Unsigned & Resigned

How is improvement described? In steps. In strides. Or in the case of lanky, loose-limbed Jeff Weaver, by leaping enormous obstacles in single bounds.

The 6-foot-4 right-handed pitcher ascended from the bench at Simi Valley High to All-American lists in the space of two years.

Then, trying out for coaches who had never seen him play, Weaver made Team USA and played in the Olympic Games last summer.

A year later at Fresno State, he struck out 21 batters in a regional game and again was an All-American.

The next leap would take him into the pros. Days before the June draft, Baseball America Magazine rated Weaver the college pitcher with the best control and one of three pitchers closest to being ready for the major leagues.

But instead of springing forward yet again, Weaver fell back to the second round, where he was chosen by the Chicago White Sox.

Negotiations quickly stalled and Weaver has passed time this summer in Massachusetts pitching for the Falmouth Commodores in the Cape Cod League and stacking boxes at a liquor store for $6 an hour. He plans to return to Fresno State for his junior season.

But not before taking one long leap across the Atlantic next month.

Weaver will become the first Olympic player in memory to return to Team USA the following year when he pitches in the Intercontinental Cup in Barcelona, Spain, in early August.

“They were looking for some more arms and it looked like a good opportunity to play in Spain,” Weaver said. “I could have played for them all summer but I didn’t feel like I wanted all that travel.

“I wanted to be around in case something came up with the White Sox.”

No such luck. Weaver hasn’t spoken to anyone from the White Sox since he rejected the team’s only contract offer a week after the draft.

Instead, he accepted an invitation to rejoin Team USA after Saturday’s Cape Cod League all-star game. He will train with the team in Florida until the 10-day Intercontinental Cup begins Aug. 1. The tournament includes national teams worldwide.

“The Cape has been a good place to get my arm back in shape,” Weaver said. “I should be ready to help Team USA.”

After a rocky start with Falmouth, Weaver pitched well enough to be selected for the all-star game, which will be played in Hyannis, Mass.

He has not allowed a run in his last three outings and is 3-1 with one save and a 1.50 earned-run average, having allowed only 25 hits and seven walks in 42 innings with 46 strikeouts.

In his second start, Weaver was hammered for six runs in five innings, but he attributed the poor effort to a three-week layoff while he was sitting home in Simi Valley waiting on the White Sox.

But should the White Sox come up with what he considers a fair offer, Weaver would love nothing more than to pitch professionally.

“I felt I deserved to go in the first round,” he said. “It was a blow at first, but it’s something I have to live with. Everything else has gone well in my career. I can’t lose any way I go.”

He hasn’t lost many decisions since becoming Fresno State’s ace as a second-year freshman. Weaver was 12-5 in 1996 and 11-5 in ’97.

Durability and control are his strengths. He has pitched 285 innings in two seasons, striking out 321 and walking only 57. He has 22 complete games.

“Jeff is an outstanding pitcher a team can build its entire staff around,” said Bob Bennett, the Fresno State coach. “He’s got a great slider and has command of all his pitches.”

Weaver’s role changed in the Atlanta Olympic Games. He was primarily a set-up man for closer Braden Looper, although he did earn one save in four appearances.

Team USA played 40 games last summer and Weaver appeared in 14, posting a 1-1 record with two saves and a 3.37 earned-run average.

Every other Olympic pitcher has signed or is negotiating with the team that drafted him. Only Weaver will don the Team USA uniform again. In fact, no player from the 1984, ’88 or 92 Olympic Teams returned to Team USA the following season either.

“I don’t know anybody on this year’s team,” he said. “But that’s part of what’s fun about it. Meeting guys, traveling and representing your country.”

Upon his return from Spain, Weaver will head back to Fresno State--unless the White Sox ante up.

“They haven’t made an offer that is even close to what I would sign for,” he said. “I don’t know where I stand or how they feel because they’ve made no contact with me.”

Bennett believes Weaver is best served by returning to Fresno State, pitching well again and becoming a first-round pick next spring.

The difference in the signing bonus of a first- and second-round draft choice is several hundred thousand dollars.

“We didn’t think we had a chance to get him back, but it is looking more and more like we might,” Bennett said. “That would be a huge plus for us. Jeff is the kind of pitcher you want on your team.”

Obviously, Team USA feels the same way. And some day, Weaver believes, so will a major league team.