Boston’s Frye Hears a Pop in His Knee

A seemingly harmless rundown drill ended with Jeff Frye being helped off the field and one of baseball’s best infields facing a major loss.

Four days before the Boston Red Sox’s first spring training exhibition, their second baseman suffered an apparently serious left knee injury Tuesday.

“I heard something pop,” said Darren Bragg, the runner on the play. “It definitely didn’t sound good. It definitely didn’t look good.”

Frye, coming off his best season, was driven off the field on a golf cart. About half an hour later, he left the clubhouse on crutches and was driven away to undergo X-rays and an MRI.

Results may be available today, team spokesman Kevin Shea said.

“I saw him go down and grimace. He didn’t get right back up,” Manager Jimy Williams said. “I knew it wasn’t good.”

Frye, 31, hit .312 with 19 stolen bases in 404 at-bats last season. He played every position except pitcher and catcher and formed an excellent double-play combination with Nomar Garciaparra.

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The New York Mets said they are no longer interested in signing Tony Phillips, the dynamic leadoff hitter whose career has been sidetracked by disciplinary problems, including a cocaine arrest last year.

General Manager Steve Phillips issued a statement saying the club will no longer pursue Phillips, 38.

“There are a lot of issues involved in this matter,” Steve Phillips said. “One of them is Tony’s perceived role on our club. We view Tony as a valuable commodity, but not an everyday player. This was our philosophy throughout our discussions with his representatives.”

Phillips’ agent, Tony Attanasio, said Tuesday was seeking a $500,000 contract that would grow to $1 million with incentives. The Mets’ best offer was a $400,000 base salary that would grow to $1 million if Phillips reached 650 plate appearances, Attanasio said.

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San Diego Padre third baseman Ken Caminiti probably will sit out the first week of exhibition games while he recovers from off-season surgery to repair a torn tendon in his right knee.

Caminiti, the 1996 National League MVP, fielded ground balls for the first time since coming to spring training a week ago. He had surgery on the knee in early October.

Padre Manager Bruce Bochy said Caminiti is hitting well and might be used as a designated hitter when he returns. The Padres open the exhibition season Thursday against the Seattle Mariners.

“It’s a little bit of a concern that it’s taking this long, but it looks like he’s making progress,” Bochy said.

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New York Yankee right-hander Hideki Irabu pitched two hitless innings in an intrasquad game, using a two-seam fastball that he hopes will keep his home-run totals down from last year.

“I definitely want to use it more because last year there were a lot of home runs hit off me,” Irabu said through an interpreter.

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The Philadelphia Phillies made a little more room in their outfield by releasing Midre Cummings.

Cummings, 26, was the Phillies’ center fielder for the second half of last season, after Philadelphia claimed him off waivers from Pittsburgh on July 8.

While Cummings hit .303 in 63 games for the Phillies, Manager Terry Francona said he didn’t do the two things he’s looking for from a center fielder.

“We were looking for good defense and a base-stealing threat,” Francona said. “We really didn’t get either of those out of him.”

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Colorado Rockies’ pitchers Roger Bailey and Mike Munoz were injured in an auto accident in Tucson, less than two miles from Hi Corbett Field while returning home from a workout.

Bailey suffered severe whiplash and was taken to the University of Arizona Hospital after complaining of soreness in his neck and shoulder. Munoz experienced minor soreness but declined treatment.

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The maker of Louisville Slugger bats plans to seek a new trial in a suit over exclusive rights to use professional baseball players’ signatures on bats.

A federal jury was unable to reach a verdict Monday in the suit batmaker Hillerich & Bradsby filed against the Major League Baseball Players Assn. and a California company that has been using player signatures on souvenir bats.

Defendants in the case treated the outcome as a victory because they can continue to license and sell the bats while the legal process grinds on.