No deal close for former White Sox slugger By Jason Beck / MLB.com Don't count the Tigers out of the free-agent market just yet. While another free agent was on the verge of spurning Detroit for another city on Saturday, with Dearborn native Derek Lowe apparently headed to Los Angeles, industry sources told MLB.com the Tigers are interested in former White Sox outfielder Magglio Ordonez and have discussed him with agent Scott Boras. No deal is close, but the pursuit could set up another January free-agent watch between the Tigers and Boras, not to mention a multi-team chase for the consolation prize in the Carlos Beltran sweepstakes. The situation bears many similarities to what Ivan Rodriguez, another Boras client, went through a year ago at this time. Like Pudge last January, Ordonez is poised to be one of the last top free agents still on the market. Also like Pudge, the main reason Ordonez is in this situation is the risk of injury, though his is more serious. He was limited to 52 games and 202 at-bats last season before surgery and bone marrow edema in his left knee ended his season. He'll turn 31 years old later this month. At this point, one source cautioned, the Tigers and other teams are trying to gauge Ordonez's health and what the risk of re-injury would be before going further. Boras said during the Winter Meetings that Ordonez would work out for teams in January. He was recently cleared to resume baseball activities. Because of all that, any long-term deal with Ordonez would likely include some sort of clause basing part of his salary on how many games he might miss due to a knee injury. The Tigers and Boras used that kind of language in reference to potential back problems for Rodriguez in his deal last year. Boras and the Cleveland Indians used similar language to put together a one-year contract for pitcher Kevin Millwood, who missed time with elbow injuries last year. Where Pudge's situation last year and Ordonez's situation now differ is the level of interest from other clubs. While the Tigers were practically alone in their pursuit of Rodriguez by mid-January, several teams have shown interest in Ordonez. Among them reportedly are the Cubs and Orioles, and the list could expand once Beltran -- another Boras client -- signs and teams that lost out on him start looking elsewhere. More than any of those teams, though, the Tigers are familiar with what Ordonez can do when healthy after watching him for six seasons with their AL Central rivals. Before the injury-shortened 2004 season, Ordonez posted five consecutive .300 seasons with at least 29 home runs and 99 RBIs. His 135 RBIs placed him second in the American League in 2002, while his .320 average that year ranked fifth and his 38 home runs sixth. With all those lofty numbers, though, he's never been outright dominant against Tigers pitching. Detroit is the only division rival against which Ordonez does not own at least a .300 average, having hit them for a .287 clip instead. His 14 homers and 56 RBIs are also division lows for Ordonez, though he's played in fewer games against the Tigers than against other AL Central clubs. He's a .259 hitter at Comerica Park with nine doubles, one home run and 13 RBIs in 34 games. Though the Tigers have been able to keep Ordonez relatively contained over the years, they have plenty of reason to see him as a welcome addition to Detroit's lineup if healthy. The Tigers have pursued one free agent after another to varying levels this offseason in their search for one more middle-of-the-order hitter, only to be spurned each time. Troy Glaus went to the Diamondbacks, Steve Finley to the Angels, Corey Koskie to the Blue Jays, Edgar Renteria to the Red Sox, Adrian Beltre to the Mariners and J.D. Drew to the Dodgers. Detroit had the versatility to fit in any of those players, because super-utility player Brandon Inge could start regularly at either third base or center field. With Ordonez almost exclusively a right fielder, however, one or more of Detroit's corner outfielders would lose playing time to fit him. -- 意者可回信 正式交易时请用ATM转帐 --

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