SARASOTA, Fla. — Sean Casey is locked up for the long haul. He will be playing first base for the Cincinnati Reds after Cinergy Field has been reduced to rubble. Terms of the contract the big lug signed Friday ensure that he will be rattling fences and regaling fans on the riverfront through at least 2005.

        Overnight, Casey has been elevated from a favorite son to a fixture. Suddenly, the Reds' long-term outlook improves from mostly cloudy to a smattering of sunshine. After a winter of discontent and dread, spring begins with a heapin' helping of hope — a three-year, $20.2 million contract extension with a club option covering 2006.

        We were beginning to doubt the home team's commitment to quality, its willingness to reinvest the pre-opening proceeds from Great American Ball Park. We were starting to question whether Carl Lindner and Co. would step up to the plate or continue to cower in the on-deck circle.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Sean Casey hits in the batting cage on Friday. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        Signing Casey doesn't prove the Reds are serious, but it shows they're not asleep. It reflects institutional appreciation of Casey's contributions and character. It says a small-market club can find the funds to keep a core player if the core player can be flexible.

        Whether it signals a trend or is only an aberration is too soon to say.

        “Casey has done a great job for this franchise for a number of years,” Ken Griffey Jr. said Friday. “I'm glad he's been rewarded. The great thing is that the people of Cincinnati know that one of the good players they want to stay around is going to be around.”

        Next deal may take a while

        It would be greater, of course, if Casey's signing were not an isolated event but the first strike in nailing down the Reds' young nucleus. Given their performance and their progress toward free agency, third baseman Aaron Boone and reliever Danny Graves also might be in line for long-term contracts.

        Given the pace of Casey's negotiations, though, additional deals may be slow to develop.

        A 2 1/2-year process

        Reds general manager Jim Bowden said Friday's announcement represented 2 1/2 years of bargaining. Momentum accelerated in the last month, but the going never really got smooth. Bowden made an offer to the Casey camp Feb.8, met with the first baseman and his representatives Feb.12 and left the meeting without a clear response.

        When the Reds received Casey's counter-offer Feb.15, Bowden said the gap was still great enough that the club was prepared to postpone further negotiations until after the season. Perhaps this was just posturing — in negotiations, you never know — but Casey returned with a revised offer that became the framework for the eventual deal.

        “I really wanted to be in Cincinnati,” Casey said. “I knew if I went year by year in arbitration, I could get more money. But this is where I want to be and I wanted to get something done. I was just looking for something that was a fair offer.”

        Sean Casey is a man of simple needs. During an apprenticeship in the Cape Cod League, he took a part-time job in a local bakery. Whatever food fell on the floor was his to eat.

        “I'd knock a bagel off every morning, and that would be my breakfast,” he said.

        Now, he can afford to pay.

        Contact Tim Sullivan at 768-8456; fax: 768-8550; e-mail: tsullivan@enquirer.com.

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