Baseball notebook : Phillies slugger gets raise

Sat., March 3, 2007

Associated Press The Spokesman-Review

Clem Labine dead at 80

» Clem Labine, a relief pitcher who threw two of baseball's most significant shutouts in his role as a part-time starter and pitched for two Dodgers World Series championship teams in the 1950s, died Friday. He was 80.

» Labine had been in a coma at Indian River Medical Center in Vero Beach, Fla., for more than a week following brain surgery to explore a mass in his head, the team announced.

» "He was not recognized the way he should have been. He was a great pitcher, but he was surrounded by too many stars," said Tommy Lasorda, the former Dodgers manager who was Labine's teammate.

» Labine spent 13 seasons in the major leagues, mostly as a bullpen specialist with the Dodgers, first in Brooklyn and then in Los Angeles. He also pitched with Detroit and Pittsburgh, and briefly for the New York Mets.

» In 1951, his first full major league season, Labine was thrust in the middle of the three-game National League pennant playoff between the Dodgers and New York Giants. After the Giants won the opener, Brooklyn had no regular starter available for Game 2. Labine got the assignment by default and threw a six-hit shutout to keep the Dodgers alive in the best-of-3 series. Bobby Thomson's ninth-inning home run won the pennant for the Giants the next day.

» In Game 6 of the 1956 World Series he shut out the New York Yankees 1-0 in 10 innings to force a seventh game, which the Yankees won. That shutout came a day after Don Larsen's perfect game, the only no-hitter in World Series history.

Ryan Howard got a raise. He’s still one of the biggest bargains in baseball, though.

The Philadelphia Phillies renewed the National League MVP’s contract Friday, giving the first baseman a $900,000 salary after the sides failed to agree on a long-term deal.

The figure matches the highest base salary in a one-year contract for a player not eligible for arbitration. St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols agreed to a $900,000, one-year contract in 2003 – that deal included a $50,000 bonus for making the All-Star team, which Pujols earned.

Pujols started a $100 million, seven-year deal the following season.

Howard, who had a $355,000 salary last year, said he was disappointed the sides couldn’t reach a long-term deal, but he’s ready to start the season.

Howard hit .313 with 58 home runs and 149 RBIs last season.

Sosa whiffs in debut

Sammy Sosa went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and a walk in his spring training debut, a “B” game for the Texas Rangers at Surprise, Ariz.

The 38-year-old former N.L. MVP hit a weak flyout to right off Billy Buckner, a non-roster invitee for Kansas City.

He drew a walk in his second plate appearance, then struck out twice.

Red Sox ace debuts

Daisuke Matsuzaka’s spring training debut with the Boston Red Sox began when he gave up a leadoff double to a college junior at Fort Myers, Fla. Then the Japanese star retired his other six batters.

Matsuzaka threw 25 pitches, 19 for strikes in the first two innings of a 9-1 win over Boston College.

Rangers sign Young

Michael Young and the Rangers finalized an $80 million, five-year contract extension.

The deal runs from 2009-13 and includes no-trade provisions.

Martinez will throw

New York Mets pitcher Pedro Martinez can start throwing today in Jupiter, Fla., as part of his recuperation from October rotator cuff surgery.

Team physician Dr. David Altchek gave the approval for Martinez’s next step. The most realistic expectation is for the three-time Cy Young Award to return by August.

Hunter fine after beaning

Torii Hunter was hit in the head by a first-inning pitch from former teammate Kyle Lohse in Fort Myers, Fla., and left the Minnesota Twins’ game against the Cincinnati Reds.

Hunter was hit on the left side of his batting helmet. He did not lose consciousness and appeared alert and coherent, according to the Twins. The team said there were no signs of a concussion.

Ranger faces allegations

Texas Rangers infielder Jerry Hairston Jr.’s name surfaced in a widespread steroids investigation out of upstate New York.

Hairston got a prescription for human growth hormone in May 2004 from a doctor jailed in the case, SI.com reported. “I have never taken steroids or anything like that,” Hairston said in Surprise, Ariz.

Kotsay deals with back

Oakland Athletics center fielder Mark Kotsay plans on seeking a third opinion on his troublesome back after meeting with a private physician in California.

Kotsay, bothered by back problems late last season, has not practiced since Monday, when he first complained of stiffness.