MINOR LEAGUE NOTEBOOK: MATTHEWS JR. ISN'T ANTSY WAITING FOR PADRES' CALL-UP.

Byline: Chris Cocoles Daily News Staff Writer

If Ruben Rivera's batting average and the San Diego Padres' patience continue to dip, Gary Matthews Jr. could be Qualcomm Stadium-bound in a hurry.

Matthews, the former Granada Hills High standout considered one of San Diego's top outfield prospects, is a leading candidate to earn a call-up from Triple-A Las Vegas to help the struggling Padres.

Rivera has yet to justify an everyday outfield spot, batting a lightweight .167 through Thursday.

Matthews spent most of his spring in the big-league camp but was sent to Las Vegas. The 24-year-old son of former major-leaguer Gary Matthews started out a blistering .435.

Matthews, whose budding career has been stalled by various nagging injuries since 1997, has cooled off since - he was hitting .220 with a home run and 13 RBI through Thursday. But ESPN baseball guru Peter Gammons wrote in his Sunday Boston Globe column that ``The Padres are fed up with Ruben Rivera. Gary Matthews Jr. . . . may be up and playing very soon.''

Matthews prefers to wait for the phone call before making travel plans.

``I try not to let that talk affect me because I know for a fact that (a call-up) won't happen if I'm not doing what I'm supposed to be doing here,'' Matthews said earlier this week.

Matthews has some stiff outfield competition at Las Vegas as it is. Mike Darr is another highly regarded performer in San Diego's system.

Think blue: JetHawks owners Mike and Matt Ellis couldn't find a better fit for their minor-league baseball conglomerate than their purchase of the Yakima Bears of the Northwest League that was finalized this week.

That transaction gives them teams in each of three leagues. Aside from Yakima and the Cal League JetHawks, they own the Missoula (Mont.) Osprey of the Pioneer League.

While the JetHawks are affiliated with the Seattle Mariners and Missoula is with the Arizona Diamondbacks, taking over Yakima provides Mike and Matt Ellis a connection with a Dodgers farm club.

``It allows us to see how (the Dodgers) operate and to see what they do with their affiliates,'' said Matt Ellis, the JetHawks vice president/general manager. ``It's good to be operating with other teams.''

The JetHawks' player-development contract with the Mariners expires after the 2000 season, but minor-league franchises are not allowed to negotiate with major-league teams until their binding agreements are void.

The Dodgers already have a convenient Cal League relationship with San Bernardino, which plays in almost an identical stadium as the JetHawks. But having a minor-league affiliate in Los Angeles County with extravagant facilities would seem like a good fit for the Dodgers.

``We need to do what's best for our fans and our market,'' Matt Ellis said.

That could mean pulling the plug on the JetHawks' relationship with the Mariners, who have been criticized by fans for keeping some of their top prospects away from Lancaster.

Silver streak: The 11-game hit streak that Triple-A Calgary's Kevin Millar (Hart) strung together is nothing compared to an impressive run that spanned three baseball seasons.

Millar reached base safely at least once in 71 consecutive games. The streak began in 1997 while with the Florida Marlins' Double-A Portland Sea Dogs, when he blistered the baseball during a .342, 32-homer, 131-RBI season.

Millar was knocked out for almost the entire 1998 season with a broken hamate bone but managed to get on base at least once in all of the 14 games he played.

On April 25, Millar's run ended at 71, but he's still solving opposing pitchers with regularity. Through Thursday, the 27-year-old was batting .366 with six homers and 18 RBI.

Check swings: Ex-USC pitcher Randy Flores is off to a quick start with Single-A Tampa of the Florida State League. A ninth-round pick by the New York Yankees in 1997, Flores was 4-0 with a 2.30 ERA in his first five outings. The left-hander tossed seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts Wednesday in a 5-1 win over Brevard County. . . . So the Mariners thought hot pitching prospects Ryan Anderson and Gil Meche were ready to skip playing for the JetHawks and move to Double-A? That's hardly proving to be the case. Anderson (2-3, 7.88), the fireballing 6-foot-11 left-hander, has rallied to lower his ERA from the 10-plus range. Meche (0-2, 5.02), who like Anderson is a former first-round pick, hasn't fared much better. . . . The San Fernando Valley area is producing more than just minor-league baseball players. Locals umpiring on the farm include Jim Wolf (West Hills) in the Pacific Coast League, Ryan Bleiberg (Simi Valley) and John Bullock (North Hollywood) in the California League, and Ryan Houchen (Canyon Country) in the Northwest League.

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1) MILLAR

(2) FLORES