Duncan Is Irate After Demotion : Dodger Infielder Requests Trade, Says Lasorda Misled Him

Mariano Duncan stormed out of Manager Tom Lasorda’s office Sunday morning, moments after being told he had been sent to the Dodgers’ triple-A team in Albuquerque, N.M., and refused to join teammates for the daily clubhouse meeting.

Instead, Duncan sat on the other side of the clubhouse door and told reporters that he had demanded a trade, that he was considering not reporting to Albuquerque and that Lasorda deliberately misled him two weeks ago by telling him he would make the major league club as a utility infielder.

“(Lasorda) told me a couple of weeks ago, in Orlando and in Puerto Rico, that I wasn’t going down,” said Duncan, who later in the day tempered his remarks, saying he would go to Albuquerque. “When he told me today, I called him a . . . liar. I want to go somewhere else. I don’t want them to trash my career.

“I cannot believe this guy (Lasorda) anymore when he says anything. He’s a liar.”

Lasorda, who on Sunday told eight players that they were being sent to the minors and also informed Jeff Hamilton that he will make the team as a utility infielder, denied that he made any promises to Duncan.

“I didn’t promise him anything,” Lasorda said. “I just told him in Puerto Rico that if we brought him out as a utility man, would he be willing to do it? (It was) a feeling-out process.

“I had no written agreement with him. We’re entitled to change our minds. When we had our final meeting, we decided it was best for our club if he wasn’t with us.”

Duncan hit only .100 this spring, and Lasorda indicated that Duncan’s attitude was a problem. Last week, Duncan and friend Pedro Guerrero missed four innings of a game in Plant City, Fla., with what Duncan said was a migraine. Many teammates apparently did not believe the explanation, and Duncan said Lasorda mentioned the incident to him Sunday in explaining his demotion.

“I’d rather not talk about that,” Lasorda said of the migraine incident. He said he did not mention the incident to Duncan.

“The guy did not hit this spring,” Lasorda said. “He did absolutely nothing. I didn’t like his work habits. How do you warrant keeping a guy like that?”

In the late afternoon, after joining other Dodger minor leaguers for a “B” game in Port St. Lucie, Fla., Duncan tempered his earlier remarks. After talking with Tony Attanasio, his agent, and teammate Alfredo Griffin, Duncan said he no longer is considering returning to the Dominican Republic and that he will grudgingly report to Albuquerque.

But he still was angry about what perceived as Lasorda misleading him about his situation.

“I still feel he’s a liar,” Duncan said. “I can never believe another . . . thing he says. He tells me one thing one day, another thing the next day. He’s been playing with my mind.”

Duncan had the most extreme reaction to the news of his demotion. Other Dodger players reacted with either resignation or a trade request--or both.

Those sent to Albuquerque Friday included middle infielders Craig Shipley (hitting .588 this spring) and Mike Sharperson (.063), outfielders Mike Devereaux (.423), Ralph Bryant (.261) and Jose Gonzalez (.217), catcher Gilberto Reyes (.750) and pitcher Mike Hartley.

Len Matuszek, sidelined recently with a chronic left foot and ankle injury that bothered him most of last season, will be given his unconditional release after he clears waivers. And the Dodgers also said Ken Howell, coming off winter shoulder surgery, will start the season on the 21-day disabled list.

The departure of Duncan and Shipley means that the Dodgers will go with Dave Anderson and Jeff Hamilton as their infield utility players, an important role considering the Dodgers’ defensive deficiencies the last two seasons.

Hamilton, who previously said he did not want to be a late-inning defensive replacement, apparently changed his mind Sunday after being told the club’s postion in a meeting with Lasorda and Claire.

“It would be nice to get in a full year in the big leagues, as long as they don’t keep shuttling me back and forth from Albuquerque,” said Hamilton, who occasionally has played shortstop as well as third base. “Besides, if something happens to any of five guys (in the lineup), I’d be back at third (base).”

Lasorda said he cut Duncan, in part, because of his poor spring batting average. But he kept the veteran Anderson, who is hitting .086, and cut Shipley, hitting .588.

“Shipley was competing against Anderson, who can play second, shortstop and third,” Lasorda said. “Anderson, I think, is a better hitter and more experienced. I can’t go by spring stats alone.”

Said Shipley: “I didn’t ask them for a trade yet, but I will. They had their minds made up even before spring, no matter what I did. They said (Sunday) that if they had a chance, they’d trade me. I hope they mean that. There was not much I could say today.”

Duncan, however, said he had a lot of say to Claire and Lasorda during his meeting. Despite his poor hitting this spring and his .215 average and 21 errors in 76 games last year, Duncan thought he deserved to make the team.

“I tell them, send me out of here,” Duncan said. “I’m going to call my agent, because I don’t want to go to Albuquerque.”

Duncan, who would be subject to suspension if he failed to report, had a second meeting with Claire and Lasorda later in the day and apparently was talked into rejoining the club.

What most angered Duncan was his contention that Lasorda promised him a spot on the 24-player roster earlier in the month.

“He (Lasorda) is lying to me,” Duncan said. “He’s playing with my mind. They tell me before I’m on the team. Now, they tell me another thing.

“First, he lied to me when they said I’d get a chance at second base. Tommy came to the Dominican and told me I was going to play. He . . . lied to me.”

According to Duncan, Lasorda told him in Sunday’s meeting that the Dodgers want him to return to shortstop in Albuquerque. During the winter, at the club’s request, Duncan switched to second base. As an incentive, Duncan was given a salary raise to $200,000.

“I said to him, ‘Wait a minute. Now you want me back at shortstop?’ Tommy told me that,” Duncan said. “You can see how he was lying to me before. I don’t believe him. They send me to the Dominican (for winter ball) to play second base. Now, they send me to the minors to play shortstop. What are they thinking?”

Said Lasorda: “We know he can play second base and we know he can play shortstop. We think it’s best for him to play shortstop.”

Asked if the Dodgers made any playing promises to Duncan, Claire said:

“The only thing I can say about that is that we came to the conclusion that Mariano will be better off playing every day in Albuquerque. . . . Mariano is tremendously talented, but he has to play every day. I think we are best served, and he is best served in this role. I don’t want to get into the discussions that took place in the office, but I can understand his frustration. He’ll overcome that.”

Given the afternoon to mull over his fate, Duncan said his feelings had not changed but that he would not take drastic measures, other than demanding the trade.

“I have to go (to Albuquerque),” said Duncan, who had two hits and two stolen bases in the B game. “They’ve got me. There’s nothing I can do about it. Those guys own me.

“I talked to Alfredo and he said to me, ‘Mariano, don’t go back to the Dominican. That’s not smart. Think about your wife and family.’ ”

While Shipley and Bryant said they will seek trades, Sharperson and Devereaux said they will try to produce in Albuquerque in hopes of someday securing a spot on the major league roster.

“I feel I’m more than ready to play,” Devereaux said. “It kind of makes me wonder, after I hit over .400, if there was anything I could do to make the team. I think they made their minds up before spring.”

The Dodgers still need to make four cuts before April 4. Also, they have until Wednesday to decide whether to keep nonroster invitee Rick Dempsey or Alex Trevino as Mike Scioscia’s backup.

The Dodgers will take the four pitchers--William Brennan, Tim Crews, Brian Holton and Shawn Hillegas--competing for the 10th spot on the staff to Los Angeles for the Freeway Series before cutting three of them. They also will probably wait until the weekend before cutting outfielder Tito Landrum, who has a $300,000 guaranteed contract.

But most of the roster is set, with Hamilton and Mickey Hatcher as the top right-handed pinch-hitters, Franklin Stubbs and Danny Heep the two left-handed pinch-hitters.

“I like our club,” Claire said. “I like all aspects. I like the power, speed and the outstanding attitude.”

Dodger Notes

The Dodgers lost to the Montreal Expos, 3-2, Sunday, despite another solid pitching performance by Tim Leary. Leary gave up one run and three hits in six innings. William Brennan, who pitched the seventh inning and part of the eighth, allowed 2 runs and 6 hits in 1 innings. Jay Howell pitched one inning without giving up a hit but walking two. His fastball was clocked as high as 94 m.p.h. “I’d like to get Jay some more work tomorrow,” pitching coach Ron Perranoski said. Because of numerous minor injuries, Howell has pitched only 9 innings this spring.