He feels like a caged Tiger
Platoon doesn't sit well with Sheffield
Gary Sheffield is healthy enough to help a team in the pennant race; problem is, the Detroit Tigers, the team he plays for, isn't in one.
Such is the frustration surrounding the latter part of Sheffield's career. After about a year of dealing with a bad shoulder - the surgery, the rehab, the reduced performance - he has reached the point where he is a platoon DH and part-time outfielder, not what he had in mind for the final two years of his career.
Sheffield, 39, still puts fear into pitchers. His numbers don't show it, but lately the thump has begun to reemerge. Would he waive his no-trade provision to join a contending team? Most likely.
He lives in Tampa Bay, and wouldn't that be ideal? "The only reason I play is to win," said Sheffield. "I've won one championship, and before it's over I'd like to get another ring. I don't rule out anything.
"I can be in the outfield and play every day. I don't want to DH. I don't feel like a baseball player when I DH. I don't know how to be the leader that I am from the bench. I can't be a vocal leader. I can't talk to guys from the bench because I don't feel right about it.
"I'm in a role now where I don't know what to do, really. The guys are out there busting their butt for nine innings, they come in and they hit and they grind. I just sit down and hit. That's all I do, so I can't be in a leadership role from that position."
At this time of the year, players have to clear waivers to be traded. It would appear that Sheffield, given that he has about $5 million remaining on his $14 million salary this year and is due $14 million next season, would clear or has cleared waivers. It would then take a team willing to pick up his salary - or for the Tigers to eat some of the money, as the Red Sox did with Manny Ramírez.
"I really haven't thought about it," said Sheffield. "My thing is, I'm going to do what I've done in the past. Whatever opportunity presents itself, I'm going to look at it.
"I don't prefer platooning here, but I understand because I got off to a slow start, that's part of it, but I feel I'm playing better now. I'm back to being a threat I need to be.
"I don't get pitched the same like everybody else. I get pitched very carefully. Now that I'm a lot better physically, I can handle tough pitching. I can be the player that I know I am."
The "player he is" could very well be one who lands in Cooperstown. He is a .293 career hitter with 489 home runs, 1,608 RBIs, and a career .395 on-base percentage. He's a nine-time All-Star with 2,581 hits.
The Tigers probably thought about cutting their losses with him, but now Sheffield feels he can continue and be effective.
"It was painful," he said of the shoulder. "I just gutted it out and played. They just told me what I was doing is unheard of. I had a torn labrum and a Grade 2 separation. They had to shave the bone in my shoulder. When I fell on my elbow [last July], four pieces of bone chip fell off.
"I got the surgery in November. So I had January and parts of February to get ready. They told me if it was a pitcher, his career would be over."
So now he fights through the scar tissue. He fights through the notion that he's on the downside. But the way he's pitched tells him that pitchers still fear him.
"They work it down and away or up and in, and it's always on the edges," Sheffield said. "That's how I'm getting pitched, but I can handle that."
And he wonders how it would have been if he played in Boston.
"The Yankees knew I wanted to go to Boston," Sheffield said. "They picked up my option so I wouldn't wind up there. I would have loved it because I love that atmosphere. It means something.
"At this stage of my career, I want to feel that again. That's what I play for. That's what gets me revved up."
The only thing revving up in Motown these days is the sound of cars rolling out of the GM plant. Sheffield thought he'd be in the middle of a Murderers Row lineup.
"I think we all thought that," he said. "It's been disappointing. When we pitch, we don't hit; when we hit, we don't pitch. You can't win championships that way.
"Look at Tampa Bay. When we played them recently, there was one reason why they're having the year they are - pitching and defense. We've got to be able to finish off games that we're winning."
Ramirez's barber cuts to the chase
Here's how Manny Ramírez wound up with No. 99, according to his barber and housemate, L'Montro.
"We were at Manny's house when the trade went down, and they're asking Manny what number he wanted," said L'Montro. "No. 24 was taken and No. 42 was not available. He was thinking No. 34 in honor of Big Papi, but that wasn't available. They text back a list: 28, 33, 50, 65, 94, 95, 96. So Manny turned to me and asked, 'You pick a number.'
"At first I thought No. 66 after Route 66, but then I said, 'Why don't you take my number?' I always wear No. 99. He said, 'OK, let's do it.' That's how Manny chose No. 99."
L'Montro is likely to be the man in charge of cutting Ramírez's hair, if it happens. Dodgers manager Joe Torre has indicated he wants Ramírez to chop his hair off per team rules, though Torre hasn't pressed Ramírez for immediate action.
"Manny hasn't mentioned any of that to me," said L'Montro. "If that's what we need to do, we'd do it, but Manny has just told me he's happy to be in LA and wants to lead them to the World Series."
Ramírez also finds himself in the middle of an MLB investigation concerning the way he shot himself out of Dodge. MLB is looking into both Ramírez's behavior and that of agent Scott Boras.
Ramírez changed agents last winter from Greg Genske to Boras. When the Dodgers dropped the two option years on Ramírez, that took away Genske's commission if they were picked up. Now when Ramírez is a free agent, Boras can negotiate a new deal.
Carpenter is trying to put it all back together
A few questions for former Cardinals Cy Young Award winner Chris Carpenter, who makes his third start of the season against the Cubs today.
You've been gone a long time with Tommy John surgery, but it seems as though you're back.
CC: "I'm just pinching myself because it's been a year and a half and I spent so much time rehabbing and taking all the small steps you need to take to get back healthy, and to be able to get back on a major league mound and throw - and throw effectively - is a blessing for me. I mean that. When you're a major league pitcher, sometimes you go along every day and, of course, you always appreciate what you have and what you're able to do, but when it's taken away from you, that's quite a shock."
You've come back to a team that's been impressive given the injuries you've had, yet it seems your pitching staff always seems to come up with good outings.
CC: "Well, I mean, that's [pitching coach] Dave Duncan. I've never been around someone who has such a system in place where each guy is out in a position where he can succeed. He's just got volumes of material and things that he stresses to each and every pitcher. You can go right down the line of pitchers he's helped take the next step in their careers. And that was certainly the case with me after my Toronto years."
Any restrictions on you right now? Are you stretched out?
CC: "I was supposed to go 80 pitches in my last start but I got only 50 in because we had some rain that cut things short. So I'm not sure that I'm going to take the next big jump or whether I'm just going to get to 80 pitches and that'll be it for this time out. That remains to be seen, but I'm sure Dave and Tony [ La Russa] have a plan that I'll stick with for gradually building back up."
Is it stressful at all to be thrust right back into a pennant race?
CC: "Not at all. We've been lucky enough here in St. Louis that we've been in races before and we know how to handle them and how to react to the pressures. I mean, this is a huge series for us because this is our big rivalry. Chicago-St. Louis isn't quite Yankees-Red Sox, but pretty close. It's our version of that, so there's always a little extra going on, especially here at Wrigley."
Etc.
Touching the bases
Apropos of nothing: 1. Think Jim Edmonds likes hitting home runs against Tony La Russa's Cardinals?; 2. I called the Joba Chamberlain injury in June. Too much to ask of a kid to stretch out as a starter in the middle of a season; 3. Kevin Millar could help the Red Sox; 4. Emil Brown is the only major leaguer whose last name is a color and whose first name spells a color backward. That gem courtesy of Bill Chuck; 5. Is Johnny Damon going to win a batting title?
Nady or Bay: Take your pick
You always get differing opinions on players, but there's been a vast gap between those who think the Yankees got the better player in Xavier Nady and those who believe the Red Sox are better off with Jason Bay. Here are two opinions from NL scouts. "Bay is more versatile," said one. "He's a solid player with good skills in every aspect of the game. I would much rather have Bay than Nady, who is too inconsistent for me." Here is the counter by the other scout: "Nady is far more talented. He has the potential to be an impact player while Bay is a good, solid, everyday player, but I just don't see any more upside in him. He is what he is, which is a good player, but Nady could make a greater impact." Interesting.
Tricky pitching matchups
We know how difficult it is for some organizations to find the right niche for a pitcher. We've seen it with the Red Sox and Jonathan Papelbon, the starter experiment in spring training last season. For years, the Sox went back and forth on Derek Lowe. They have now made Justin Masterson a reliever. This is precisely what the Mariners are going through with Brandon Morrow, and it's been an arduous process. Morrow, who at times can elevate his velocity to 100 m.p.h. and has been a lights-out late reliever, has returned to Triple A to become a starter. "For me, he's like Papelbon," said an NL executive. "He might be a terrific starter, but as a future closer, he'd be absolutely incredible. Every organization has to do what they feel is best for them. I felt the same way about Joba Chamberlain. Why mess with what that kid can do at the end of the game?"
Help wanted in Texas
We hear Rangers president Nolan Ryan will open up Tom Hicks's pocketbook this offseason and make a big attempt to land major pitching help. CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets are likely targets (and Toronto's A.J. Burnett could be had in a trade). Texas entered last night's action with a league-worst 5.27 ERA, yet still had a 60-57 record and was in the wild-card hunt. It's a shame the Rangers have given away Justin Duchscherer, Chris Young, Armando Galarraga, and John Danks in various trades or they'd have a pretty good staff. Veteran baseball scribe Gerry Fraley points out that the Rangers could become the first team to have both the league's worst ERA and a winning record. The closest were the 1944 Red Sox, who were 77-77.
Manager of the future
It just doesn't seem that the Sox coaches have received the benefits of being a part of a winning organization and working under Terry Francona. John Farrell probably had a chance to manage the Pirates but turned it down, but neither bench coach Brad Mills nor third base coach DeMarlo Hale has received inquiries about managing. Hale is one of the more underrated managerial prospects, who was once a hot name in the market. "I think it's something I would love to do at some point in my career, but it's not anything you can force," he said. "I think I've prepared myself for it when and if the time comes. I've learned an awful lot from Tito and being in this environment, I can tell you that."
Pitcher for a catcher?
The Rangers might provide the Red Sox a chance to acquire a young catcher this offseason. The Sox really like Taylor Teagarden, a righthanded hitter, but the Rangers might hang on to him. That could allow the Rangers to deal Jarrod Saltalamacchia to the Sox. The Sox tried to acquire Saltalamacchia at last season's trading deadline, but the big switch-hitting catcher went to Texas from Atlanta in the Mark Teixeira deal. The Sox might just have to give up a top pitching prospect to solidify their future catching depth.
Short hops
Bill Nowlin's "Red Sox Threads" is chock-full of great Sox info . . . It's not stop-the-presses stuff, and I know righties hit .265 against him, but I thought the Rays made a nice pickup in Chad Bradford, the submarining situational righty . . . A Phillies official insists they had a deal for Manny Ramírez but that the Red Sox "changed the deal" . . . Happy 29th birthday, Brandon Lyon.
Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com
