Rey welcomes fresh start

Shortstop Ordonez, who struggled and came under fire in New York, expects to return to form that earned him three Gold Gloves.

By MARC TOPKIN, Times Staff Writer

© St. Petersburg Times
published December 17, 2002

NASHVILLE -- With all the bad things said about him in New York, you'd think he was the devil Rey.

But while headlines heralded his departure ("Mets dump Ordonez on D-Rays," crowed the New York Post) and writers used words such as "reviled" and "pariah," Rey Ordonez saw his escape from New York as the start of a new day in Tampa Bay.

[AP photo] Rey Ordonez was the NL's Gold Glove shortstop as a Met from 1997-99 but commited 19 errors last season.

"I'm happy to go to the Devil Rays, I'm happy they're changing to who I think is the best manager in baseball, I'm happy they're trying to take steps in the right direction and I'm a building block," Ordonez said Monday in a conference call interview translated by his wife, Gloryann.

Most importantly, for Ordonez and for the Rays, he says he definitely can return to the level of play that earned him three straight Gold Glove awards in 1997-99.

"I'm positive I can get back to that form," he said. "I've been working out since November, and I'm very confident I can get back to the way I was."

The Rays were counting on that when they acquired him to fill their primary need for a slick-fielding shortstop, a deal that was formally completed Monday when veteran infielder Russ Johnson (who has a $775,000 salary) and minor-league first baseman Josh Pressley were named as the players going to the Mets. Tampa Bay also got $4.25-million to offset Ordonez's $6.25-million salary.

As the winter meetings wrapped up, general manager Chuck LaMar continued discussions on several fronts, looking to acquire a veteran outfielder (considering free agents Doug Glanville and Todd Hollandsworth and trade possibilities) and a veteran reliever, and to ship out arbitration-eligible pitchers Tanyon Sturtze, Paul Wilson and Esteban Yan.

"There's a couple of deals that could be made in the next three-four days," LaMar said.

The timing is critical because Friday is the deadline to tender player contracts for next season. The Rays may let all three go rather than pay their arbitration-dictated salaries, though they could try to re-sign them.

LaMar said he also had initial talks about signing some of their young players to long-term deals but probably won't do anything until spring training.

The key to the meetings was the acquisition of Ordonez, who until this season held the record for 101 consecutive errorless games.

"We came here with our No. 1 objective to try to find a shortstop, and we thought we found the best one available," LaMar said.

Ordonez's defense slipped last season -- his 19 errors were the most since his rookie year -- but he said there was no deeper problem than a rough start (eight errors in the first 13 games).

"April was the worst month I had, and after that I settled down," he said.

With the Mets touting shortstop prospect Jose Reyes and Ordonez having other issues -- drawing the ire of fans and, if you believe what you read in the paper, some teammates -- he acknowledged Monday it probably was best that he move on.

"It's good for both me and the team," said Ordonez, 31. "They had their own thing going on. Like (Mets general manager Steve Phillips) said, 'It's a new era.' "

Some baseball officials think it will help Ordonez to get away from the scrutiny of New York. And it won't hurt that he is in the last season of a four-year, $19-million contract.

"In New York, it's really hard to play," Ordonez said. "I'm very happy I played in New York, but they hold a very high standard. You have to play perfect all the time. There's no room for error."

Johnson, 29, clearly did not figure in the Rays' plans for the coming season, having already been taken off the 40-man roster and passed through waivers. His future was in doubt after he left the team following an altercation on a team flight in July and was gone for six weeks, receiving treatment for what he said was anxiety and depression.

Pressley, 22, was the team's fourth-round pick in the 1998 draft but never developed the power expected, hitting only 21 home runs in 423 games over five seasons and having only a brief stint above Double A.

Ordonez wasn't the only shortstop Rays officials will take home when they leave Nashville this morning.

They used the second pick of the Rule 5 draft to take Hector Luna, a talented 22-year-old, from the Cleveland organization, then took Aneudi Cuevas from the Houston organization in the Triple-A segment.

Luna, ranked Cleveland's 23rd-best prospect going into the 2002 season, hasn't played above Class A but was strongly considered for a spot on the 40-man roster.

"He's an athletic middle infielder who plays the game hard and has some tools," Indians general manager Mark Shapiro said. "We felt he was two or three years away from the major leagues, which is why we didn't protect him."

Luna, a native of the Dominican Republic, has good hands and range, a strong but erratic arm and some power. He hit .276 with 11 home runs, 51 RBIs and 32 steals for Class A Kinston last season.

"He's a good athlete," Rays player personnel director Cam Bonifay said. "Our scout who saw him in the Carolina League felt like he could be an average major-league shortstop within development time."

It cost the Rays just $50,000 to get Luna and bring him to spring training. But to hang on to him under the Rule 5 provisions, they have to keep him on the major-league roster all season or offer him on waivers and then back to the Indians. A key will be if he is versatile enough to serve as a utility infielder.

"We'll take a look at him," Bonifay said.

Cuevas, 21, hit .250 with three home runs and 13 RBIs in 36 games with Tri-City, the rookie-level New York-Penn League. The Rays paid $12,000 to draft him.

The Rays also lost three players in the draft. Outfielder Adrian Brown, signed last month as a minor-league free agent with a chance to make the big-league team as a backup outfielder, was taken by the Red Sox, who will give him the same opportunity. (The Rays did pick up $50,000 in the deal.) Lost in the Triple-A portion were infielder Andrew Beinbrink (to Texas) and left-handed pitcher Alexander Carbajal (to Boston).

Today's lineup

Rays