bis in 65 games As a Junior at Mississippi state then batted hit almost .400 As an olympian. Not Many struggles to this Point. Early in his major league career like any other Young player Clark who played just 65 games in the minors struggled to Cope with the lean stretches a til with 1,000 hits in 894 games will Clark tosses his hat in the ring As a candidate for 3,000. Where the hits did not come As frequently As he was accustomed. A i done to think he went through anything any different than most Guys go through but he had a much higher starting Point than the rest of us did a said Bob Brenly a teammate of Clarks in 1986 who is now a giants coach. A a. Its just a natural tendency because everywhere you be played you be had Success. In the major leagues until you get to 200-250 at bats your average might jump 50-60 Points on a Given Day. If you go 0-for-4 it goes Way Down if you go 4 for 4 it goes Way up and his mood would go accordingly. A you have to go through it and suffer through it. Still he went through his Temer tantrums and breaking helmets and ats because its part of growing up in the big  Clark admits getting used to slumps was a struggle Early on. A it took a while. It took quite a while a Clark said. A i was always a Hothead in College High school and the first years of pros. It took some of the veterans like Bob Brenly and Pitcher Mike Krukow to Calm me Down a Little bit. A they told me that if my emotions stayed on an even keel my game would stay on an even keel. And its been  and what a keel it As been so far. In 1987, Clark batted .308 with 35 Home runs making him the first giant to hit better than .300 and hit More than 30 homers since Willie Mccovey did in 1969. Over his first six seasons Clark has a .302 career average. Over the last five seasons he has averaged 27 Home runs and 105 Bis. A a there a a lot of Luck and a lot of skill involved in doing something like this 1,000 career hits a a Clark said. A now All i need is to stay healthy and Start working on the next  surgery brings Windy City shortstops up Short Chicago up Chicago cubs shortstop Shawon Dunston said Friday done to count on him returning this season. But he has big plans for himself and sidelined White sox shortstop Ozzie Guillen in �?T93. A since we re both Hurt and nobody would be predicted that maybe next year Well both be in the world series a Dunston said. A a that a the Way i look at  what Dunston 29, has to look Forward to now is lots of walking and rest rest and walking following Back Surgner next wednesday to repair a herniated disc. Moved into the Lead off spot this season for the first time he was batting .315 in 18 games with a .342 on base percentage. A a in la talk to All the other players who be had Back surgery a Dunston said. A they say its not that bad. Its just How it sounds a Back  he is the second Chicago shortstop to be injured in two weeks joining Guillen who Tore ligaments in his right knee on april 21. A after six weeks we re both going to be going to games together a Dunston said. A a we la both make the All Star game next year and show everybody that with patience you la be All  Dunston said he has been bothered by Back pain since first straining it last Winter lifting one of his Young daughters out of her car seat. A a it a Back bothered me since i came to Spring training but i just wanted to play Ana see if i could play with it a Dunston said Friday in the cubs clubhouse. A i was fooling myself because the Ain was really bothering me. I want to ave Many Good years not just  during batting practice for the monday night game at Wrigley Field Dunston said he Felt a Sharp pain in his Back. He still played but around 1 . Tuesday he called the team Trainer because his right leg was numb. A a everything a going to be Fine a e Dunston said. A a in a not worried. 1 just want this pain gone from my  after wednesdays operation at Northwestern memorial Hospital Dunston will remain hospitalized for up to five Days then begin treatment by walking for six weeks. Dunston then will undergo Back strengthening exercises and by late August Early september he could be working out with the bal club. But Dunston wont play this season. A i wont actually play a he said. A a it a not that hard. Its just a matter of being patient a and that a kind of hard for