Jordan Rescinds Trade Demand

Dodger left fielder Brian Jordan removed any uncertainty about his immediate future in Los Angeles on Monday, rescinding the trade demand he’d made shortly after the World Series.

Though the Dodgers had no intention of dealing Jordan, the veteran outfielder’s announcement during the team’s first voluntary winter workout in Dodger Stadium generated good will between Jordan and the organization, and eliminated a potential spring-training distraction.

Had Jordan held to his request and the team not honored it by March 15, Jordan could have become a free agent, a choice that would have voided a contract that guarantees him $11.5 million this year and left the Dodgers without a left fielder two weeks before opening day.

Sizing up this winter’s depressed free-agent market -- would there be much interest in a 36-year-old coming off a subpar season and major knee surgery? -- and the Dodgers’ recent signing of free-agent first baseman Fred McGriff, Jordan concluded that remaining a Dodger under his current contract was in his best interest.

“I’m looking forward to putting my heart and soul into being a Dodger,” said Jordan, who was shocked by last winter’s trade from Atlanta and didn’t seem comfortable in Los Angeles. “I’m coming in with a great attitude, and I want to be here.

“I didn’t want to go to spring training with anything negative hanging over my head. I wanted to put this behind me, to ease the organization’s mind, my mind, the fans’ minds. I’m looking forward to a great year, and I’m hoping to sign a long-term deal that will keep me here.”

Jordan was not happy that the Dodgers let veteran outfielder Marquis Grissom go -- Grissom, one of Jordan’s closest friends on the team, signed a free-agent deal with San Francisco -- but the recent signing of McGriff to a one-year, $3.75-million contract helped restore Jordan’s confidence.

“With his hands being tied financially, Dan has made some good moves,” Jordan said, referring to General Manager Dan Evans. “I like the direction we’re going in, and I want to be a part of it. We lost Grissom and Eric Karros [traded to the Cubs], but McGriff is an awesome guy who is going to add to the mix.”

Jordan was slowed by several injuries in 2002 but finished with a flourish, driving in 30 runs in September and closing with a .285 average, 18 home runs and 80 RBIs. It’s a wonder Jordan survived the season, considering the damage to his left knee, the extent of which wasn’t discovered until October’s surgery.

“They thought there was a slight tear of the patella tendon, but the tendon was totally detached,” Jordan said. “I said, ‘Wow, that says a lot for the pain I was sucking up all year.’ ”

Jordan took batting practice Monday and is able to run at full speed. “But stopping is another matter,” he said.

The knee still isn’t 100%, but Jordan’s rehabilitation has gone smoothly, and he expects to be at full strength when pitchers and catchers report to Vero Beach, Fla., for their first workout on Feb. 13.

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McGriff donned Dodger blue for the first time, getting in a few hacks and a few interviews before returning to his Tampa home today.

The 39-year-old has a .286 average, 478 home runs and 1,503 RBIs during a distinguished 16-year career but has lacked pop in Dodger Stadium, where he has a .250 average (46 for 184), five homers -- two of them in an 8-3 Cub victory over the Dodgers last May 3 -- and 22 RBIs.

Dodger Stadium yielded an average of 7.6 runs a game last season, the lowest in the major leagues, and batters combined to hit .242, the third-lowest mark in baseball’s 30 parks.

“It’s a pitcher’s park, but Shawn Green has done pretty well here,” McGriff said. “There are some nice gaps, and you can get some doubles here. Sometimes it’s not all about home runs, it’s about driving in runs.”

McGriff, who has eight 100-RBI seasons and 10 seasons with 30 homers or more, probably will bat fourth or fifth in the lineup, behind Green or behind Green and Jordan, depending on the opposing pitcher.

“Not taking anything away from the job Eric Karros did for the last decade, but offensively, it won’t be as easy [for opponents] to take a pass on Shawn Green,” Dodger Manager Jim Tracy said. “We’ll have someone behind him who is 22 homers shy of a major milestone.

“He’s a hired gun, and the consistency of his numbers is astounding. I don’t expect him to pick up 24 guys and carry them on his shoulders; I expect him to hit. If he does for us what he’s done for years, it will help the other guys in the lineup.”

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The Dodgers have about $2.5 million under the $117-million luxury tax threshold to pursue more pitching help, and Evans will focus on a swing pitcher, one who can start or relieve, and a left-handed reliever. Among the free-agent left-handed relievers the Dodgers have varying degrees of interest in are Graeme Lloyd, Pedro Borbon, Felix Heredia and Mark Guthrie. Derek Thompson, a 21-year-old left-hander who was acquired in the Rule 5 draft from the Cubs, and Rick Roberts, who pitched at double-A Jacksonville last season, are the leading in-house candidates to fill the job.

John Shoemaker, the Dodgers’ roving defensive instructor, is expected to be named manager at triple-A Las Vegas, replacing Brad Mills, who took a job as Montreal’s bench coach.... Tracy said Dave Roberts, who shared center field with Grissom in 2002, would get more chances to start against left-handers this spring. “I’m looking forward to it in a huge way,” said Roberts, who hit .277 with 63 runs and 45 stolen bases last year. “I know I can play in the big leagues. The next step is showing I can play every day.”

Backup catcher Todd Hundley will also work out at first base this spring, in hopes of giving Tracy more lineup options.... Dodger outfielder Luke Allen led the Dominican Winter League with a .316 average (48 for 152) and had seven homers and 35 RBIs in 41 games.