Larry Stone / Baseball reporter
Inside pitch: Griffey is convinced his days in Cincinnati winding down

By Larry Stone
Times baseball reporter

	AL BEHRMAN / AP Cincinnati outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. feels he will be traded before Opening Day. Griffey says he has spotted scouts for the Mariners, Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers at exhibition games.
	E-mail this article Print this article Search archive

In Cincinnati, it looks like a race to see which outfielder is going to get traded first. Ken Griffey Jr. remains convinced he will be gone before Opening Day, while 24-year-old Adam Dunn could wind up with the Dodgers, who are desperate for offensive help.

According to the Dayton Daily News, Griffey spotted two Mariners scouts in the media dining room before a recent Grapefruit League game with the Yankees — including Roger Jongewaard, special assistant to Seattle general manager Bill Bavasi — and said, "Oh, boy. You know what that means. Been nice knowing you."

Griffey, who played seven straight exhibition games — rare for a star of his stature — believes he's being showcased. He said he has spotted scouts from the Mariners, Braves and Dodgers watching him.

Strike two?

The Mariners lost Aaron Boone to the Yankees at last year's trade deadline, and it might happen again.

The Mariners are believed to have interest in the injured free agent, as do the Reds, who asked to see his medical charts. Boone was an All-Star third baseman for Cincinnati last year before the Reds traded him to the Yankees, despite a strong pursuit by Seattle.

The Yankees wound up cutting Boone after he injured his knee in a winter basketball game. But the Yankees have interest in signing Boone to a minor-league contract as he rehabs the torn ACL.

They envision him in 2005 as their second baseman — the one position on the current team not manned by an All-Star. Boone started the 2003 season as Cincinnati's second baseman but moved back to third when struggling rookie Brandon Larson was sent back to the minor leagues.

Reworking the numbers

In the completion of the Alex Rodriguez trade, the Rangers acquired shortstop Joaquin Arias from the Yankees, but the transaction was not without controversy. The Rangers, who had a list of five minor-league players to choose from, reportedly believe the Yankees changed Arias' uniform number and moved him around their complex to keep Texas from scouting him.
 
Cleveland may take Riske

With closer Bob Wickman out at least half the season with an elbow injury, and negotiations with Ugueth Urbina fizzled, the Indians appear ready to turn to David Riske to be their closer. Riske, from Renton's Lindbergh High School, held the job in the final weeks of last season, in which he was 7 for 7 in save situations.

Cleveland also has former closers Jose Jimenez and Scott Stewart in its bullpen, but Riske is developing his own track record. In 1998, he led the Carolina League with 33 saves, and had 15 saves at Class AAA Buffalo in 2001.

"We believe in David's toughness and his ability," Cleveland GM Mark Shapiro said.

Paying their respects

It was a poignant scene last Sunday at the Phillies' spring-training stadium in Clearwater, Fla., when several people from the organization showed up before 7 a.m. to watch the implosion of Veterans Stadium on the video board in left-center.

Among those in attendance were manager Larry Bowa, former manager Dallas Green, current GM Ed Wade, pitching coach (and Philadelphia native) Joe Kerrigan, and former Phillies players Ruben Amaro, John Vukovich, Greg Gross and Milt Thompson.

"It happened so fast," said Kerrigan, who pitched at The Vet while attending Father Judge High School. "In a historical context, it was important to watch. But I didn't have the same feelings as I did when Connie Mack Stadium went. That was the Titanic at the bottom of the sea. It just wasted away. This was more sudden death."

Notes

• Urbina, who had 32 saves last year for the Rangers and Marlins, dangled inexplicably on the market until the Tigers finally signed him late last week. The Indians and other teams were concerned that his inactivity since the World Series would cause him to take too long — perhaps until mid-May — to get into pitching shape, but the Tigers were willing to wait.

The Tigers picked up Urbina at the urging of catcher Ivan Rodriguez, his former Marlins battery-mate. The Tigers planned to give their closing job to Fernando Rodney, but he has been hampered this spring by tendinitis. Danny Patterson will close while they wait for Urbina to get his arm in shape. Hard to believe, but the Tigers are becoming respectable.

• The Indians did pick up one reliever, but he won't pitch this season. They signed lefty Scott Sauerbeck to a minor-league contract, and will allow him to rehab with them all season. Sauerbeck, who pitched in 79 games last year with Pittsburgh and Boston, underwent shoulder surgery in January.

Cleveland is paying four pitchers who aren't expected to appear at all this season — Billy Traber, Brian Tallet, Mark Wohlers and Sauerbeck — plus two others who aren't expected back until after the All-Star break, if at all: Wickman and Bobby Howry.

• Don't be surprised if the Angels make a trade at the end of spring training. They are still willing to move either Aaron Sele, if any team will take on his $8.5 million salary (highly doubtful), or Ramon Ortiz, who has struggled this spring but is cheaper than Sele ($3.1 million).

• Former Angels pitcher Matt Wise, now with the Brewers, went out to celebrate with his wife on Tuesday. The two shared a cake with candles, but it wasn't for a birthday or wedding anniversary. Wise was commemorating the one-year anniversary of his Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery. Wise, who missed all last year, is throwing well this spring but likely will start the season in the minor leagues.

• Phillies reliever Rheal Cormier, who went 8-0 last year with a 1.70 ERA, told the Philadelphia Daily News that he nevertheless contemplated retirement at age 36 — even after the Phillies picked up the $3 million option on his contract. Cormier was bitter over what he perceived as abusive treatment from Philadelphia fans when he struggled the previous two years.

• So far, the Curt Schilling trade isn't working out too well for the Diamondbacks. Two of the young pitchers they received in the deal are struggling with arm injuries. Brandon Lyon will undergo nerve-transposition surgery in his right elbow and be out until at least the All-Star break, while lefty Casey Fossum has yet to pitch this spring.

• The Rockies expect outfielder Larry Walker to open the season on the disabled list with a groin injury, but the news on outfielder Preston Wilson is better. Wilson, slowed by a knee injury as well as rehabilitation from surgery for a torn ligament in his right little finger, is expected to be ready for Colorado's opener against Arizona.

Pitching that opening game for the Rockies will likely be Shawn Estes, a spring-training invitee who has allowed one earned run in 15 innings.

• With Jason Schmidt likely to start the season on the disabled list, the Giants are looking at a rotation of Kirk Rueter, Brett Tomko, Jerome Williams and Dustin Hermanson, with Ryan Jensen, Kevin Correia and Brian Cooper vying for the fifth spot.

Considering that closer Robb Nen hasn't pitched in a game yet this spring and is also likely to start on the DL (Schmidt is recovering from elbow surgery; Nen from shoulder surgery; and Matt Herges is next in line to close), and that Barry Bonds figures to see fewer strikes than ever, the Giants could be in for a rude awakening.

• The Cubs are wise to be cautious with prodigy Mark Prior, but the longer his return gets pushed back, the more it seems as though his right Achilles tendon injury might be more serious than they're letting on. Sergio Mitre, a 23-year-old right-hander with two major-league starts, figures to replace Prior in the rotation early in the season. Any major setback by Prior will be devastating to the Cubs' hopes of ending their World Series jinx.

• Damion Easley, who had the ignominy of being released by both the Tigers and Devil Rays last year, stands a good chance of making the Marlins as an infield reserve after a strong spring. "Last year was a complete wake-up call," he said. "I ate the whole humble pie. I didn't (just) get a piece of it."

Larry Stone: 206-464-3146 or lstone@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company