Suppan Doesn’t Want to Waive Goodbye

Jeff Suppan’s focus has not wavered, even when faced with the distracting rumor that he has been placed on the waiver wire.

“A lot of things are just out of your control,” the former Crespi High pitcher said.

“But you can’t worry about them.”

It’s been two weeks since the Arizona Republic reported Suppan would be traded from the Arizona Diamondbacks to the New York Mets as the player to be named in a deal that last month brought Bernard Gilkey to the Diamondbacks.

The report said the Mets would ship Suppan to the Kansas City Royals as the player to be named in a deal that sent Jermaine Allensworth to New York.

Diamondback General Manager Joe Garagiola Jr. denied the report, no surprise since Suppan had to be sneaked through waivers before becoming eligible to be traded.

As of Saturday, Suppan remained property of the Diamondbacks, who last year plucked him from the Boston Red Sox with their second pick in the expansion draft.

“Once you leave your first organization, I think you realize that anything can happen,” said Suppan, who is 4-3 with a 3.38 earned-run average for the Tucson Sidewinders of the triple-A Pacific Coast League.

“I like the Diamondback organization and I’d love to stay here, but all I can do is look to improve myself.”

Right now, that involves getting healthy.

Suppan is not on the disabled list, but expected to miss his scheduled start today against Fresno while he nurses tendinitis in his right, pitching shoulder.

“It’s really minor,” he said. “I don’t think I’ll miss more than one start.”

That would leave him with only one start to impress the Diamondbacks before major-league rosters expand from 25 to 40 players on Sept. 1.

Suppan, sent down to Tucson on July 3, was 1-7 with a 6.68 ERA in 13 starts over two stints with the Diamondbacks.

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Jeff Weaver, the 14th pick in the June draft, was awaiting word from the Detroit Tigers on a promotion to Class-A West Michigan.

The former Simi Valey High and Fresno State pitcher was supposed to pitch twice for Jamestown of the short-season New York-Penn League before being promoted to the Midwest League team.

Weaver, Fresno State’s all-time strikeout leader, turned in his second consecutive impressive outing Thursday, striking out three and allowing one run in four innings against Erie.

In seven innings with Jamestown, Weaver has struck out seven and allowed two hits and no walks.

The Tigers said last week Weaver will be one of seven Tiger prospects assigned to the Phoenix Desert Dogs of the Arizona Fall League.

The league runs from Sept. 30 through Nov. 19.

Also selected by the Tigers to join the Desert Dogs were Gabe Kapler, former Taft High and Moorpark College outfielder, Robert Fick, who played at Newbury Park High and was an All-American at Cal State Northridge, and Carlos Villalobos, former Lancaster JetHawk third baseman.

Fick was chosen Detroit’s minor league player of the month for July.

Stacy Kleiner, former Taft High infielder, and Randy Wolf, left-handed pitcher from El Camino Real High and Pepperdine, also have been assigned to the AFL.

Wolf, who is pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies’ triple-A affiliate at Scranton-Wilkes Barre, has been assigned to the Sun Cities Solar Sox.

Kleiner, playing at double-A Arkansas in the St. Louis Cardinals’ organization, will report to the Maryvale Saguaros.

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Randy isn’t the only hot prospect in the Wolf family. Jim Wolf, his brother, recently was voted by league managers as the double-A Texas League’s best umpiring prospect.

“There’s no race [to get to the major leagues]” Jim Wolf said. “Randy would win that easily.”

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For a high school with only 380 students, Montclair Prep has turned out more than its share of major-league players.

When Torey Lovullo was promoted to the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday, he became the third former Mountie to wear a major-league uniform this season.

First baseman Brad Fullmer is having a big rookie season for the Montreal Expos, while pitcher Russ Ortiz has bounced back and forth between triple-A Fresno and the San Francisco Giants.

Frank Charles, former Montclair Prep catcher, is batting .298 for the Shreveport Captains, San Francisco’s double-A affiliate.

Outfielder Darrell Dent is among the Class-A Carolina League’s leaders with 31 stolen bases for the Frederick Keys of the Baltimore Orioles’ organization.

All attended Montclair Prep.

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Outfielder Matt Riordan, formerly of Westlake High, drove in six runs last week during the Cape Cod League playoffs.

Riordan’s Wareham Gatemen lost to the Chatham A’s, three games to two, in the best-of-five championship series.

Barry Zito, left-handed pitcher formerly of Pierce College who is headed to USC, was tagged with the loss in the final game.