National League

Sporting News, The, March 15, 1999

ARIZONA

MOVING OVER: Tony Womack will not become the right fielder after all. Instead, the club plans to put him in left, where the staff believes the transition from infielder to outfielder will come easier for the speedy Womack. Luis Gonzalez will become the club's right fielder Womack is resisting the switch to the outfield, mostly because he is less than two years removed from being an All-Star second baseman with Pittsburgh. Nonetheless, the team strongly believes Womack will be able to make the move to the outfield with little difficulty, using Tony Phillips and Lenny Harris as examples of players who successfully made the switch to utility player

NEW HOME: The indoctrination of Jay Bell at second base is going smoothly. The most difficult aspect for Bell is learning the footwork on double plays. SS Tony Batista doesn't appear to have any difficulty working with Bell. The two flip-flopped positions from last year. ... RHP Todd Stottlemyre has a new wrinkle with his split-finger fastball. He is tinkering with throwing it from the same angle he delivers his changeup. "I would like to leave camp with another weapon, and this pitch has a chance," says Stottlemyre, who thinks the pitch would be effective against lefthanders. --Pedro Gomez

Atlanta

A NOT-SO-WILD-THING RETURNS: Judging by his pitching line, Mark Wohlers' spring debut was a ghastly sight. One inning, three hits, two walks, one wild pitch and four earned runs. Shades of the 1998 Wohlers? No, not by a long shot. While the numbers may not point to a solid outing, Wohlers and manager Bobby Cox were satisfied with his progress. Wohlers worked the third and by the end of the inning he had made 38 pitches, 22 strikes. His biggest problem was an uncooperative slider, which often hung over the plate begging to be hit. But he also displayed an excellent split-finger and his fastball was in the 94-97 mph range, not far below his normal velocity.

LINEUP JUGGLING TIME: Cox wasn't kidding when he said he plans to tinker with the lineup all spring. He has hit Bret Boone second and seventh, he has had Ryan Klesko batting fifth and sixth, and he has used two different leadoff men. It's more likely Boone will wind up hitting second and Andruw Jones will settle into the No. 6 or No. 7 hole. Cox probably will make Brian Jordan the cleanup hitter, and Boone, who strikes out less frequently than Jones, will hit behind leadoff man Otis Nixon with Klesko batting fifth. --Bill Zack

Chicago

WOOD SIGNED: The Cubs signed RHP Kerry Wood to a one-year contract worth $690,000. Wood has bounced back nicely from illnesses that plagued him in the opening days of spring training, but the team will have to watch his elbow closely.... RHP Kurt Miller came to camp wanting to win a job in the bullpen, but if LHP Terry Mulholland is needed out of the bullpen, Miller or RHP Scott Sanders could start some games. Miller, who relies on a slow curve to keep hitters off balance, went 14-3 last season at Class AAA Iowa before coming up to lend a hand in the bullpen.... Middle relievers Matt Karchner, Terry Adams and Felix Heredia are back on track after poor performances last season.

LEADOFF MAN: OF Lance Johnson looks healthy and ready to play 150-plus games this season, which should give the Cubs a big boost in the leadoff spot. He possesses good speed, but this is hardly a running team. Johnson and 2B Mickey Morandini in the 1-2 spots will serve as table-setters for OF Sammy Sosa, 1B Mark Grace and OF Henry Rodriguez.... The club is not worried about the few extra pounds Sosa is carrying. He weighed in at 222 but doubled in his first spring at--bat and homered in the second game. --Bruce Miles

Cincinnati

FINDING THE ROUTINE: The team knows Pokey Reese can make outstanding plays at second base, where he has moved after playing shortstop most of his career. But the Reds need him to make the routine plays more often. Reese showed excellent range to his right and left during early exhibitions. But his penchant for bobbling balls on less-challenging plays is troubling and will reach up and bite the Reds if he doesn't improve.... RF Dmitri Young, branded a butcher on defense for past efforts, has worked tirelessly to improve in the spring and already looks smoother in pursuit of fly balls and base hits. Young works on defense every morning with minor league coach Dave Collins.

LOW ON LEFTHANDERS: With LHP Gabe White likely to close games, the team could enter the season with no lefthanders in middle or setup relief. The Reds aren't too concerned because they has RHPs John Hudek and Stan Belinda, Lefties hit only .160 against Hudek and .220 against Belinda last year. Hudek's secret is a cut fastball that runs in on lefties. Plus, he likes to pitch up in the strike zone, and most lefties feast on deliveries down and in. Belinda has a sinking fastball that lefties fail to drive with any consistency. --Chris Haft

Colorado

HELLO, LARRY: The team settled its biggest issue of the spring and took another step toward keeping what it believes is a contender intact when it signed Larry Walker to a six-year, $75 million contract extension, starting in 2000. In addition to a $1 million signing bonus, Walker, 32, will receive salaries of $12 million in 2000 and 2001 and $12.5 million in each of the final four years of the deal. ... Manager Jim Leyland toyed with the idea of batting Walker fourth and Dante Bichette third, but he decided against it. Walker's baserunning instincts--his ability to stretch singles into doubles and steal bases--led Leyland to pencil him into the No. 3 spot. Leyland also feels Bichette can drive Walker home often. Bichette led the majors with 219 hits in '98 and is good at adjusting with two strikes.