SARASOTA, Fla. -- Since Doug Melvin left his job as Orioles assistant general manager to become general manager of the Texas Rangers last October, there has been a lot more work for Frank Robinson.
He has assumed many of Melvin's duties and become more involved in trade talks, in contract negotiations, in player evaluation, and Robinson said he is much more content than he was a year ago.
That played a factor in his decision yesterday to turn down two simultaneous offers to rejoin former Orioles president Larry Lucchino in the San Diego Padres' organization. For the duration of the 1995 season, anyway, Robinson will remain as assistant general manager for the Orioles.
Robinson declined to specify the jobs offered by Lucchino, but sources in the Padres' organization say the positions would not have provided Robinson with much authority in day-to-day decisions.
"I don't know exactly what his title would have been," said one member of the Padres' organization, "but the job was something along the lines of special assistant to [Lucchino]."
Robinson said: "I'm very comfortable in this organization, I like where I am with the Orioles."
But Robinson was, at the least, intrigued with the possibility of working in San Diego, which is much closer to his home in Bel Air, Calif.
Lucchino, a part-owner and CEO of the Padres, first contacted Orioles owner Peter Angelos earlier this month about Robinson, including his name among a list of Orioles employees with whom he was interested in talking about jobs in San Diego. Angelos at first denied Lucchino permission to speak with Robinson, then changed his mind.
Robinson and Lucchino spoke on the phone Feb. 16 and agreed to talk again in the future.
Robinson planned to fly to Washington, D.C., yesterday for a secret meeting with Lucchino. But late Sunday evening, Lucchino called Robinson at the Orioles' team hotel here; the two talked for about half an hour, Lucchino giving Robinson the two job offers. If Robinson didn't like one, Lucchino made it clear, he was welcome to the other. Lucchino told Robinson to think about his answer overnight.
"I slept about three hours," Robinson said. "I kept waking up. These things kept going over in my mind, and I kept thinking about it."
In the morning, Robinson met with general manager Roland Hemond, called Angelos and Lucchino and gave them the news: He was staying with the Orioles.
"I like what I am and I like what I'm doing," Robinson said. "I'm given more responsibility [with the Orioles] and I'm involved in just about every aspect of the baseball operations . . . rather than just on some lower levels or filling in on some others.
"I feel very good about where I am here now -- as opposed to the beginning of last year."
Hemond said: "Frank's picked up a great deal of work. . . . I think he's enjoying his role of very active participation. I'm pleased that he's staying with us."
Robinson -- who said flatly that he did not use the Padres' offer to extract any assurances or promises from the Orioles -- left open the possibility that he would speak with Lucchino again after this season.
"You never know," Robinson said.
The Padres' hierarchy may undergo a major shift between now and the fall. The contract of Randy Smith, the club's general manager and vice president of baseball operations, expires Nov. 1.
If Smith is fired or his contract isn't renewed, Lucchino could offer Robinson one job or the other or both, and Robinson reiterated his desire to become a general manager one day.
"That's something I've always wanted to do since I left the field," Robinson said. "People ask me what I'd like to do . . . and I've said I'd like to be a general manager, or a club president, or a part-owner.
"It's the challenge of building a ballclub and shaping an organization. I think that's what keeps us all going."
Or, in Robinson's case, staying. For now.
FRANK'S JOBS
Frank Robinson's off-the-field baseball career:
Year(s) ... ... Position
1975-77 ... ... Cle. Indians manager
1978 .. ... ... Rochester (AAA) manager
1979-80 ... ... Orioles coach
1981-84 ... ... S.F. Giants manager
1984 .. ... ... Milwaukee Brewers coach
1985-87 ... ... Orioles coach
1987-88 ... ... Special asst. to O's pres.
1988-91 ... ... Orioles manager
1991- .. .. ... Orioles' assistant GM