Baseball

Reeling Marlins banish Burnett

By wire services
Published September 27, 2005

MIAMI - A.J. Burnett said he wanted a pat on the back.

Instead, Marlins manager Jack McKeon gave him a swift kick in the butt.

A day after Burnett's tirade, in which he accused McKeon's staff of managing scared and creating a depressing and negative atmosphere, the right-hander was informed his services would no longer be needed this year. He also was told he will not receive a multiyear contract offer from the team when he becomes a free agent at season's end.

Burnett, who lost his career-worst sixth straight decision Sunday at Atlanta, complained that the coaching staff rarely gives encouragement and that he had not seen a "positive pat on the back" since April.

In his office after warmups Monday, McKeon gave Burnett the news. General manager Larry Beinfest said Burnett was not suspended and would be paid for the rest of the season.

McKeon also benched slugger Miguel Cabrera for one game for unspecified disciplinary reasons.

"He's young," McKeon said. "You treat them like they're your own kids, and sometimes they don't do everything you like, like any young guy. You have to have a little chat. He's going to be fine."

Cabrera and Burnett declined to comment.

As for McKeon's future, the manager, 74, said he has made a decision. He said he hasn't talked to owner Jeffrey Loria and will likely wait until after the season to disclose his plans.

But he dropped hints, such as when he was asked what the Marlins need to improve next season.

"I'll have to address that at the end of the season, if I care to," he said with a coy smile.

Racist mail targets Jeter

NEW YORK - Yankees star Derek Jeter received a threatening letter that reportedly warned he'd be "shot or set on fire" if he didn't stop dating white women.

The FBI is investigating "racially threatening letters to Jeter and others across the country," special agent Scott Wilson said. He declined to comment further.

Jeter downplayed what he called the "stupid letter," saying he did not perceive it as a specific threat.

The Daily News reported that the hate mail called the Yankees captain a "traitor to his race" for dating white women. It warned him "to stop or he'll be shot or set on fire," the paper reported.

Jeter's mother is white and his father is black.

Similar threatening letters denouncing interracial relationships have been sent to other public figures in recent months, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas , Dolphins defensive lineman Jason Taylor and the parents of tennis star James Blake . The threats have been traced to the Cleveland area.

OBITUARY: Former Negro Leagues shortstop Byron Johnson , a member of the famed Kansas City Monarchs, died Saturday in Denver from prostate cancer. He was 94.

A'S: Right-hander Dan Haren agreed to a four-year contract that will keep him locked up through his salary arbitration years. Haren, acquired in the offseason from the Cardinals in a trade for left-hander Mark Mulder , will be under contract through 2009 with a club option for 2010.

BRAVES: Right-hander John Smoltz will likely sit out the final week of the regular season to rest his ailing pitching shoulder for a probable trip to the playoffs.

ORIOLES: Interim manager Sam Perlozzo said he hopes the organization will remove the "interim" tag this week. Perlozzo, who took the job Aug.4 after Lee Mazzilli was fired, is 19-29 but has done a decent job of keeping the team together in the wake of first baseman Rafael Palmeiro 's steroid suspension, the termination of right-hander Sidney Ponson 's contract and the toe injury that ended outfielder Sammy Sosa 's season.

REDS: Centerfielder Ken Griffey had minor surgery to clean out his knee and close a year-old incision that hasn't healed properly, procedures expected to set him back no more than four weeks.

[Last modified September 27, 2005, 02:45:31]