SULLIVAN: Pokey gets E for RedsFest boycott

He could have pleaded a previous engagement, as did Ken Griffey Jr., or scheduled a wedding in conflict with the event, as did Alex Ochoa. He could have come up with some excuse both plausible and pardonable — something that would disappoint the fans but not disgust them.

Contract squabbles do not qualify.

If you're scoring at home, give the Cincinnati Reds second baseman an enormous E-4 for blowing off Redsfest as a bargaining tactic. If Reese's boycott detracts from the weekend baseball event — and it does — this is a trifle compared to the damage he has done to his reputation.

The two-time Gold Glove winner looks as clumsy as Chuck Knoblauch in this dispute. He reinforces the perception that ballplayers are fundamentally selfish and astoundingly out of touch. This is not the Pokey Reese we thought we knew.

Negotiating tactic

Until now, few major-league athletes have been more pleasant and less pretentious than the Cincinnati second baseman. Reese frequently reports for work wearing the jersey of some other athlete and carries himself more like a clubhouse drudge than a team star.

When the Reds announced Reese was skipping Redsfest, it was easy to believe him the victim of bad advice.

“This was Pokey's idea — 110 percent Pokey's idea,” agent Mike Nicotera said Wednesday. “I hope people know that Pokey has always been very fan-friendly. ... He wouldn't pull this unless it was very important to him. I hope people can respect that. He knows people may not understand. He was very aware that there was going to be a backlash.”

There's always a backlash when millionaire athletes act aggrieved, and the Reds have submitted an arbitration bid of $2.7 million for Reese's 2001 services. They also have offered him multiyear, multimillion-dollar contracts of three and five years' duration. If the proposed dollars do not coincide with Reese's idea of his own worth, he is under no obligation to sign. He is, however, under some obligation to make appearances on the club's behalf.

Breach of contract?

Major League Baseball's uniform player contract stipulates that, “In addition to his services in connection with the actual playing of baseball, the player agrees to cooperate with the club and participate in all reasonable promotional activities of the club and its league, which, in the opinion of the club, will promote the welfare of the club or professional baseball ...”

Though what's “reasonable” is open to interpretation, Reds general manager Jim Bowden argues that boycotting Redsfest constitutes a breach of contract.

“We believe that per the basic agreement, we can force Pokey Reese to attend Redsfest,” Bowden said. “The agent's position is that we cannot force him to go because it's not in season. We decided not to force the issue (by filing a grievance). We want to continue to negotiate in good faith. ... We're not here to completely alienate him.”

The Reds can't come down too hard on Reese, because they still want to sell him to their fans.

The fans need not be so pragmatic. If Pokey Reese is smart, he shows up at Redsfest before he needs their forgiveness.

E-mail: tsullivan@enquirer.com.

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