Saturday, February 26, 2000

Boone settled at third

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No longer has to prove himself

BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Aaron Boone (Michael E. Keating photo) | ZOOM |

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        SARASOTA, Fla. — Aaron Boone hasn't spent an entire season in one place since 1996, when he played at Double-A Chattanooga. His days as a vagabond appear to be over.

        “I'm excited to go out and "wire-to-wire' them this year,” Boone said.

        The Reds share Boone's anticipation. Having seen the third baseman improve from prospect to major-leaguer last year, they sense he can take the next step to established player, or even star.

        “He progressed tremendously last year,” manager Jack McKeon said. “He was a very key factor in the last two months. He knocked in a lot of big runs for us. Hopefully he'll do the same thing.”

        McKeon was referring to Boone's production in August, when he led the club with 21 RBI, and the second week of September, when he was named National League Player of the Week for hitting .367 with three homers and 12 RBI.

        Boone finished with a a credible .280 average, 14 homers, 72 RBI and 17 stolen bases — totals that made his early season demotion to Triple-A seem a distant memory.

MR. CLUTCH<

STATS Inc. defines “close and late” at-bats as those occurring in the seventh inning or later when the hitting team is ahead by a run, tied or has the potential tying run on base, at-bat or on deck. Last year, Aaron Boone was Cincinnati's most consistent hitter in those situations (by comparison, Atlanta's Chipper Jones led the majors with a .417 close-and-late average; Ken Griffey Jr. hit .379 with Seattle under those circumstances). Here's a close-and-late rundown on the Reds' 1999 regulars and top substitutes:   Aaron Boone ....... .338   Michael Tucker ....... .326   Dmitri Young ....... .306   *Jeffrey Hammonds ....... .279   Sean Casey ....... .256   Barry Larkin ....... .256   Eddie Taubensee ....... .250   *Mike Cameron ....... .238   Pokey Reese ....... .216   *Greg Vaughn ....... .190   *No longer with Reds

        “To go through a long summer and the stretch drive of being in a pennant race, realizing what it takes to win big games and play at a consistent level ... For me and a lot of guys, we grew up a lot,” Boone said.

        Boone's refined swing reflected his growth. He worked extensively with his father, Bob, and Reds hitting coach Denis Menke on trying to drive the ball to the opposite field or up the middle. Though Boone's hits rarely traveled in those directions, the tutelage helped the 26-year-old discipline himself.

        “Aaron learned the swing,” said Bob Boone, the former All-Star catcher who serves as one of General Manager Jim Bowden's special assistants. “He always had the talent. Yesterday I was talking to Denis about how much Aaron has progressed with his swing. I was telling Denis that this winter when we would work out, Aaron had the swing right away.”

        Boone also displayed maturity with the swings he didn't take.

        “The biggest thing I saw was Aaron not biting at (outside pitches),” Bob Boone said. “When I saw that, I relaxed and knew he was a big-leaguer.”

        Further proof that Boone belonged came in the late innings. His dramatic hits hastened Cincinnati's surge into contender's status. Examples abounded:

        On June 14, his three-run homer broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth inning and helped give the Reds an 8-4 victory over the New York Mets. On June 29, his ninth-inning RBI single capped a three-run rally in a 5-4 win over Arizona. He tied the score at Cleveland on July 11 with a two-run double in the sixth inning. Cincinnati proceeded to win that game 9-4.

        Boone broke a 3-3 tie with a two-run homer in the eighth inning on July 22 against St. Louis before the Cardinals rallied with three runs in the ninth to win. His RBI single in the 10th inning scored an insurance run in a 5-3 victory at Los Angeles on July 26. And his bases-loaded, ninth-inning drive to left field, officially recorded as a single, gave the Reds a 2-1 victory over Colorado on Aug.3.

        “It's nothing I really can explain,” Boone said, sounding the refrain of many athletes who thrive in the clutch.

        Actually, the absence of anything to explain is an explanation in itself.

        “In big situations, I just try to relax,” Boone said. “In those situations, you have to realize that there's pressure on the other team, too. If you go out there with a relaxed attitude and try to stay within what you're capable of doing, you're going to have your share of success.”

        Taking that approach more consistently is Boone's next goal.

        “The biggest thing for me in any situation, and this is something I definitely want to get better at, is having each at-bat be important,” he said. “You see a guy like "Case' (Sean Casey), who never gives away an at-bat. You can go up and down the lineup and there are guys like that. I try to learn a lot from them.”

       

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