ST. PETERSBURG - The Devil Rays lost outfielder Jason Tyner and reliever Mark Malaska on waivers Monday but took steps toward signing free-agent outfielder Carl Everett to fill the hole in the middle of their lineup.
General manager Chuck LaMar and manager Lou Piniella had a pleasant dinner with Everett and agent Larry Reynolds in Tampa on Monday night. A multiyear offer could come today.
"We had a nice, comfortable meeting," Reynolds said. "I think there's a very good fit from the player's perspective. We'll see what the next few days bring."
The Rays seem to have made Everett, the 32-year-old Tampa native, their first choice. They also are interested in Juan Gonzalez and Jose Cruz but have not scheduled face-to-face meetings.
Everett made $9.15-million with the Rangers and White Sox in 2003 but may not get half that much in the current market. He hit .287 with 28 homers and 92 RBIs last season.
The Rays put Tyner, Malaska and outfielder Matt Diaz on waivers to create space on the 40-man roster. Tyner was claimed by Texas and Malaska by Boston. Diaz was unclaimed and outrighted to Triple-A Durham.
The moves leave the Rays with 36 rostered players, plus infielder/outfielder Eduardo Perez, whose two-year, $1.7-million deal ($750,000 in 2004, $950,000 in 2005) will be official once he passes a physical this week.
"We're going to need the roster spots in the next week to 10 days," LaMar said. "We knew somebody had to go and it didn't surprise us that they were claimed."
Tyner, 26, played parts of four seasons with the Rays after being acquired from the Mets in a July 2000 trade for Rick White and Bubba Trammell. He was out of options and unlikely to make the big-league team in 2004, so the Rays may have come out ahead with the $20,000 waiver fee.
Malaska, a 25-year-old left-hander, made his big-league debut in July and went 2-1 with a 2.81 ERA in 22 appearances but apparently didn't figure into the plans for 2004. The Rays retained left-handers Bobby Seay and Joe Kennedy, signed John Halama and are looking at veterans Mark Guthrie and Kent Mercker.
Diaz played in four games during an 11-day stint with the Rays in July but hit an organization-leading .354 in the minors.
The Rays were in discussions late Sunday with shortstop Rey Ordonez but decided to sever the relationship by not offering arbitration, thus losing the right to re-sign him until May 1. Ordonez is recovering from June knee surgery.
Also, infielder Jason Smith signed a minor-league contract with Detroit.
- Times staff writer Tom Jones contributed to this report.
[Last modified December 9, 2003, 01:33:59]
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