Chicago Base Podcasts

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) ? Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona declined comment Monday on a report the team received a mailed threat targeting black and Latin players. The Boston Herald, citing unidentified sources, reported the threat was believed to be postmarked in Memphis, Tenn., and that a suspect believed to be from Baltimore but living in the Memphis area was being sought. The newspaper said the team increased security for its three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays. • "I will not discuss that out of respect to everyone concerned," Francona said Monday night. "It's not something we can address." No names of players were identified in the newspaper report. Red Sox slugger David Ortiz said he first learned of the threat from reporters. • "There's some people out there that have nothing to do and they like to send letters," Ortiz said. "I guess it's part of what we do. I don't think they'll be anything crazy coming out of it." Boston and Tampa Bay were playing for the first time since a bench-clearing brawl between the teams at Fenway Park on June 5. The Herald said the threat was not believed to be related to any bad blood between the Red Sox and Rays, who are battling for first place in the AL East. • "We don't comment on security procedures," Major League Baseball spokesman Patrick Courtney said.

Shawn Chacon cleared waivers and was released Monday by the Houston Astros on Monday, five days after a physical altercation with general manager Ed Wade in the clubhouse. Michael Weiner, the general counsel of the players' association, said the union planned to file a grievance Tuesday. The union will claim the Astros improperly terminated the deal and that Chacon is owed the remaining $983,607 of his $2 million salary this year. The 30-year-old pitcher was suspended after shoving Wade to the floor before the Astros played Texas last Wednesday. Wade said he had asked Chacon to come into manager Cecil Cooper's office for a meeting. Chacon refused, and the confrontation ensued. The Astros said Chacon violated a provision in the uniform player contract that states the player may be terminated if he shall ?fail, refuse, or neglect to conform his personal conduct to the standards of good citizenship and good sportsmanship or to keep himself in first-class physical condition or to obey to the club's training rules.?

Maybe it's something in the water in Houston. Days after Houston Astros pitcher Shawn Chacon tackled general manger Ed Wade in the home clubhouse at Minute Maid Park, the visitors clubhouse was the scene of another player-club employee altercation Saturday afternoon. Manny Ramirez shoved Boston Red Sox traveling secretary Jack McCormick to the ground in an argument over Ramirez' ticket allotment. Several onlookers moved quickly to separate the two. Ramirez had asked McCormick for 16 tickets for Saturday night's Red Sox-Astros game, an unusually high number for day-of-game. In addition to handling all travel details for clubs, traveling secretaries also take player ticket requests for both home and away games. When McCormick cautioned Ramirez that he might not be able to fulfill his request, Ramirez responded by shouting: ?Just do your job!? An argument ensued and Ramirez pushed McCormick, sending him to the ground. Later, the two met behind closed doors and Ramirez apologized to McCormick, who accepted the gesture. No further disciplinary action is expected against Ramirez. Asked on Sunday to comment on the altercation, Ramirez responded: ?That's over. We're fine now.? ?Sometimes things happen,? said Boston manager Terry Francona, ?and when they do, we choose to handle them internally. I'm satisfied with how we handled this.? Added McCormick: ?It was an unfortunate misunderstanding and it's over with as far as I'm concerned.?

Although the Dodgers didn't get a hit on Saturday, it was no no-hitter. They even won what was one of the weirdest games in recent years, with an unearned run all they needed to beat the Angels 1-0. Jered Weaver, lifted for a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning, came away with only a loss to show for his six hitless innings on Saturday night. Jose Arredondo, who retired six consecutive batters over the next two innings, won't go into the record book for a combined no-hitter, either. Since the Angels were the visitors and the Dodgers didn't have to bat in the ninth, it wasn't officially a no-hitter. The Angels got five hits, but the Dodgers' Chad Billingsley and two relievers held them scoreless. It was only the fifth game in the majors since 1900 when the winning team didn't get a hit, and first since Boston's Matt Young lost one in 1992, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

First, there was then-Seattle general manager Bill Bavasi ordering the towels and post-game food removed from the clubhouse and demanding that the players stand at their lockers in response to continuing lethargic play. Then came Toronto general manager J.P. Ricciardi not only publicly criticizing Cincinnati outfielder Adam Dunn, whom he has never met. He criticized him not only for his abilities on the field but his personal life. He later announced that he talked with Dunn on the phone and apologized on Saturday, only to have Dunn show up in Toronto with the Reds on Tuesday and make it clear he had never spoken to Ricciardi and had no desire to talk to him. Now comes the saga of Houston general manager Ed Wade and pitcher Shawn Chacon, suspended then released this week after publicly admitting that a confrontation with Wade resulted in Chacon grabbing Wade by the neck, throwing him to the ground and jumping on the GM. There's no excuse for him physically attacking Wade. Leadership, however, let the Astros down in this instance, too. Having moved Chacon from the rotation to the bullpen earlier in the week, Astros manager Cecil Cooper initially requested that Chacon come to his office to discuss issues that were being raised during the week. Chacon declined. That prompted Wade to approach Chacon in the players' lounge prior to Wednesday's game. Chacon again declined to go into the office, told Wade that the general manager should be free to say whatever he had to say there in the lounge and Wade, by Chacon's description lost his cool, yelling and cursing. That's when Chacon lost it, and the next thing anyone knew, Chacon had thrown Wade to the floor. Chacon was out of line. Now, at age of 31, he is likely out of baseball, first suspended by the Astros and then, on Thursday, released. But that doesn't exonerate Wade, who is supposed to be the leader of the franchise and has a responsibility to owners to handle his job with dignity, which doesn't include profanity-filled shouting matches with players. Infield chatter 1 • Oakland assistant general manager David Forst is quick to decline interview requests for GM jobs because he figures to be the head man with the Athletics as early as next season. While Billy Beane will be around, Beane has indicated he plans to put his focus on developing the pro soccer team that he and Athletics owner Lewis Wolf are involved with. • Former outfielder and current Giants scout Ted Uhlaender has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, the same form of cancer that former Rockies manager Don Baylor has battled. • Milwaukee right-hander Ben Sheets says in light of the Brewers deciding not to try to negotiate an extension during the season, he expects to explore the free-agent market in the fall. The rotation Houston GM Wade's scuffle with Chacon was rare, but not the first time team management has had such moments. As a big-league manager, the late Billy Martin was always ready to brawl. Four memorable moments: • In 1969, his lone year managing Minnesota, Martin punched pitcher Dave Boswell so hard that he needed 20 stitches. • In 1973, as manager in Detroit, Martin traded punches with minor leaguer Ike Blessitt during spring training. • In 1985, as manager of the Yankees, Martin challenged pitcher Ed Whitson, who left Martin with a broken arm. • After the 1985 season, in a Minneapolis bar, Martin punched marshmallow salesman Joseph Cooper, resulting in Martin's being fired by the Yankees. Out in left field Cito Gaston, who managed Toronto to championships in 1992 and 1993 but was fired after the 1997 season, returned as the Blue Jays manager last weekend when John Gibbons was fired. Gaston is the 11th man to manage the same team twice with more than a 10-year gap between full-time managerial stints, according to Bill Arnold. The longest gap was 21 years by Bucky Harris, who left the Tigers after 1933 and returned in 1955, and Paul Richards, who left the White Sox after 1954 and returned in 1976. Other extended gaps: 19 years, Yogi Berra, Yankees (last year 1964, returned in 1984); 15 years, John Pesky, Red Sox (1964, 1980) and Bill Rigney, Giants (1960, 1976); 14 years, Rogers Hornsby, Browns (1937, 1952); 11 years, John McNamara, Angels (1984, 1996); and 10 years, Bill Carrigan, Red Sox (1916, 1927), Billy Southworth, Cardinals (1929, 1940), Charlie Grimm, Cubs (1949, 1960) and Paul Owens, Phillies (1972, 1983). Closing statement Toronto general manager Ricciardi is indignant over questions about his credibility, when he says he talked to Reds outfielder Dunn on the phone last weekend and apologized for inane statements about Dunn, while Dunn emphatically denied ever having spoken to Ricciardi. Ricciardi said he prides himself on his honesty and resented his integrity being questioned. He even pointed out that Dunn's call came from area code 519. Maybe if Ricciardi lived in Toronto instead of outside Boston, he'd know the 519 area code is actually from the province of Ontario, which would seem to prove that the call didn't come from Dunn, who lives in Texas and plays for a team in Ohio. But then Ricciardi is the guy who announced that pitcher A.J. Burnett was sidelined by back problems only to later say Burnett had reconstructive elbow surgery. Accused of lying about that, Ricciardi took exception and explained that it's not a lie when you say something that isn't true as long as you know what the truth is.