Morris to Remain in Detroit

Free-agent pitcher Jack Morris agreed Friday night to submit to arbitration with his old club, the Detroit Tigers, thus taking himself out of the open market.

Morris had offers rejected by the Angels, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies.

Morris said the similar responses convinced him owners are conspiring to drive down spiraling salaries.

Since Morris agreed to go to salary arbitration, he is considered a signed player. If he had declined, the Tigers would have had until Jan. 8 to re-sign him or lose that right until May 1. The arbitration hearings will be held between Feb. 5 and 20.

“I feel like Jackie Robinson must have felt,” Morris said. “The owners are all saying, ‘Jack, you’re a fine player, but you can only play under our own rules.’

“I’m getting the same answers over and over,” Morris said. “They say I’m worth the money, but that they won’t pay it.”

Angel General Manager Mike Port said: “Dick Moss (Morris’ agent) called this morning and . . . made us a one-year arbitration proposal, which we took and discussed with Mr. Autry. Later in the afternoon, I telephoned Dick Moss back and told him we would decline to accept.”

Port said Moss’ one-year contract offer was “roundly speaking, in the $2-million range.”

“While realizing Jack Morris’ artistic capability, I have not received any letters from fans asking us to double our ticket prices next year. We can be criticized for not taking on a pitcher of Jack Morris’ caliber, but what we have to look at is, ‘What is a reasonable price?’ ”

Phillie President Bill Giles said: “There is too great a risk in letting a third party decide Morris’ worth. I do not believe that Morris, or any pitcher for that matter, is worth the kind of money that I would anticipate them asking in an arbitration hearing. The history of arbitration procedures is just too uncertain.”

Morris and Moss met with George Steinbrenner, the Yankees’ owner, Thursday in Tampa, Fla., and presented him with the option of giving Morris a one-year contract with the salary to be determined by an arbitrator--an offer Moss called a “can’t refuse” proposition.

“We asked the Yankees to put themselves in the position the Tigers were in,” Moss said.

But Steinbrenner, who built World Series champions in the 1970s with high-priced free agents such as Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter, said he needed more time to study the proposal.

“Given an 18-hour time constraint . . . I am not able to come to a decision this quickly,” Steinbrenner said in a prepared statement.

“The Yankees have a sincere interest in Jack Morris. However, I can’t give a definitive yes-or-no without taking into consideration free agents Willie Randolph and Ron Guidry, both of whom may choose arbitration.”

Steinbrenner called Morris’ proposal “unique,” but said it had “pitfalls.”

“They never told me how much they would seek in arbitration, and you can never tell what an arbitrator may decide,” he said.

Morris, 31, earned $950,000 last season, when he had a 21-8 record with Detroit.

“My feelings are that pride will take care of itself on the field,” Morris said. “I’ll play my heart out for three reasons--myself, the team and the fans of Detroit.