Bonds likely won't play in '08; grievance unlikely too

by Ken Rosenthal

Updated: August 16, 2008, 3:58 PM EST 200 comments

Bonds' agent, Jeff Borris, said Friday that Rays general manager Andrew Friedman failed to respond to a text message he sent this week inquiring about the team's possible interest in Bonds.

"With (Carl) Crawford and (Evan) Longoria going down simultaneously, I thought I'd make one last vain attempt to reach out to Tampa Bay, and to no avail," Borris told FOXSports.com.

"That's because Major League Baseball has been successful in their pursuit in blackballing Barry out of the game."

The players' union is investigating possible collusion against Bonds, the game's all-time home run king. That investigation, however, has slowed down at the request of Bonds' criminal attorneys, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

Bonds' attorneys, the source said, are reluctant to draw further attention to their client while he awaits trial for allegedly lying to a grand jury when he denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs.

A collusion charge would be difficult to prove, and the stakes are much higher in Bonds' criminal proceeding. Bonds, 44, has pleaded not guilty to 15 felony counts for perjury and obstruction of justice. His trial is scheduled for March 2, 2009.

"(Bonds') attorneys don't want to draw out a bunch of other negative things — rehash the old ones and raise the possibility of new ones — if the union brings a collusion charge," said a player agent who is familiar with Bonds' situation.

Michael Rains, one of Bonds' attorneys, did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.

Borris has said that Bonds would play for a pro-rated portion of the minimum salary, and he attempted to contact Friedman this week after Tampa Bay lost Crawford to a right hand injury and Longoria to a broken right wrist.

Crawford underwent surgery Thursday and could be lost for the rest of the regular season. Longoria is expected to be out about three weeks.

The Rays discussed Bonds internally during spring training, but have never showed serious interest in signing him.

"I'm not sure what Jeff Borris is trying to accomplish by saying he sent me a text message," Friedman said. "But our longstanding practice is not to comment on anything speculative."

The Rays lost another important contributor Friday, placing closer Troy Percival on the disabled list with a cartilage injury in his right knee. The team is more interested in adding a hitter than a reliever, but is unlikely to make a significant move during the August waiver period.

Hitters such as the Mariners' Raul Ibanez are getting blocked before they fall to the Rays, who own the second-best record in the American League. Players pass through waivers in the reverse order of the standings, starting with their current league.

Gary Sheffield has cleared waivers, but the Rays would only be interested in him if the Tigers picked up the vast majority of Sheffield's contract — the remaining portion of $14 million this season and $14 million next season.

Even then, Sheffield would be a difficult fit for Tampa Bay — he is serving almost exclusively as a designated hitter, and Tigers manager Jim Leyland said recently that it would be "suicidal" to play him in the outfield.

The Rays made free-agent outfielder Kenny Lofton an offer in spring training, but have not renewed their interest. They are also cool on infielder Jose Vidro, who has been designated for assignment by the Mariners and is on the verge of being released.