Wednesday, July 19, 2000
Reds sell Morris to Tigers
By Chris Haft
The Cincinnati Enquirer
DETROIT — Hal Morris entered a Comerica Park interview room wearing his Reds uniform and clutching a Detroit Tigers magnetic schedule. It was easy to understand the mixed signals of the image.
The Reds announced during Tuesday night's game that they had sold Morris to the Detroit Tigers for cash considerations, believed to be $50,000.
“Hal came up to me, about the fifth inning, I guess it was, and said, "I'll see you,'” Reds manager Jack McKeon said. “He said they had called him up into the clubhouse and told him (of the trade). I said, "Well, who's team are you on?' He said, "I'm not sure.'”
For the record, since he went into the game on the Reds' roster, Morris could have played only for the Reds. The first baseman did not play.
Morris said he wandered into the Tigers' clubhouse after he got the news. He said he sat for a while and chatted with Detroit slugger Juan Gonzalez, who was put on the disabled list earlier in the day.
“Our clubhouse man said he'd never seen anything like it,” Morris said.
The Reds didn't reveal how they would fill Morris' spot. Possibilities include D.T. Cromer (.286, 12 homers, 51 RBI with Triple-A Louisville), who already has spent two stints with Cincinnati, and former Cubs utilityman Brooks Kieschnick (.293, 21 homers, 76 RBI with Louisville).
The move had little effect on the Reds' roster, because Morris had received only 63 at-bats as a substitute first baseman and pinch hitter. But, as an 11-year veteran who spent his most of his career with Cincinnati, Morris did admit feeling a little sentimental.
“I would have liked to have finished the year (with the Reds), because I would have had 10 years in Cincinnati,” said Morris, who was batting .222 with two homers and six RBI. “To be able to say I played 10 years in one place would have been something. But I'm excited about going to Detroit. I wasn't playing a lot over here. I have no idea what my role will be in Detroit, but I'm looking forward to it.”
Tigers manager Phil Garner said he would play Morris right away.
“He can play first, outfield and pinch hit,” Garner said. “We plan to play him at first.”
Dmitri Young said Morris would be missed in the Reds' clubhouse.
“People kind of look at the stats and say he didn't mean all that much to the team,” Young said. “But they don't know about all the talks, all the dinners. They don't know about relationships.
“Hal was a friend. It takes a toll. It definitely takes a toll.”
“I don't know what we're going to do without Hal in the clubhouse,” Pokey Reese said. “It's just another piece of the puzzle that's gone.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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Reds sell Morris to Tigers
