Thursday, December 20, 2001
Reds notebook
Harnisch, Hamilton, Rijo reject arbitration
By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Pete Harnisch, Joey Hamilton and Jose Rijo all rejected arbitration Wednesday.
That is not unexpected. The Reds offered the three free agents arbitration only because they knew it would be rejected. The Reds and the players have until Jan.8 to reach a deal. If they don't, the Reds cannot sign the players until May 15.
In the case of Harnisch — the free agent the Reds would most want back — the extra time may not be enough.
“It's too early to say,” Reds general manager Jim Bowden said. “But I'm not optimistic.”
“At this stage, we have a disagreement on what Pete is worth,” said Harnisch's agent, Greg Clifton.
Rijo's case is different. He has said he would play only with the Reds.
The Reds have talked with Hamilton's people, but the team is concentrating on Harnisch, a 35-year-old right-hander who has battled injuries the past two years.
Harnisch, if healthy, could be the No.1 starter in the Reds' rotation. He went 14-7 in 1998 and 16-10 in '99. He was 8-6 in 2000, despite spending seven weeks on the disabled list.
Harnisch pitched in only seven games last season because of injuries. He was 1-3 with a 6.37 ERA before he had season-ending elbow surgery Aug.9.
It's believed the Reds are offering a base of $500,000 and incentives, worth $1 million. Harnisch made $3.75 million last year.
“Pete is OK with having incentives in the deal,” Clifton said. “He'd like to stay in Cincinnati.”
Clifton said Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta and Texas have also called about Harnisch.
BIG IN RIGHT?
The Reds talked to recently retired New York Yankee Paul O'Neill several weeks ago about a possible return to the Reds.
“Jim said the Reds would like, No.1, to have Paul in right field,” said O'Neill's agent, Joe Bick; “No.2, have Paul as a player/coach; No.3, have Paul as a coach; No.4, have Paul in the Reds organization in whatever capacity he wanted.”
But Bick said no offer was made, and O'Neill intends to take at least one year off.
The Yankees have expressed an interest in having him back in some capacity.
“If it's a choice between the Reds and the Yankees,” Bick said. “Paul's a New York Yankee.”
However, O'Neill does live in Cincinnati. Bick talked to John Allen, the Reds chief operating officer, about O'Neill filling in on Reds broadcasts.
Bowden also has a large staff of special assistants and advisors. O'Neill may be interested in that at some point.
NUX HOME:
Reds radio man Joe Nuxhall was out of the hospital and back on the radio Wednesday night.
Nuxhall was released from Mercy-Fairfield Hospital Wednesday afternoon after suffering a heart attack Monday. Nuxhall called into “The Hot Stove League” Wednesday night on WLW-AM (700) and chatted briefly with hosts Andy Furman and Tracy Jones.
“I was working out in the basement, thought I strained a muscle,” he said. “But Monday night, it didn't feel like that.”
Nuxhall was having dinner with his wife, Donzetta, and son, Kim, when the chest pains worsened.
“Donzetta's been on me about some things,” Joe said. “But Kim was the one. Thank God he was there.”
Nuxhall said he's going to try to give up smoking.
“That's the big thing,” he said.
Nuxhall, 73, said he will have some more tests.
“We want to get this thing cleared up,” he said.
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