Rocker Sent to Minors

In response to his continuing lack of control, on and off the field, relief pitcher John Rocker was fined $5,000 by the Atlanta Braves and optioned to their triple-A team at Richmond, Va., Monday.

The fine, Atlanta General Manager John Schuerholz said, stemmed from Rocker’s confrontation Sunday with Jeff Pearlman, who wrote the Sports Illustrated article in which Rocker disparaged minorities, gays and foreigners.

The minor league option, Schuerholz insisted, was strictly because of Rocker’s poor pitching.

“This has been brewing for a while,” Manager Bobby Cox said of the decision to option Rocker.

“We’ve been bailing him out [of his bad performances]. It couldn’t go on like that forever.”

Nevertheless, many industry officials said there was little doubt the Braves would find a way to dismiss or demote Rocker after the incident with Pearlman, who was in Atlanta over the weekend to cover the Braves’ interleague series with the New York Yankees, a matchup that reprised the 1999 World Series.

Rocker accused Pearlman of misrepresenting his comments in a December article and attempted to keep the writer out of the clubhouse. Getting in the Pearlman’s face in a Turner Field tunnel, Rocker reportedly said: “This isn’t over between us. Do you know what I can do to you?”

Atlanta outfielder Brian Jordan, a team leader who on Sunday had reacted to the incident with Pearlman by calling Rocker a cancer who “time and time again” was hurting himself and the team, said Monday that Rocker all but optioned himself. Catcher Eddie Perez concurred.

“He told us in spring training that he was going to change,” Perez said. “He didn’t change a thing. Maybe he can go down there and change.”

Commissioner Bud Selig, who had suspended Rocker for a month and fined him $20,000 for his remarks in Sports Illustrated only to have an arbitrator reduce the sanction to 15 days and $500, said he was “saddened by the regrettable incident” Sunday.

“While baseball is conducting its own investigation, I am satisfied that the Braves have moved expeditiously and have treated the matter with the seriousness it deserves,” Selig said.

Rocker, who has 10 saves but had walked 25 batters in 18 1/3 innings, must spend at least 10 days at Richmond.

Schuerholz said that if he pitches well “he’ll be back up here,” but many baseball people believe the Braves, concerned about security and the safety of their other players, will extend his stint until the team has completed a four-game series against the New York Mets that begins at Shea Stadium on June 29.

Rocker ripped New York fans and exchanged taunts with them during last year’s playoff, and his remarks in the magazine article were aimed at the city. Met relief pitcher Turk Wendell, reacting Monday, called Rocker “an idiot” and added:

“Let him grow up and mature a little bit, on and off the field.”

Team officials said they were prepared to send Rocker out 10 days ago but hesitated because of an injury to relief pitcher Greg McMichael, who is still unavailable.

They replaced Rocker on the roster by recalling pitcher Jason Marquis from double A and said Kerry Ligtenberg, Rudy Seanez and Mike Remlinger would share the closer role.

“When John is going good,” pitcher Kevin Millwood said, “he makes us a better ballclub. But he’s not the same John Rocker as last year.”

Rocker left the Atlanta clubhouse without talking to reporters. He is without recourse on the option, but the players’ union could file a grievance on the fine, as it successfully did in response to Selig’s initial sanctions. Union officials did not return calls Monday.

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The Associated Press contributed to this story.