By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PHOTO GALLERY

Barry Larkin photo gallery

If Barry Larkin decides he wants to play elsewhere next season - and that's not a given - there probably will be some clubs interested.

"There are so many clubs," Reds Hall of Famer Johnny Bench said. "There's always going to be interest. Whether those clubs are willing to pay what he wants to play for, I don't know."

Larkin, the Reds' shortstop for 18 years, rejected the club's one-year, $500,000 (plus incentives) contract offer.

Larkin can't talk to other clubs until the season concludes. But his rejection of the Reds' $500,000 offer doesn't necessarily mean he's seeking more from other clubs.

"There's a chance I'd play for that amount or whatever," he said. "I don't want to play for another club. I wanted to play for the Reds. But I will play for another club under certain contingencies.

"It's not just about the money."

The same things that led the Reds to offer Larkin only $500,000 - injuries and age - will affect his chance of signing elsewhere.

"You don't see many 39-year-old middle infielders, but I'm sure some club would love to have him," said Steve Stone, a former big-leaguer and current analyst on Chicago Cubs broadcasts.

The big-market teams - the New York clubs, Boston, Atlanta, Los Angeles - are set at shortstop.

The Oakland A's, who probably will lose Miguel Tejada to free agency, might be interested.

But whether Larkin would play on the West Coast with his family in Orlando, Fla., might be one of the contingencies he mentioned.

Given that Larkin has averaged only 86 games over the last three years, his best option might be to sign as an extra player.

"Barry's had a difficult time staying healthy the last three years," Bench said. "That happens when you get older."