OREL HERSHISER NAMED SI'S SPORTSMAN OF YEAR

Orel Hershiser realizes that 1988 has been a pretty incredible year and he can only get in

trouble if he tries for an encore in 1989."I'm not thinking about next year," Hershiser said Tuesday after he was honored as Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year. "I'm not thinking about duplicating this year. I just want to be the best I can be.

"All I can deal with is one day at a time, one opportunity at a time."

Hershiser, 30, was 23-8 with a 2.26 earned run average this season. He completed the year with a record 59 consecutive scoreless innings and won the National League Cy Young Award for his efforts.

He was voted the Most Valuable Player in both the NL playoffs and the World Series as the Dodgers upset the New York Mets and Oakland Athletics.

"For me to win this award, when you compare it to all sports people, it's very, very humbling," Hershiser said at a news conference. "I thought one of the Olympic athletes would win it. This award means to me that you've surpassed your own sport."

Hershiser said he hopes to sign a long-term contract with the Dodgers in the near future. "There have been no (contract) conversations," he said.