In Long Run, Their Moves Went South

If truth be told, the success of Sammy Sosa and Kevin Tapani with the cross-town Chicago Cubs must grate on the Southside White Sox, who had both players at different times.

The White Sox traded Sosa and relief pitcher Ken Patterson to the Cubs for outfielder George Bell just before the 1992 season.

“Sammy wasn’t a fit for us at the time,” White Sox General Manager Ron Schueler said. “He was a very immature player then, and he didn’t work well at all with our hitting coach [Walt Hriniak]. We felt we could make a run at the division and needed a more reliable, veteran hitter to help us do it. We both got what we wanted in that trade.”

Bell, now a minor league hitting instructor with the Toronto Blue Jays, had 25 homers and 112 runs batted in with the White Sox in 1992, but the team finished third. The White Sox won the American League West title in ‘93, but Bell hit only .217 with 15 homers and 64 RBIs, criticized then-manager Gene Lamont for not starting him in the playoffs and did not play again.

The White Sox permitted Tapani, who goes for his 20th victory with the Cubs today, to leave as a free agent after a 13-10 campaign in ‘96, opting instead to sign free-agent pitcher Jaime Navarro, a former Cub. Tapani received a three-year, $12-million contract from the Cubs and is 28-10 in two seasons. Navarro received a four-year, $20-million contract from the White Sox and has been an expensive bust. He was 9-14 last year and is 8-15 this year, when he was the opening-day starter and is now in middle relief. He has two years at $5 million per remaining. His future?

“That’s a good question,” Manager Jerry Manuel said.

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Manny Ramirez, the Cleveland Indians’ right fielder, has emerged as a bona-fide candidate for the AL’s most-valuable-player award.

With Sandy Alomar Jr. and David Justice producing disappointing seasons and Jim Thome injured for a large portion of the second half, Ramirez has been on a booming pace. He has 45 homers, 141 RBIs, 33 doubles, 107 runs and a .300 average.

“There is every reason to consider Manny for MVP,” Manager Mike Hargrove said. “For whatever reasons, Manny’s mistakes [primarily on defense and the bases] get glorified to the point that he never gets credit for what he does on the good side of the ledger. I don’t know that there is another right fielder in the American League other than Paul O’Neill who can compare to Manny.”

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Jim Lefebvre, who was recently hired as the Milwaukee Brewers’ batting coach, is likely to become manager if the Brewers fire Phil Garner, who is completing his sixth consecutive losing season.

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Roger Clemens became the first AL pitcher since Hal Newhouser in 1945 to win the pitching triple crown last year, leading in wins, strikeouts and earned-run average. Clemens is tied or leads in all three categories again, after his victory over Detroit Wednesday night.

It was his 19th victory of the season, his 14th in a row, and made Clemens only the fourth pitcher in the last 48 years to go at least 20 consecutive starts in one season without losing, according to Stats Inc. Clemens’ last loss was May 29. Sosa has hit 50 homers in the meantime.