JETHAWKS NOTEBOOK: BACKMAN'S STORY TO BE EXAMINED ON HBO.

Byline: Gideon Rubin Staff Writer

LANCASTER - West of the U.S. Senate's steroids inquiry, former JetHawks manager Wally Backman's meteoric rise and fall from baseball prominence was arguably one of the game's most interesting offseason stories.

It is the subject that will be the basis of a 12-minute segment on HBO's ``Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.'' The hour-long program airs at 9 p.m. Monday on the West Coast.

Backman, who managed at Lancaster last season, was hired to manage the JetHawks' parent club, the Arizona Diamondbacks, in early November and then was fired four days later - the shortest managerial tenure in baseball history - when published reports alleging transgressions in his personal life sparked a firestorm of public opposition to his hiring.

`` 'Real Sports' is all about compelling human interest stories, and the Backman story struck us as a compelling human interest story that we thought was terribly interesting,'' HBO spokesman Ray Stallone said. ``Wally was willing to cooperate, so we gave it the green light.''

The segment, viewed by the Daily News, features HBO correspondent Frank DeFord's interviews with Backman, his wife Sandi and Diamondbacks managing general partner Ken Kendrick.

The segment depicts the former JetHawks manager within the prism of bigger forces at work in a fast-changing society that's becoming increasingly corporate and image-conscious.

``In an age where image counts for so much and sports franchises accordingly play by the buttoned-down corporate standards, Backman's throwback style might have been his biggest Achilles' heel,'' DeFord says in the program.

Indeed, a timeline of events suggests Backman's firing was public relations-driven.

Kendrick publicly supported Backman after The New York Times reported the most damaging revelations about his personal life: A DWI conviction in 1999, and a misdemeanor harassment charge in 2001 that came as a result of his alleged involvement in a domestic dispute.

No substantively damaging information came to light after that. A 1995 restraining order placed by his ex-wife was dismissed (Backman's ex-wife told HBO that Backman never abused her).

But the fact that Backman's involvement in the domestic dispute was a violation of the terms of his probation that came out of his 1999 DWI plea meant he would likely do prison time (he served a week in early January). The Diamondbacks apparently had no appetite for having their major-league manager trotted in front of television cameras in prison garb.

The business of baseball, after all, isn't impermeable to public opinion.

``The nature of our society has evolved to where all public figures are being held to a higher standard,'' Kendrick said. ``Baseball is no exception.''

Backman said the DWI incident was ``one of the most embarrassing things that's ever happened to me in my life.'' He said aspects of the 2001 police report on the domestic dispute, however, were ``fabricated.''

The program shows footage of some of Backman's epic tirades - he's shown tossing a bucket of balls onto the field after a dispute with an umpire - that made him a fan favorite at every stop in an eight-year minor-league managerial career.

``I'm confrontational at times,'' Backman says in the program. ``Everybody knows the way I was as a manager, dealing with umpires and things, (but) I get my point across.''

Kendrick acknowledges in the program that Backman's spark was exactly what the Diamondbacks were looking for to revitalize a hapless team that posted a major-league worst 51-111 record in 2004.

``He had a personality that obviously inspired his players,'' Kendrick says. ``That was compelling to us.''

The program features footage of Backman, out of baseball for the first time in his life, on a fishing boat off the Oregon coast, and watching a baseball game in his Prineville, Ore., home.

``I've made some mistakes,'' Backman says at the conclusion of the segment. ``I'm human. But it never affected my coaching career. I just feel that there's an organization out there, and you know somebody's going to stand up and say, 'You know what, this is the type of guy we want in our organization.' ''

--Also: Pitcher Chad Scarbery was suspended for 15 days for violating baseball's performance-enhancing drug policy, which was reported in Friday's main sports edition of the Daily News. Replacing him in the JetHawks' rotation is Jesus Silva, who will make his first start of the season against Lake Elsinore at 5 p.m. today at Clear Channel Stadium. ... Outfielder Lino Garcia was placed on the disabled list after re-aggravating a hamstring injury on Wednesday. Replacing him on the roster is Argelis Nunez. ... Catcher Miguel Montero extended his team-high hitting streak to 15 games in Thursday's 12-5 loss to Rancho Cucamonga. ...The JetHawks are giving away miniature stadium replicas to the first 750 adults at tonight's game.

Gideon Rubin, [phone]

gideon.rubin(at)dailynews.com

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Wally Backman spent four days as the Arizona Diamondbacks' manager before being fired.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer