SARASOTA, Fla. — Still haunted by the nightmarish conclusion — for him — to the Reds' managerial search, third-base coach Ron Oester indicated his future with the organization is in doubt after this season.

        Except for 1996, when he coached first base in Detroit to work with then-manager Buddy Bell, his close friend, Oester has spent his entire professional career with the Reds.

        “I have another year on my contract,” Oester said Tuesday. “We'll see what happens after this. I love Cincinnati.”

        Insisting he's focused on helping the team, Oester said he told manager Bob Boone he'd leave the staff to quell any discomfort. Boone refused Oester's offer.

        “He's a high-character guy,” Boone said. “There's going to be some lingering things. But he's a pro. That's the definition of a pro — how well you can do your job when all these other things in your life are going haywire.”

        Oester was offered the Reds' managerial job but wanted more money than the Reds were willing to pay — $300,000 this year and $350,000 next year. He refused the terms but believed he would receive a counter-offer. He didn't, and the next day, Nov.3, Boone was hired.

        Oester blasted Reds general manager Jim Bowden publicly at the time and didn't speak to him until Monday, when they met briefly and agreed to work together professionally. But it won't be much more than that. “I have no need to talk to him,” Oester said.

        Oester's sense that the organization didn't reciprocate his loyalty has continued to rankle him: “That's the tough part. Why wasn't there any negotiation, that I was not told that this was a take-it-or-leave-it offer? Not that I would have taken it; I wouldn't have. ... The way things were handled just doesn't sit right with me and never will sit right with me.”

        For the immediate future, Oester's as enthusiastic as ever.

        “I'm excited to get going again,” he said. “I have a job to do and I'll do it the best I'm capable of and go from there.”

Cinergy is all-grass at last LaRue gives Reds presence behind home plate Oester may leave Reds after 2001 Reese prepares for arbitration

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