DOLLAR SIGHS

It’s the seventh game of the World Series. Matt Harrington is on the mound.

His ultimate dream never has changed.

In this version, though, the scene has shifted to a never-never land of the horrific and absurd, what one might imagine as the result of too much garlic, too many anchovies on late-night pizza.

Harrington is pitching in Minnesota for a team called the St. Paul Saints. The opponents are the Fargo Redhawks, not a big leaguer in the bunch. The game carries World Series-like weight only for Harrington, a 19-year-old right-hander from Palmdale, who in a year has gone from the nation’s top prospect to . . . what?

Man of principle or imprudent fool?

Steel-nerved negotiator or misguided greenhorn?

The night is cold. Harrington’s shoulder is tight. Seated in a Seeks New Starttight knot behind home plate are men with radar guns and piercing eyes, major league scouts who will determine his future in today’s amateur draft.

Dream time is over, and Harrington knows it.

“I have to prove I am the same guy I was a year ago,” he said.

He retreats behind the mound, takes a breath and rubs the ball. He reflects on a year of intense emotions, the euphoria over being drafted No. 7 overall by the Colorado Rockies, the bitterness as negotiations dissolved into finger-pointing, the frustration at not being in top form for this year’s draft.

Before stepping on the rubber, he relives events that transformed him from America’s hottest prospect to Minnesota-mired man of mystery, events that graphically illustrate the dynamics of present-day negotiations--a team trying to hold the line on escalating bonuses, an agent trying to push the bar ever higher, and the sense of entitlement felt by an unproven player with a 97-mph fastball:

* In the days before the 2000 draft, Harrington’s advisor, Tommy Tanzer, informs teams his client wants a signing bonus of $4.95 million, a figure arrived at by taking the bonus of the top pick in the 2000 draft and adding 25%, the average annual increase the last 10 years.

The teams picking ahead of Colorado are cash-strapped and only the Minnesota Twins seriously entertain the idea before dropping out two days before the draft.

The Rockies are ecstatic. Tanzer has several conversations with Josh Byrnes, the Rockies’ assistant general manager, and believes Byrnes has agreed to pay what Harrington seeks.

* A week after the draft, four Rocky representatives visit Harrington and his parents, Bill and Sue, at their Palmdale home. The players picked before Harrington have signed, and the highest bonus is $3 million.

Byrnes calls Tanzer the next day and denies having said the Rockies would meet the $4.95-million figure. Tanzer becomes angry and the seeds of mistrust are sown.

“I heard him say $4.95, but we did not agree to it,” Byrnes says. “We reserve the right to take any player and negotiate. In this instance, because Matt got so much attention, implicitly they felt we didn’t have that right.”

Says Tanzer, “He lied. I haven’t been un-mad since.”

* In late June, the Rockies jolt Harrington with an offer: $2.2 million. They increased it to $3.05 million about six weeks later, telling Harrington he will be the highest-paid player in the draft.

Tanzer’s four other first-round picks all sign. In 19 years as an agent, Tanzer has had 19 first-round picks, besides Harrington. All signed within two months of the draft.

* On Aug. 1, Joe Borchard of Stanford, the 12th player drafted, signs with the Chicago White Sox for $5.3 million over four years. Tanzer reminds the Rockies they had said Harrington would be the highest-paid player.

The Rockies offer $4.9 million, but want to spread it over nine years and would require that Harrington forfeit his arbitration rights.

* On Sept. 1, Harrington takes out an insurance policy that, in the event of injury or illness, will pay the difference between the amount of his signing bonus and $5 million.

Colorado General Manager Dan O’Dowd becomes directly involved and on Sept. 5 makes two offers. One is a complicated long-term proposal to reach the $5.3 million figure through performance incentives, among them a scale of innings pitched.

“We felt like we could offer $5.3 million for the satisfaction of their ego and this was our mechanism to do that,” Byrnes said.

The other offer is $3.7 million over two years that, with interest, would grow to $4 million. It is the highest minor league offer made to a high school player and the best the Rockies will make.

The offers are rejected in a letter written by Tanzer and signed by Harrington. Addressing the $4 million, the letter says, “That is essentially $950,000 less than what the Rockies committed to pay before the draft. My reasoning to turn down this offer should be obvious.”

Byrnes again denies agreeing to the $4.95 million and O’Dowd tells the Denver Post, “I can’t worry about what was said or wasn’t said.”

O’Dowd accompanies the Rockies to a game at Dodger Stadium and, through Tanzer, invites the Harringtons to meet him there. Tanzer says the Harringtons will go only if Rocky co-owner Jerry McMorris is present. O’Dowd tells reporters at the game the Harringtons have stood him up.

The Rockies’ efforts to meet with the Harringtons without Tanzer continue. They invite the family to Denver, but Bill Harrington insists Tanzer accompany them. The Rockies cancel the airline tickets.

Tanzer travels to Denver anyway and threatens to hold a press conference at Coors Field unless he can meet with McMorris. He meets with McMorris and O’Dowd, then leaves, believing a deal is close.

* On Oct. 10, Tanzer comes back with three options: The $5.3 million over seven years but without Harrington losing arbitration rights, the original $4.95 million over two years, or $4.5 million with a major league call-up in 2002.

Additional terms would permit Harrington to continue his own throwing and conditioning regimen and stipulate that the Rockies “correct the media damage done to the player in the Sept. 8, 9 and 10 articles in the Denver Post.”

The Rockies’ response: None of the above.

In a letter to Harrington, O’Dowd says, “At this point, we cannot agree on much of anything, and Tommy Tanzer has returned to his angry and threatening ways. . . . If you believe in Tommy, we will not agree on a deal. If you believe we are liars and cold-hearted executives, then you probably do not want to be part of our organization.”

* In early November, Harrington signs with the Saints, an independent team, so he can qualify to play in the Pan American Games for Team USA, coached by Saint Manager Marty Scott. Two days after signing, Team USA officials tell Tanzer that Harrington has been left off the team.

Suspecting that major league officials and the Rockies pressured Team USA not to take his client, Tanzer contacts the Major League Baseball Players Assn., who express concern to Team USA officials. Harrington is put on the team.

Harrington pitches seven shutout innings in two outings with Team USA and his fastball is clocked at 95 mph.

Meanwhile, his parents receive calls from other agents, pressuring them to drop Tanzer.

“This will never get done with Tommy,” one agent says. “There is too much bad blood between him and the Rockies. Go with me and we’ll have a deal in a matter of days.”

Matt’s father, Bill, has telephone conversations with Oklahoma State Coach Tom Holliday, whose brother is a scout for the Rockies. Holliday suggests the Harringtons meet directly with owners McMorris, Charles Monfort and Richard Monfort.

* In January, Harrington and his parents--without Tanzer--meet with the owners and O’Dowd in Denver. Harrington works out with Rocky players and the family is given first-class treatment. A contract is not discussed, although McMorris says an offer will be forthcoming.

“Mr. McMorris and the Monfort brothers are class people all the way,” Bill Harrington says. “I respect them tremendously and believe to this day that had O’Dowd removed himself from the talks, we would have had a deal.”

A week later the Rockies call the Harringtons at 11 p.m. and offer $4 million over eight years, significantly less than the September offers. Tanzer comes back with $4 million over five years, it is rejected and McMorris pulls the plug on negotiations.

No team besides the Rockies was allowed to talk to Harrington until one week before this year’s draft. The Rockies believe Tanzer had conversations with several teams and are threatening to file tampering charges.

“We were willing to give Matt this money and we were shielded all along by his agent,” Byrnes said. “It was very easy for us to lose enthusiasm, to lose sight of who Matt is.”

Harrington, less than a year out of high school, has been force-fed an education in acrimony, ego and convoluted logic. His loyalty to Tanzer was interpreted as weakness.

“There was no trust whatsoever with the Rockies at any point,” Harrington said. “From the get-go, they lied to us. They promised one thing and reneged. There is no way I could wear their uniform.

“I’ve learned you have to know who you can and cannot trust. Not everything goes as planned.”

About the time negotiations broke off in February, Harrington felt tightness in his elbow and stopped throwing for the first time since the draft. He planned to resume training in April, but flu and an inner-ear infection delayed his plan by a month.

He was behind when he reported to St. Paul in early May. In his first start, his fastball was only 88-89 mph and his curveball had little break. His second start May 25 was only slightly better.

The elbow pain is gone and Harrington has a clean bill of health from orthopedic specialist Lewis Yocum. The recent shoulder tightness, Harrington believes, is a result of trying to accelerate his training to impress scouts in this, his last start before the draft.

“My mechanics suffered because I’m trying to throw too hard,” he said. “I’ve never been like that, but because the draft is [today], if I don’t throw hard and the scouts don’t see what they want to see, I’ll be screwed.”

So with these thoughts swirling in his mind last Saturday, Harrington pitched for the third and final time before the draft. He reached 95 mph a few times during his two-inning stint but walked five and left with the Saints trailing, 4-0.

Harrington and Tanzer spent the last few days assuring teams they are reasonable men in search of a reasonable deal. The protracted fight with the Rockies has left them dispirited. Tanzer is having difficulty getting new clients. Harrington is itching to start his career.

Many teams have no interest in drafting him, citing the contentious negotiations and Harrington’s poor showing with St. Paul. For some, last year’s hottest prospect has become too hot to handle.

Harrington is projected to go late in the first round or as a compensation pick between the first two rounds. He might fall even lower. San Francisco, Milwaukee, San Diego, Cleveland, Cincinnati, the New York Yankees and the Dodgers, whose first pick is the 68th overall, are showing interest.

“We want to be creative and flexible,” Tanzer said. “We are asking for a major league deal with guarantees only for the first two years. We’ll make the money work.”

There is one way Harrington can render the harsh words, surreal events and lost dollars of the last year a distant memory. He can become a successful big league pitcher and eventually command a contract that dwarfs the $4.95 million he believes he was promised.

Make that World Series dream a reality. And, preferably, beat the Rockies.

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Draft Order

The order for the first round of the 2001 baseball first-year player draft, which begins today.

1. Minnesota; 2. Chicago Cubs; 3. Tampa Bay; 4. Philadelphia; 5. Texas.

6. Montreal; 7. Baltimore; 8. Pittsburgh; 9. Kansas City; 10. Houston.

11. Detroit; 12. Milwaukee; 13. Angels; 14. San Diego; 15. Toronto.

16. Chicago White Sox (from Florida); 17. Cleveland (from Boston); 18. New York Mets (from Colorado); 19. Baltimore (from New York Yankees); 20. Cincinnati.

21. San Francisco (from Cleveland); 22. Arizona; 23. New York Yankees (from Seattle); 24. Atlanta (from Dodgers); 25. Oakland.

26. Oakland (from New York Mets); 27. Cleveland (from Chicago White Sox); 28. St. Louis; 29. Atlanta; 30. San Francisco.

COMPENSATION PICKS*

31. Baltimore; 32. Detroit; 33. Angels; 34. New York Yankees; 35. Cleveland; 36. Seattle; 37. Oakland; 38. New York Mets; 39. Chicago White Sox; 40. Atlanta; 41. San Francisco; 42. New York Yankees; 43. Cleveland; 44. Colorado.

* awarded to teams for losing a player to free agency