Winfield Hangs Up Cleats

After 23 seasons, six teams and seven work stoppages, Dave Winfield said he saw himself progress from “rook to veteran to ambassador to dad to gramps.” The 12-time All-Star announced his retirement in New York, hoping he wouldn’t be remembered for his lengthy and nasty battle with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.

The Seattle Mariners have signed seven players, including right-hander Paul Menhart, to contracts for the 1996 season. The others signed were pitchers Dean Crow, Tim Harikkala and Derek Lowe, and infielders Giomar Guevara, Desi Relaford and Andy Sheets.

Malcolm Cepeda, the son of Orlando Cepeda, and ex-big league outfielder Mel Hall have agreed to minor-league contracts with San Francisco.

The Cleveland Indians have signed outfielder Dave Gallagher to a minor-league contract.

Houston catcher Rick Wilkins won the first salary arbitration case of this year and will make $1.55 million rather than the $1.25 million offered by the team.

The newest contract proposal by major-league players didn’t thrill owners, but management still viewed it as a slightly positive move. The union’s proposal, according to two sources, called for a tax rate of 25 percent on payrolls starting at $50 million - approximately the same as their previous proposal but slightly regressive, according to one source.