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Third baseman Jeff Cirillo has blocked a trade to the New York Mets, saying he'd rather come off the bench for the Seattle Mariners than take his chances with another team.
The Mets and Mariners had agreed on a deal that would have sent Cirillo to New York for outfielder Roger Cedeno.
``As far as the
Mets were concerned, it wouldn't be a starting role, it would have been as a
utilityman,'' Cirillo's agent, Jeff Borris, said Saturday. ``He didn't want
to move his family across the country if it wasn't going to be a starting job.''
The Mariners signed free agent Scott Spiezio on Wednesday to a $9.15 million,
three-year contract, saying he will play third. General manager Bill Bavasi
indicated another trade involving Cirillo remains possible.
``He's a Mariner bench player, as of today,'' Bavasi said Saturday night.
Cirillo's contract contains a limited no-trade clause that allows him to block deals to about 10 teams. His decision to reject the deal was reported Saturday by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and The Seattle Times.
``I'd rather be a backup with the Mariners,'' Cirillo was quoted as saying. ``I'll take my chances trying to win a pennant with Seattle, where I'm close to home and close to my family and kids.''
Cirillo is a California native who lives in Redmond, Wash., and his wife has relatives in the Seattle area. That was one of the main draws for Cirillo when he joined the Mariners two years ago.
Though he made All-Star appearances with Milwaukee and Colorado, his hitting with the Mariners has been a major disappointment. A career .312 hitter when he arrived, Cirillo has hit .249 and .205 in two seasons in Seattle.
His defense, on the other hand, has been outstanding. He's made only 13 errors in 233 games in Seattle.
Cirillo spent almost a month in July and August last season on the disabled list because of a subluxated right shoulder. He did rehabilitation work in the minors but played in only two of Seattle's final 35 games.
He started with a .171 average in April, then hit .306 in May but trailed off after the All-Star break. On July 29, the Mariners traded a minor leaguer for shortstop Rey Sanchez and moved Carlos Guillen to third.
Cirillo is owed $6.6 million in 2004 and $6.9 million in 2005 under a deal he agreed to with Colorado in July 2000. The contract contains a $7.5 million team option for 2006 with a $1.25 million buyout.
Mets general manager Jim Duquette didn't want to speak specifically about Cirillo. ``We will continue to explore all avenues to help improve our ballclub,'' he said in a statement.