BASEBALL : DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE MAJOR LEAGUES : Leyva Gives His Side of Firing

Former Philadelphia Phillie manager Nick Leyva said he was lied to, and that Jim Fregosi was the one general manager Lee Thomas wanted as manager anyway.

“They go back a long way,” Leyva told columnist Tom Wheatley of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, a month after Leyva was fired and Fregosi--a teammate of Thomas’ with the Angels in the early ‘60s--took over the team. Leyva managed the team for only 13 games of the 1991 season.

“I have no comment on anything about Nick Leyva,” Thomas said.

Leyva said he heard in spring training that he could be fired early in the season if the Phillies didn’t play well, and went to team President Bill Giles when the team was 4-9 to ask him if a change was coming.

“He said no,” Leyva said.

Two days later, Leyva was fired.

Leyva said he later talked to Giles.

“Bill said, ‘I have to apologize to you. I lied to you before,’ ” Leyva quoted Giles as saying. “He’s an honest man, but he couldn’t tell me what was going on.”

The Phillies are 15-11 under Fregosi.

Deion Sanders was sent to the Atlanta Braves’ triple-A team in Richmond, Va., to make room for pitcher Pete Smith. Sanders was hitting .197, with with two home runs, seven RBIs and seven stolen bases.