Peter Gammons

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Braves send clear message to Rocker

By Peter Gammons
Special to ESPN.com

March 3

John Rocker is lucky. With all his baggage, there might not be another team that would have been willing to treat him the way the Braves did Thursday, because they're willing to try anything and forgive anyone to win.

"He's very lucky," manager Bobby Cox said. "I hope he realizes how lucky."

John Rocker
Despite appearances, all was not well with his teammates when John Rocker, left, reported to camp.

Oh, Rocker's written statement and his media interviews came from behind a shield of seeming deniability. But what happened in the clubhouse was totally different, and what Bud Selig failed to grasp by attempting to ban Rocker from spring training was that the only way Rocker is going to "get it" -- as Tom Glavine and others put it -- is to get it from his peers. And he did.

If Rocker thought he was going to be able to walk into the clubhouse, apologize, go to lunch with Randall Simon and move on with his career in Atlanta, he had to be stunned.

One player described the open clubhouse forum directed by Cox as "one of those confrontation sessions families have for alcoholics." Glavine said Rocker "got a little teary" at one point.

One coach got so animated in his tirade about Rocker's lack of respect for his manager, coaches, teammates and the game that several players thought they would come to blows.

Players also addressed that lack of respect; several told Rocker he couldn't function on the team acting the way he did last season. Latin players grilled him: "If anyone thought this was about the magazine article," said one veteran, "then he's mistaken. This built up all last season."

The Braves players demand respect, and they demand a particular form of professionalism (as do the Yankees, and David Cone has said that "if Rocker came off the field hollering at fans and carrying on like that he'd have to fight five guys in our clubhouse.") In the past, the Braves have rid themselves of players they did not think fit into their clubhouse, like Kenny Lofton, and Ryan Klesko this offseason. And six weeks ago, when eight veteran players met in Atlanta, some of them said they did not want Rocker on the team this year.

But all eight players on Thursday agreed that they saw something different in Rocker and want to give him a second chance. Brian Jordan saw "genuine remorse." Glavine saw "something different." Eddie Perez and Javy Lopez saw "some humility." Chipper Jones saw "something we haven't seen before."

If Rocker comes to appreciate that he has to earn Cox's respect, that Glavine is the single most respected player in the game today and that they're reaching out to him to grow up, then he'll make it. And they should give Rocker credit -- he stood up to them. He didn't run. He convinced players he understood what was going on and agreed to try to stop the WWF stuff and become a Brave.

This is how deep the grace of this team runs: Talented rookie George Lombard, grandson of a Harvard Business School dean, spoke with Rocker about Lombard's concern for Rocker's parents, and expressed the hope that John appreciates how difficult this ordeal has been on them.

GM John Schuerholz is sitting back and waiting to see what happens and whether or not Rocker can fit in and whether or not he is going to be an ongoing distraction. After Thursday, there is hope that it can work, a lot more hope than there was two weeks earlier.

Rocker is, contrary to some opinion, intelligent, and he comes from an extraordinary family. If he uses his intelligence, thinks of what this has done to his family, what they stand for, and appreciate that he plays with a group of players that won before him and will win without him, this can work.

His mother, Judy Rocker, says, "We all make mistakes when we're 25. I made them." Maybe, just maybe, Thursday's psychotherapy session will be the start of the maturation of Judy and Jake Rocker's son.

News and notes

Felipe Alou is comparing this Expos team to the 1994 team that had the best record in baseball. Owner Jeff Loria wants to regain the excitement in Montreal, and they are telling teams that if they can get a middle-of-the-order run producer they will trade some of their young pitching and perhaps even rookie outfielder Peter Bergeron, although it would have to be a big-time hitter to get Bergeron.

The Giants, who are willing to deal veteran pitching for a proven catcher, have suggested Montreal take back Kirk Rueter and Mark Gardner, but the Expos apparently aren't interested.

The White Sox also might have to get a veteran catcher, since Brook Fordyce's broken foot leaves them with rookie Josh Paul as well as Mark Johnson and Eric Christopherson.

It's been a long two years for the Marlins after the neutron bomb Wayne Huizenga dropped on the '97 world champions, but GM/President Dave Dombrowski says, "If we get a stadium, it won't take us long to get very good again."

Dombrowski has done a tremendous job stockpiling talent, and this could be a big year for OF Cliff Floyd, RF Mark Kotsay and SS Alex Gonzalez in their maturation process. It's a make-or-break year for 1B Derrek Lee. "What's made a huge difference on this team is having those two guys in uniform," says Floyd. He was pointing to Hall of Famer Tony Perez and Andre Dawson.

This is the way renewals work when you don't have the hammer of arbitration time: The Reds renewed Rookie of the Year Scott Williamson and Danny Graves at $300,000 apiece, and .332-hitting first baseman Sean Casey at $400,000.

Shortstop phenom Rafael Furcal has gotten a lot of pub, but while the Braves think he can be a huge offensive player, they aren't sure he can play short. His defensive consistency needs to be improved, and when a team is built around pitchers of the ilk of Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, John Smoltz and Kevin Millwood, Bobby Cox is going to play Walt Weiss.

OK, Frank Thomas has a ton of personal problems, and his disastrous record company distracted him the last couple of years as he DH'd to spend time in the clubhouse to work on his failing company. OK, he never was a leader. OK, the White Sox were stupid to let Robin Ventura and Albert Belle go. In fact, Ozzie Guillen defended Belle recently.

"I said far less nasty things about (Belle) than a lot of other people," says Ozzie Guillen. "I resented the fact that they tried to make him into baseball's Michael Jordan. I don't understand how anyone can have a problem with Jerry Manuel. But I hope he comes back." Adds Guillen: "If I were to draw up my list of my five best teammates, it would include Robin (Ventura), Jack (McDowell) and Albert Belle. I love playing with Albert -- you know what to expect. Nothing phony. I hate the guys who hug you, then make an obscene gesture behind your back".

Ken Caminiti says this will be his last year because his body is finally giving in to all the dives and the pounding.

The M's reiterated this week that they prefer Garret Anderson to Jim Edmonds, and they'd prefer to deal John Halama rather than Brett Tomko.

One of the problems the Reds have dealing for much-needed pitching is that they will not give up SS Sean Dawkins, LHP Ty Howington or OF Adam Dunn. If you ask their people, they rate Dunn the best prospect in the organization. The former Texas quarterback -- who quit football when he felt Mack Brown lied to him -- has 40-home run power.

Incidentally, the Yankees lost their '97 first-round pick Tyrell Godwin when Brown was coaching North Carolina and told Godwin that he'd start at tailback as a freshman. Godwin never started a game in football, and is now on the undefeated UNC baseball team.

Speaking of baseball/football talents, Michigan QB/Yankees 3B Drew Henson is in Tampa and wowing everyone. But will he give up football? His father, John, who works for IMG, thinks Henson will be a top-five NFL pick in two years. The elder Henson is a former quarterback coach whose proteges include Charlie Batch and Jake Plummer, and took the IMG job over the quarterbacks coach position with the Baltimore Ravens.

This makes no sense: The Yankees broadcast their regular season games in Tampa. Now, there is a 1955 rule that allows a club to broadcast home games anywhere it wants and road games if each road opponent agrees (what sense is that?). But the Devil Rays claim that not one other team has signed the agreement, and the Commissioner's Office does nothing about it.

This is a problem for the Rays in their unique market. If you drive around Tampa, you know it is George Steinbrenner's town: The city billboards make more of the Yankees, they outdrew the Rays in Friday's home spring training openers and the Tampa Tribune is big on Yankees stories.

How the Rays do with their home run power and pitching -- and as they break the single-game strikeout record against Pedro Martinez -- is too tough to call. But they are much better than a year ago, and they have bought time for some of their very talented young players, like OFs Josh Hamilton and Kenny Kelly and pitchers Jason Standridge and Matt White (who is finally having a big spring). There is a lot of talent in the organization, but it is another market in which baseball is a second language, especially to the local sports talk radio folks.

First, SFX bought out the Hendricks Brothers, Arn Tellum and Jim Bronner's Speakers of Sports, three of the biggest baseball agencies. Then SFX sold out to Clearchannel Communication for a huge profit. "The whole thing was a stock deal, a billion dollars worth of paper," says one analyst. But other agents think this is going to end up a mess of conflicts of interest.

Moises Alou looks tremendous.

Donnie Sadler's agents think that one reason the Red Sox have him on the block is that they were upset when his 1999 shoulder problems were diagnosed as "tendinitis" and turned out to be a torn labrum.

One of the best looking pitchers around this spring is Marlins rookie Brad Penny, acquired from Arizona in the Matt Mantei deal. For four years, Penny has been dating Kara Spahn, Warren's granddaughter.

The Blue Jays are searching for someone to take David Segui's salary, and have asked the Yankees if they're interested.

Robby Alomar: "What Junior Griffey did in taking less money to be where he wanted and help that team win is tremendous. I hope it's a trend. The game can't go on like this. It's time for everyone to think about winning, where their families are happy and realize that no one can spend all the money some guys are making."

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