Joyner’s Return to Wally World Is No Holiday

ANAHEIM —  With yet another microphone in front of him, Wally Joyner prepared for yet another set of questions about his return to Anaheim Stadium.

This question didn’t come from a reporter, however, it came from Kansas City Royals’ Coach Lee May.

“Hey kid, you played in this park before?” May asked.

“It has been so long I can’t remember,” Joyner answered wryly.

But the 40,407 fans at Anaheim Stadium remembered the former Angel first baseman Friday night in his first appearance here since leaving the Angels to sign a one-year, $4.2 million deal with the Royals last winter.

A mixed chorus of jeers and cheers greeted Joyner in his first-inning at-bat.

Joyner grounded out to Lee Stevens, his replacement at first base, on his way to a 0-for-4 performance in the Royals’ 5-0 loss. He also grounded to the shortstop in the fourth, struck out on three pitches in the sixth, and grounded to the shortstop in the ninth.

“The crowd (reaction) was very much mixed,” Joyner said. “I think it was easier to hear the boos than the rahs, but it was about what I expected.

“I’m glad tonight is over with. It was an evening I had been looking forward to, and I got what I wanted out of it. I got the butterflies out. I was a little nervous today about coming back here and playing.”

Joyner has only one hit in his last 15 at-bats and struggled against pitcher Mark Langston. Joyner entered the game with a .130 average against Langston.

“That was the best anyone has pitched us in a long time,” Joyner said. “He kept us off-balance all night.”

Joyner, a fan favorite for most of his six seasons in an Angel uniform, wasn’t exactly misty-eyed about his homecoming.

“I’ve had to treat this like any other game,” Joyner said. “If I try to do more than that, I’m of no use to anyone.”

Joyner’s contract negotiations ended on a similar note last winter. The Angels were close to re-signing Joyner with two steep four-year deals last December, but Joyner, who had been at odds with Angel management for years, bolted for the one-year deal with the Royals.

Did he return with something to prove to the Angel management Friday night?

“I have nothing to prove to anyone except my (Royal) teammates,” he said. “And I’ve been doing that daily.”

Joyner has been one of the few Royals who have played up to expectations so far this season. He entered Friday night’s game batting .304 with 24 RBIs, and his 19 doubles are second in the American League.

“I got a new start,” Joyner said. “I’m not looking for a fresh start, but a continuation of what I’ve been doing.”

But the new start didn’t start so well.

Less than three weeks into the season, Joyner and the Royals were buried in the AL West cellar with a 1-16 record. But they have since pulled out of last place and are 24-34, including a recent six-game winning streak.

“We were really struggling early,” Joyner said, “but we turned it around. I think every team has a cycle with that.”

Joyner was among several new faces in the Royals’ clubhouse.

Outfielder Kevin McReynolds, third baseman Gregg Jefferies and second baseman Keith Miller were traded from the Mets in exchange for pitchers Bret Saberhagen and Bill Pecota. Shortstop Curtis Wilkerson signed as a free-agent after spending 1991 with the Pirates.

The season has been one of adjustments so far for Joyner. A new team, a new city and a new opportunity.

Even coming back to Wally World was an adjustment.

Seems he was somewhat of a stranger in one part of Anaheim Stadium--the visitors’ clubhouse.

He was lost trying to find his locker, which was tucked in a corner on the south side of the visitors’ clubhouse.

“It took me about 20 minutes to find it,” Joyner said. “It’s way over in that dark corner. It was strange, I had to wander around and find it.”