Gooden’s Hernia a Secret

Dwight Gooden and the Cleveland Indians kept it a closely guarded secret: He pitched with a hernia in the right side of his groin the past two months.

Indian General Manager John Hart said Thursday the condition was kept a secret because Gooden was worried other teams would bunt to make him rush off the mound.

“The medical team felt that Doc could pitch with it. He threw the ball very well,” Hart said.

Gooden, 33, will have surgery in about two weeks in Tampa, Fla., where he lives.

“It’s going to be a very simple repair,” Hart said.

Gooden told the Cleveland Plain Dealer he wanted to keep pitching because surgery would have eliminated any chance he had to pitch in the playoffs, but that the pain limited what he could do.

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Indian pitcher Jaret Wright signed a four-year deal with a team option for a fifth year. The deal is believed to be worth about $10 million.

In his first full major league season, Wright, a 22-year-old right-hander, was 12-10 with a 4.72 ERA in 32 starts. He has a record of 20-13 since the Indians brought him up from the minors midway through last season.

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Charles Lindbergh, Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, and now Sammy Sosa.

The Chicago Cub slugger is to be feted by New York on Saturday with a parade up Broadway along the famed Canyon of Heroes where a select group of returning soldiers, astronauts and championship sports teams have been hailed in the past.

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Larry Parrish, who led the Detroit Tigers to 13-12 record as interim manager after Buddy Bell was fired Sept. 1, will sign a two-year contract to manage the club with an option for a third. . . . Houston Astro Manager Larry Dierker and General Manager Gerry Hunsicker were rewarded with contract extensions through the 2000 season. Terms were not disclosed. . . . The Chicago Cubs exercised options on the contracts of first baseman Mark Grace and second baseman Mickey Morandini for next season.