Baseball Roundup : Hatcher Is Released as Twins Get Gladden

The Minnesota Twins released veteran outfielder Mickey Hatcher and completed a five-player trade with the San Francisco Giants for outfielder Dan Gladden on Tuesday.

Hatcher, 32, had been with the American League club since 1981. He has a lifetime .281 batting average but was hitting just .150 in nine games in spring training this year.

Gladden, 29, has a .281 career batting average in four seasons with the Giants. He batted .276 with 27 stolen bases in 102 games for the Giants last year and led the club in stolen bases in each of the last three seasons. He has 94 career steals.

In exchange for Gladden and a minor league player to be named later, the Twins traded pitchers Jose Dominguez and Ray Velasquez and a minor leaguer to be named later. Dominguez and Velasquez, both right-handers, have been relief pitching prospects in the Twins’ system.

Hatcher, who is guaranteed $650,000 this season plus an extra $100,000 contract buyout for 1988, took being cut in good spirits.

Andy MacPhail, Minnesota’s executive vice president, said: “We came to the conclusion that it was in our best interest to make a move with him and go with younger, quicker players who would give us more dimensions.”

In a related move Tuesday, MacPhail said the Twins have decided not to tender a contract to outfielder Billy Sample, who had been invited to spring training without a contract.

The Boston Red Sox rejected a new two-year contract proposal that would pay Roger Clemens a $1.5-million base salary in 1988.

“It presented a very creative picture, but when you looked at it closely it was all in (Clemens’) favor,” General Manager Lou Gorman said in Winter Haven., Fla.

“The new proposal is worth more than their first one,” Gorman said.”However, I’m going to look at it further and see if something can’t be worked out within the framework. The main thing now is for us to stay in touch, to keep talking.”.

Clemens, the 1986 American League MVP and Cy Young Award winner walked out of training camp on March 6.

The Montreal Expos announced at West Palm Beach, Fla., that they have released outfielder Dave Collins and right-hander Len Barker.

Collins, 34, was with his sixth major league team in seven years. He was a leading candidate to fill the left field position left vacant by free agent Tim Raines.

Collins hit .318 in 44 at-bats but failed to show the speed the Expos had wanted. Barker, 31, was averaging 84 m.p.h. with his fastball and lost out to Lary Sorensen for the fifth spot in the starting rotation.

The Seattle Mariners waived pitcher Pete Ladd and infielder Dave Stapleton.

Former Dodger left-hander Dennis Powell was sent to Calgary, of the Pacific Coast League.