Reed Johnson catches on quick

JEFF CHIU/AP

It didn't take long for Reed Johnson to strut his stuff with the Cubs. Based on the emailers to this blog, Jays fans aren't happy about this.

Sox players compromise

During the playing of the game, Kevin Youkilis addressed the media in the Sox interview room concerning the heated negotiations with MLB that ended in today's game being played and the trip to Japan remaining a go. Reading between the lines, it clearly was not as big a victory for the players and for their solidarity with the coaches as it first appeared.

It seemed at first that MLB had backed down completely and was caving to the Sox players demands. The main issue was that the players were guaranteed a minimum $40,000 for the Asian vacation, with that total going up if the tour earned more money. The coaches and support staff were guaranteed nothing. The Sox wanted their coaches and staff to earn the same. Here's what Youkilis had to say.

"We've come to a good negotiation. We want to thank a lot of our players. They did a lot of good, not just for our coaches, but for all of baseball. It's not one party to blame. It was bad communication. It's just communications. It needs to be addressed in the future."

In the morning, the Sox players had threatened to shut down today's Jays game (Jays beat the Sox 4-3) and not board the plane to Japan if the coaches did not receive equal compensation for the eight day incredible journey to Japan, that continues in L.A., Oakland and Toronto. When they emerged into the dugout at 12:51 p.m. after setting a 12:30 deadline and it was announced the game would be played, it looked like they had won.

In listening closely to Youkilis, it seems like, in actual fact, there was a tremendous amount of concession on the part of the Sox players and that without some heavy financial guarantees from the Red Sox ownership, MLB was, indeed, not close to satisfying the request for coaches' compensation and the trip could have been off.

When pressed on whether the manager and coaches would receive the same amount as the players, Youkilis said that it was not the same pool and he wasn't sure. When asked whether the A's coaches were going to receive the same amount, he said that was up to the A's. He also indicated that it was a tough negotiation and that many players were even reluctant to walk down the tunnel and actually play today's game. That sounds like some Sox guys didn't think they had won on the issue of compensation.

Youkilis insinuated that not only did the Players Association not give the Sox team its full support but it warned them of the repercussions of not going, advice that smacked of a threatening overtone. Youkilis, who is a very sincere young man, also was not sure what the total for coaches would end up being and if it would approach the $40,000 they were seeking. "It's way better than what they were going to receive," is all he would say.

So if the A's coaches aren't guaranteed anything, then you can be sure it's because the major contributors to the settlement are the Red Sox and not MLB. It's not all bad. It's likely that this will lead to the A's coaches getting paid and that Larry Lucchino and John Henry have just bought time to convince MLB to do the right thing. But the fact is the Sox players did not win this one outright. It was a compromise. Which was probably best for baseball, as long as they don't drop the ball.   

But in the long run, it was good for baseball and shows how far behind the NFL major-league baseball is in terms of avoiding controversy when it comes to overseas growing of the game. 

GAME OFF??

It was a bizarre scene that unfolded at City of Palms Park just prior to gametime today.

The lineups were announced, the fat lady sang the anthems, an old dude threw out the ceremonial first pitch and the announcer yelled, "Play Ball." Unfortunately, there were no players in either dugout.

Finally Jason Varitek came out sans catcher's equipment, a sure sign the game was not going to start on time. Varitek, the captain, was swarmed by Boston media as he stood down in the dugout. Finally other players trickled out looking not ready for primetime.

In the Jays dugout, an out-of-uniform Vernon Wells eyed the scene curiously, with Mike Lowell finally coming across the field to update the Jays' player rep. Yet there was no firm announcement either way.

Maybe it should be called City of Palms Up and Outstretched Park. Show us da money.

I agree with the players and think baseball has mishandled another delicate affair causing a major P.R. gaffe just one day after the Yankees visited Virginia Tech University to honour the slain students.

The deadline for a game was set at 12:30 p.m. If the game was to be called, the Red Sox were going to come out and sign autographs, likely so the fans would not riot and the players would look good. When the P.A. guy made the announcement, he blamed a dispute between the Red Sox players, the Players Association and Major League Baseball.

No mention of the Red Sox organization. Very inscrutable these Red Sox officials. 

Game in jeopardy

As of 11:45 a.m. this morning, the status of today's game between the Red Sox and Jays was still in doubt. The Sox players are threatening to cancel the game and boycott the trip to Japan unless the coaches and manager and probably the trainers, receive the same compensation of $40,000 for the trip that begins tonight.

The only written agreement between baseball and the players association covered the players for their eight day trip to Japan to play two exhibitions against Japanese teams and the first two regular-season games against the A's. The coaches, according to Curt Schilling, were covered in an oral agreement that is being breached by MLB. This would never happen with the NFL.

JAYS: David Eckstein ss, Dhannon Stewart dh, Alex Rios rf, Vernon Wells cf, Scott Rolen 3b, Lyle Overbay 1b, Aaron Hill 2b, Gregg Zaun c, Reed Johnsoon lf. Brian Tallet p

SOX: Dustin Pedroia 2b, Kevin Youkilis 1b, David Ortiz dh, Manny Ramirez rf, Mike Lowell 3b, J.D. Drew rf, Jason Varitek c, Coco Crisp cf, Julio Lugo ss. Daisuke Matsuzaka p

Apparently, as soon as the Jays arrived by bus this morning in Fort Myers, Kevin Youkilis met with Jays player rep Vernon Wells to discuss the issue. The A's in Arizona, the other touring squad, did not seem to care that the coaches were not being compensated and were ready to fly.

Trip to Boss Heaven for Pettitte hell

The trip across the causeway this morning from the the condo occupied by Team Star in Clearwater was not nearly as exciting as the one going the other way last Monday upon landing in Florida. Today, I was headed for Steinbrenner Field, the little bit of Boss heaven formerly known as Legends Field. A steaming hot cup of gas station coffee and a Granny Smith apple was my breakfast on the go. The windows were rolled down, the traffic was light on Presidents Day (apparently their equivalent of Family Day) and I had Navajo and the Freak Show cranked up on WILD-FM the local hip-hop station. Oh for a pair of Apple Bottom jeans and boots with the fur.

Arrived in the press box to find no seats available to set up shop. But like LaDainian, I don't need much daylight before I make my move. There was a small sliver of countertop in the third row between two Japanese journalists. I kept my feet moving, tucked my laptop under my arm and headed for the open formica. It's not really as much of a victory as it sounds, because ever since the arrival of the first wave of Japanese media with outfielder Hideki Matsui (the earlier Japanese players didn't draw as much interest) the Yankee PR staff has created a third and fourth row for the Asian overflow. The catch is that both these rows are behind the elevated press box seats, meaning you can't see the field. It makes covering Grapefruit League games especially difficult.

At 9:30 a.m. a throng of writers, radio and TV folks headed for the Yankee clubhouse to hang out and talk to each other -- and an occasional Yankee getting dressed for the 10:15 start of workouts. The great thing about the Yankee clubhouse is the veterans have learned to shut out the hubbub and chatter from the media, which today numbered about 40 strong. Compare that to the Jays clubhouse where if there are six media members at once in the clubhouse on a workout day it's a throng. At 10:15, the Yankees PR man strolled through the clubhouse and advised that all media had to vacate the premises for a team meeting. Likely it was to do with advice on how to handle questions from the media horde regarding Pettitte and Roger Clemens. But, it was not a useless exercise in covering spring training. Far from it. There is a lot of information exchanged by media members covering different teams. For instance, I learned that the O's my be even worse than they look on paper. Oh, really? That could be gruesome. Anyway, it was out of the clubhouse to the tunnel with everyone else, with the Pettitte conference still four hours away.

"I don't know why I was standing there," said one veteran New York columnist. "I guess in case Pettitte walked in."

That's actually one of the great realities of being a beat writer for the Yankees. It's so competitive that if you weren't there and he did walk in, you would have hell to pay with your editors. Some good reporters have been burned out by the flames of that competition. In terms of comparison to current reality shows, covering the Yanks would be as exciting as Surreal World while covering the Royals, at the other end of the beat-writing spectrum, would be like Blind Date.

Anyway, no regrets. I always have a good experience coming over the causeway for this annual pre-Grapefruit League pilgrimage. I had scheduled myself to make this trip today, anyway, so when the upcoming Pettitte mea culpa popped up, it just decided my column.

Richard Griffin