Pete Harnisch and Sean Casey, the organizers of the Reds' relief effort, hope other sports teams will follow.

        The Reds players, coaches trainers and other uniformed personnel are donating one game's salary to Heroes' Fund, which was set up to aid the families of New York City firefighters and police officers who died in the terrorist attacks last week.

        The donation — the Reds will play for free Friday, Sept.28 — will come to about $250,000.

        “We hope it sets a precedent,” Casey said. “Maybe other teams will do the same thing. We wanted to get the ball rolling.”

        The Mets also announced they would donate a day's pay - in their case, about $500,000.

        Harnisch, a native New Yorker and the brother of a New York City police lieutenant, came up with the idea.

        “I went to Casey because he's a good person with a big heart,” Harnisch said. “He was all for it.”

        Casey and Harnisch proposed the idea when the Reds worked out Saturday.

        “I put a list out, and in five to eight minutes, everyone's name was on it,” Casey said. “It was awesome.”

        “It was quite a feat,” Harnisch said. “The credit goes to the guys in here. They were waiting in line to sign it.”

        Donations range from $74,074 for Ken Griffey Jr. to $1,234 for the players who make the major-league minimum.

        “It's very generous,” Harnisch said. “That money means as much to the guy making the minimum as guys making millions.”

        Harnisch's younger brother, Thomas, was stationed eight blocks from the World Trade Center.

        “All his men got out,” he said. “He's been working 14-, 15-hour days since ... The work they're doing is extraordinary ... They are underpaid and way, way, overworked.”

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