Sunday, August 01, 1999
BASEBALL INSIDER
Reds still like Rays' Jose Guillen
BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
One trade the Reds would have loved to make featured a right fielder instead of a pitcher.
But the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, not the Reds, grabbed Jose Guillen from the Pittsburgh Pirates last week, along with a minor-league pitcher, for a pair of catchers, including former Red Joe Oliver.
Reds General Manager Jim Bowden has long been entranced by Guillen's skills. He wasn't alone. Guillen has tantalized many a baseball executive since breaking into the majors at age 20 in 1997. That season, despite never playing in Double- or Triple-A, he hit .267 with 14 homers and 70 RBI. Guillen virtually duplicated that last season (.267, 14, 84), but was sandwiched this year by Adrian Brown, Brant Brown and Freddy Garcia in Pittsburgh and by prospects Chad Hermansen, Emil Brown and Alex Hernandez in the minors.
“He had fallen behind some of the other guys we had,” Pirates manager Gene Lamont said of Guillen, who was late reporting to spring training because of alleged visa problems and never recovered.
Despite possessing a well-stocked outfield with young sluggers on the rise in the lower minors, Cincinnati's interest in acquiring Guillen remained high. If Guillen improves, he's the type of corner outfielder who can anchor a lineup for 5-to-10 years.
Tampa Bay GM Chuck LaMar barely controlled his enthusiasm when announcing the deal.
“You're talking about a very talented right fielder, and what might be the right fielder of the future here in Tampa Bay,” LaMar said. “That's yet to be seen.”
CLOSING THE DEAL: So far, the Arizona Diamondbacks are overjoyed with closer Matt Mantei, who has solidified their once-soggy bullpen since being acquired from the Florida Marlins.
Mantei has accumulated eight saves in roughly three weeks with Arizona while maintaining his 96- to 97-mph fastball. His penchant for tempting danger also has remained intact. He threw only one perfect inning while recording his first six saves. Friday at Los Angeles, he fell behind Trenidad Hubbard 3-0 but struck out the pinch hitter with the bases loaded and two outs.
“The first couple of outings, I was a little nervous,” Mantei said. “Getting traded to help this team win, I put a lot of pressure on myself. Now I've settled in.”
Said Diamondbacks manager Buck Showalter, “Matty is not going to have any six-, seven-pitch innings. There are going to be some deep counts. You just sit down, find a good seat and watch it.”
STATE OF GRACE: Rest assured that Chicago Cubs first baseman Mark Grace read every word of the accounts of the four-year, $24 million contract extension the San Francisco Giants gave J.T. Snow.
Grace wasn't expecting to be traded before Saturday's midnight deadline, though his impending free agent status made him an object of speculation. He'd like to stay with the Cubs, for whom he has played since breaking into the majors in 1988.
But he also knows an agreement won't come easily, especially now that Snow's deal establishes some economic parameters.
Grace's agent, Barry Axelrod, referred to a three-year, $16.5 million offer Snow reportedly rejected earlier and said of the Cubs, “They haven't come close to that. What I've expressed to the Cubs is, "Look at the career he's had. Look at the year he's had (.319 through Friday). Why aren't we doing something?'”
Said Grace, who's earning $4.1 million this year, “If you know anything about the Cubs' history, it's usually down to the last minute. It's been that way with me. It was that way with Greg Maddux, Rick Sutcliffe, Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson. The only guy they took care of early was Sammy (Sosa).”
TEAM PLAYER: Winning isn't everything. For Florida's Jorge Fabregas, it barely means anything.
With runners on second and third base, the score tied at 4 and two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning of a recent game against Milwaukee, Fabregas hit a slow grounder that shortstop Fernando Vina mishandled. Fabregas was safe at first, Mark Kotsay scored and the Marlins won.
But the official scorer ruled the play an error, irritating Fabregas. He ordered the scorer to meet him in the clubhouse, where they watched videotapes of the play. The scorer reversed his call, giving Fabregas the hit and RBI he coveted.
What happened to being satisfied with winning any way you can?
RUTH REVISITED: It was just an exhibition, but a neat moment occurred in Monday's Hall of Fame game between Texas and Kansas City when Gregg Zaun of the Rangers pointed his bat to the right field bleachers ... then homered in that direction on the next pitch. Legend has it that New York Yankees slugger Babe Ruth did this against the Chicago Cubs in the 1932 World Series, when a little more was at stake.
“I can't believe I did that,” Zaun said. “I got a good pitch to hit. I think he (Royals pitcher Jeff Austin) threw it right down the middle.”
He might have. When Zaun batted in the fifth inning, the fans sitting around right field, who “adopted” him as he played the position in the early innings, chanted, “Call your shot! Call your shot!” After taking ball one, Zaun stepped out of the batter's box and pointed at the right field bleachers. Austin could be seen smiling on the mound before delivering his pitch.
After Zaun homered, the fans changed their chant to, “MVP! MVP!” He high-fived the spectators on his way back to right field before the next half-inning.
QUICK PITCHES: Philadelphia Phillies spectators enjoy supporting a cause. Whenever Curt Schilling pitches, two fans record the right-hander's strikeouts by hanging up “K” placards called the “Schill-O-Meter.” Rookie left-hander Randy Wolf has spawned the “Wolf Pack.” Right-hander Paul Byrd has the “Byrd Cage.” And right-hander Robert Person is the unofficial leader of “Person's People.”
• Following the Cleveland Indians' strategy of the early 1990s, the Chicago White Sox are trying to lock up their top young players with multi-year contracts.
Second baseman Ray Durham signed a four-year extension last winter.
Left-hander Mike Sirotka agreed to a two-year extension last week. The team also hopes to secure All-Star outfielder Magglio Ordonez and pitcher Jim Parque.
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