Braves Give Up Pitching, Add Defense

The Atlanta Braves started retooling their lineup Tuesday by acquiring Gold Glove second baseman Bret Boone from the Cincinnati Reds for starter Denny Neagle and outfielder Michael Tucker.

The Braves also got left-handed reliever Mike Remlinger and gave up minor league pitcher Rob Bell, who led the Carolina League with 197 strikeouts last season.

After failing to make it to the World Series for a second consecutive season, the Braves were willing to give up a key component in their splendid rotation to fill a trouble spot.

Boone, 29, led the Reds with 24 homers and 95 runs batted in last season, all career highs. He provides an offensive and defensive upgrade at second base, where Tony Graffanino (.211, five homers) and Keith Lockhart (.257, nine homers) were disappointments.

“One of the things that the Braves have always done is recognize and try to create the strongest possible defensive team we could,” Atlanta General Manager John Schuerholz said. “Pitching and defense are the hallmark of our ballclub, and this guy’s the best defensive second baseman in the game.

“We think with the emergence of Kevin Millwood and the presence of Bruce Chen, we’re better able at this time to do not only what we but also many of you have suggested be done: balance our club with pitching and hitting.”

Neagle, 30, went 16-11 with a 3.55 earned-run average last season, when he was one of five Atlanta starters to win at least 16 games. Nine teams approached the Reds about Boone, but Atlanta’s offer was the only one they seriously considered.

“We felt we were overwhelmed and had to make a deal,” General Manager Jim Bowden said. “I hated to trade Bret. He’s someone I’ve been probably the closest to in my baseball career. It was the most difficult thing I’ve had to do. We paid a big price but without starting pitching, you can’t compete.”

The budget-strapped Reds had the fifth-lowest payroll in the major leagues this season ($20.7 million) and needed a starter they could afford. Neagle’s contract includes salaries of $4.75 million for each of the next two years and a $5.25 million option for 2001 with a $500,000 buyout.

“We think it’s a major upgrade to our starting pitching,” Bowden said. “It was very evident to us that we couldn’t compete for one that was in the free-agent market.”

Boone is under contract for $2.9 million next year and $3.75 million in 2000, with a $4-million option for 2001 that includes a $250,000 buyout.

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Unless you spent, you lost in baseball this year.

Only one team with a payroll of more than $48 million had a losing record--the Baltimore Orioles, who went 79-83 despite spending a record $74 million on players, according to figures compiled by management’s Player Relations Committee.

Conversely, only one team with a payroll of less than $47 million had a winning record. The Toronto Blue Jays were 88-74 and spent $37.3 million, according to the report, which was circulated Tuesday at the general managers’ meeting in Naples, Fla., and obtained by the Associated Press.

The eight playoff teams all were among the top 12 in payroll. Missing out on the postseason among the big spenders were Baltimore, the Dodgers, the New York Mets and Angels.

The New York Yankees, who won the World Series for the second time in three seasons, were less than $200,000 behind the Orioles, coming in at $73.8 million. That includes $8.2 million in termination pay: $2.5 million to Oakland for Kenny Rogers, $1.6 million to San Francisco for Charlie Hayes, $1.6 million to the released Dale Sveum and $2.5 million to Minnesota as part of the Chuck Knoblauch trade.

Teams that spent less than $37 million not only lost--they lost big. All 12 teams under that figure lost 88 games or more and only three of them finished within 20 games of first place--Oakland (14 games back with an $18.6 million payroll), Kansas City (16 1/2 games back with a $35.6 million payroll) and Minnesota (19 games back with a $22 million payroll).

Montreal had the lowest payroll at $8.3 million, the least a team has spent since the 1990 Baltimore Orioles were at $8.1 million.

Last year, the postseason teams were among the top 14 in payroll and in 1996 they were among the top 12.

Also Tuesday, owners and the players’ association agreed on the 13 players with less than three years of major league service who will be eligible for salary arbitration in February:

Texas right-hander Rick Helling, Montreal right-hander Dustin Hermanson, Minnesota outfielder Matt Lawton, San Francisco left-hander Alvin Morman, Twin right-hander Dan Naulty, Florida shortstop Edgar Renteria, Philadelphia shortstop Kevin Sefcik, Boston third baseman Chris Snopek, Phillie left-hander Paul Spoljaric, Houston closer Billy Wagner, Red Sox right-hander John Wasdin, Pittsburgh right-hander Mark Wilkins and Pirate second baseman Tony Womack.

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The San Francisco Giants acquired left-handed reliever Alan Embree from the Arizona Diamondbacks for outfielder Dante Powell. . . . Yankee pitcher David Cone wasn’t sure whether he would get a new deal before tonight’s deadline for him to exercise a $5.5-million option. New York also has a midnight deadline to exercise Darryl Strawberry’s $2.5-million option or pay a $100,000 buyout. . . . Free agent Ken Caminiti has a three-year, $21.5-million offer from the Detroit Tigers.

Neagle Traded for Reds’ Boone: The Atlanta Braves gave up one of their starting pitchers, 16-game winner Denny Neagle, to improve themselves at second base.