Sunday, June 24, 2001
Yankees were high on Wohlers
But New York acquires Padres reliever instead
By Chris Haft
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HOUSTON — Though Mark Wohlers' contract includes a no-trade clause, the Reds right-hander was one of four relievers the New York Yankees were considering acquiring, the New York Daily News reported.
Yankees scout Ron Brand, who was at Enron Field, must have sent a glowing report on Wohlers after Friday's game. Wohlers pitched two scoreless innings to earn the decision in Cincinnati's 7-5, 10-inning victory.
That apparently wasn't enough for the Yankees. Hungry for bullpen help, the three-time defending world champions turned to another name on their list, acquiring Jay Witasick from San Diego on Saturday. New York also was eyeing Detroit's Todd Jones and Pittsburgh's Mike Williams. The Yankees' deal for Montreal's Ugueth Urbina fell through earlier this week.
Wohlers' desire to request a no-trade clause in the contract he signed last Dec. 15 reflected his loyalty to the Reds. The organization nursed him back to health after elbow surgery and patiently helped him regain his effectiveness after he lost control of his pitches. He could have obtained a much more lucrative deal in free agency but virtually begged the Reds to re-sign him.
Before the Witasick trade was announced, Wohlers indicated that he'd consider waiving his no-trade clause, saying he found the Yankees' attention “interesting.”
“Obviously, if (general manager) Jim (Bowden) approaches me with the thought of me going somewhere else, he's not really too concerned with me leaving,” Wohlers said. “The ball's in the court of the people who make those decisions. When it's time for me to make a decision, I'll make it.”
Wohlers also reiterated his faith in the Reds.
“I re-signed with them because they had shown interest and done so much for me,” he said. “I still think it can be a pretty interesting second half here. At the same time, I know they have a financial burden. They owe me $1 million. That's a lot of money for Cincinnati where it might not be so much for some other teams.”
Wohlers has refined a pitch that could help him excel for whoever employs him. It's a two-seam fastball used by many pitchers, including Reds closer Danny Graves, that has a sinking action.
Wohlers estimated that he threw about 10 of them in his successful Friday outing.
“I've been throwing it for about a month and I think I'm getting a pretty good feel for it,” said Wohlers. “I was telling Gully (pitching coach Don Gullett) that I wish I wasn't so stubborn earlier in my career. I would have thrown it then. But when you come up and you can throw hard, you want to see how hard you can throw.”
Reds Stories
DAUGHERTY: Gardner is guy you can like
World Team Wrestling Trials schedule
World Team Wrestling Trials results
Auto Racing Insider
Best and worst of week in sports
Bonds hits 39th HR
Kentucky sweeps LaRosa awards
High School Insider
Indiana All-Stars exact revenge on Kentucky
Buzz fills void in sports talk
Cable viewer's guide to Wimbledon
Green will defend Kroger title
Local Golf Notebook
Men's Met tee times
• Return to Reds front page...
Yankees were high on Wohlers
