January 31
Our driver gestures
When Robert Daly took over as president of the Dodgers, it was billed as a return to the days when the Dodgers were the bluebloods of baseball. When Mark Grudzielanek went to Daly's house to discuss a four-year contract and his move from shortstop to second base, he was shown a rocking chair that belonged to John F. Kennedy and was in the oval office when JFK was president.
Can't we still be friends?
In December, the Rangers signed free agent lefty Kenny Rogers. In January, they signed free agent outfielder Jason McDonald, who had been cut loose by Oakland.
Last June, the two fought on a team flight.
But then, they also re-signed infielder Edwin Diaz as a minor league free agent. During the last expansion draft, they left Diaz exposed, figuring former Rangers executive Sandy Johnson would jump all over him for Arizona. Johnson did, and that allowed the Rangers to leave Rick Helling exposed for the first round. They pulled him back and kept the eventual 20-game winner.
Get it up again .. amen
Teams worry about middle men wearing out their arms, especially because of the up-and-down nature of the role. Look at this list of pitchers in the last five years who had 75-appearance seasons. Some, like Jeff Shaw, went from the middle guys to closer, and Robb Nen's workhorse role as closer has never worn him out. But there are a lot of downs on this list, so perhaps Peter Angelos had better be concerned about Mike Trombley's physical condition.
Of course, the Mets have had this concern about Turk Wendell, who had 80 appearances last season and 281 over the last four years. Wendell wants a three-year contract, while the Mets are offering two with an option. "I don't know why we're worried about his arm," says one Mets official. "We should worry about him chasing mountain lions at 10,000 feet in 30-below temperatures."
1995-1996 G W-L SV ERA
Leskanic, Col 76 6-3 10 3.40
70 7-5 6 6.23
1996-97 G W-L SV ERA
Clontz, Atl 81 6-3 1 5.69
51 5-1 1 3.75
Dewey, SF 78 6-3 0 4.21
Has not pitched since
Guardado, Min 83 6-5 4 5.25
69 0-4 1 3.91
Myers, Det 83 5-5 6 5.01
88 0-4 1 5.70
Nen, Fla-SF 75 5-1 35 1.95
73 9-3 35 3.89
78 7-7 40 1.52
72 3-8 37 3.98
Patterson, Cubs 79 3-3 8 3.13
76 1-6 0 3.34
Shaw, Cin 78 8-6 4 2.49
78 4-2 42 2.38
Slocumb, Bos-Sea 81 5-5 31 3.02
76 0-9 27 5.16
Stanton, Bos-NY 81 0-4 1 3.66
64 6-1 3 2.57
Wohlers, Atl 77 2-4 39 3.03
71 5-7 33 3.50
1997-1998 G W-L SV ERA
Assenmacher, Cle 75 5-0 4 2.94
69 2-5 3 3.26
Belinda, Cin 84 1-5 1 3.71
40 4-8 1 3.23
Groom, Oak 78 2-2 3 5.15
75 3-1 0 4.24
76 3-2 0 5.09
1998-99
Kline, Mon 78 3-6 1 2.76
82 7-4 0 1.75
Ligtenberg, Atl 75 3-2 30 2.71
Did not pitch
McElroy, Col-Mets 78 6-4 2 2.90
56 3-1 0 5.50
Mesa, Cle-SF-Sea 68 8-7 1 4.57
68 3-6 33 4.08
Plesac, Tor-Ari 78 4-3 4 3.78
64 2-4 1 5.89
Runyan, Det 88 1-4 1 3.58
12 0-1 1 3.38
Swindell, Min-Ari 81 5-6 2 3.59
63 4-0 1 2.51
Telford, Mon 77 3-6 1 3.86
79 5-4 2 3.94
1999
Trombley, Min 75 2-8 24 4.33
Sullivan, Cin 79 5-4 3 3.01
Benitez, Mets 77 4-3 22 1.85
Wendell, Mets 80 5-4 3 3.05
Wells, Min 76 8-3 1 3.81
I thought I was a child
So, how did eclectic Padres coach Tim Flannery spend his winter vacation? He spent two weeks touring Ireland with his band. Before he left, he opened for what was one of music's best shows of the last year -- Jackson Browne, Bruce Hornsby, Shawn Colvin, Bonnie Raitt and Bruce Lindley at Tony La Russa's fundraiser for his animal shelter.
Flannery got rave reviews from Browne, and his recent album, "Pieces of the Past," is a monumental achievement. But touring Ireland gave him some perspective. "They kept introducing me as 'the former basketball player,' " says Flannery.
Baby, you can drive my car
Padres utilityman Eric Owens has promised his team that if they let him play every day, he will be a leadoff hitter comparable to Craig Biggio.
In 81 leadoff at-bats last season, Owens did not score a run.
Why I look at the moon
A's pitcher Ariel Prieto did not pitch in 1999 and threw eight innings in 1998 because of elbow surgery. He filed for salary arbitration at $500,000, $200,000 higher than the club figure of $300,000. "Someone said the dumbest thing of the winter was Prieto filing," said one Oakland exec. "He added that the second dumbest thing was our filing at $300,000."
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