No punishment for delay of game

Unhappy Selig not expected to levy fines

FORT MYERS, Fla. - Commissioner Bud Selig is not expected to impose fines or punishment on Red Sox players for the hour-plus delay to the start of Wednesday's exhibition game against the Blue Jays at City of Palms Park.

The players protested because the coaches and staff - unlike the players - were not going to receive a $40,000 appearance fee each for the trip to Japan.

Selig worked with the Red Sox and the Players' Association to resolve the issue. Red Sox management agreed to underwrite the needed $600,000 and will get partial reimbursement from Major League Baseball. The Players' Association made no contribution.

Sources involved in the negotiations of the Japan trip do not paint the Players' Association in the best light.

Those sources said the genesis of the problem came when the Japanese promoter offered a revenue package of $11.5 million, $2 million less than what the Yankees-Devil Rays series had brought in 2004. The shortfall didn't fly with the players, who wanted a guarantee of the $40,000 minimum per player for the trip. So the coaches and staff were cut short. In the Yankees-Devils Rays trip, the coaches received an even share from the players' pool.

The simple solution in Wednesday's dispute, according to one major league source, was, "Throw the 15 or so staff people into the pool and cut the checks evenly." But the Red Sox players insisted on MLB solving the problem or they'd boycott the Japan trip.

The Red Sox and MLB paid the money. What if they hadn't paid and the Red Sox players boycotted? The Players' Association informed player representative Kevin Youkilis the team needed to go to Japan or the consequences would be great.

The Red Sox and Selig are biting their tongues, but major league sources indicated Selig was very unhappy about Wednesday's game being delayed because he does not like to see baseball's image take any hits, with 7,000 fans inconvenienced at City of Palms Park on a nationally televised game. Mike Lowell acknowledged the players took advantage of ESPN's coverage to make their point.

The tone of the Red Sox players and manager Terry Francona changed after the resolution. Youkilis said there was a lack of communication to the players about what was going on and it took a few hours before departure time for Japan to get it resolved.

Ready for takeoff

Some sleep aid, a few movies, and what he hopes is a lot of sleep will accompany lefthander Jon Lester to Japan in his long, lonely journey this morning. The Sox wanted Lester to remain on his pitching schedule, so he did not leave with the team Wednesday.

"Got a 7 a.m. flight, stop in Dallas for an hour," Lester said. "Dallas straight through. If it's not first-class, you'll not see a happy person. They want me to kind of reverse what the team did, so they want me to go to sleep at 10:15 a.m., which is 11 p.m. Tokyo time, so they want me to take a couple of Ambien and get knocked out and wake up about three hours before we land and move around a little bit. I got some movies and a day bag, and hopefully it all works out," Lester said.

Anyone traveling with him?

"Nope. I'll be talking to myself the whole flight. It'll be fun."

Lester, Wednesday's Game 2 starter in Japan against Oakland's Rich Harden, threw five perfect innings at the minor league complex yesterday, striking out eight, including the last six. Lester threw a bit more in the bullpen before calling it a day.

"It served its purpose, more or less," said Lester. "I got my pitch count up, got the innings in, got the work. I would have liked to have been on the plane with the team because I'd like to travel with them, but it's all right. I've got to get over there somehow.

"Now we don't have to worry about anything. There are no limitations. It's been a while since I've had a normal spring training. Two years ago I was on pitch counts and last year, obviously, was not normal [as he recovered from cancer], so as far as I remember, this was normal. I feel good and healthy and strong. Everything went without a hitch this spring."

Crew in place

Vice president of umpires Mike Port said Rick Reed's crew, which officiated in China for the Padres-Dodgers exhibition games, will also umpire the Red Sox-A's games. The rest of the crew is Hunter Wendelstedt, Paul Nauert, and Tim Timmons.

Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com.