Ken Griffey

Who's hot Alex Rodriguez of the Rang ers has six homers and 13 RBIs in his past nine games. Who's not The Devil Rays, who lost three of four to the Athletics, got 55 hits in the series but stranded 51 runners. Line of the day Robert Person, Phillies P AB R H RBI HR 3 3 2 7 2 On deck The Mets, 1 1/2 games back in the NL East, begin a four-game series in Atlanta today. He said it "Just call me kingpin. ... I was just trying to hit the cutoff man, so I threw that Brunswick all the way home."

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Ken Griffey used to be one of the most likable guys in the game, but his positive public image has taken a serious pounding since he forced the Seattle Mariners to trade him to the Cincinnati Reds two years ago. Now, it seems, it's open season again. Former teammate Pokey Reese took a few parting shots at the Reds superstar last week, charging that Griffey plays by a different set of team rules than his less-heralded teammates and has failed to play a leadership role in the clubhouse.

Come see the kids ... and their dads. Needing another outfielder and receptive to an idea presented to them, the Orioles acquired Tim Raines from the Montreal Expos yesterday for a player to be named or cash. The trade puts Raines and his son, Tim Jr., in the same dugout for the final five games of the season, including last night's 7-6 loss to the Blue Jays. Tonight, they'll be in the same outfield. They become only the second father-son teammates in major-league history. Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. spent parts of the 1990 and '91 seasons together in Seattle.

The Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics are hooked up in a three-game series at Safeco Field this weekend that - from all statistical appearances - means very little to the American League playoff picture. The M's are in. They've been a lock to reach the postseason since about May 1 and look like a pretty good bet to break the American League record for regular-season victories. The A's are in, too. They locked up the American League wild-card berth so early they almost defeated its purpose, and now appear certain to win more games than any other major-league team except the Mariners.

NEW YORK - This can't really be happening, can it? The Seattle Mariners were supposed to be Exhibit A in Major League Baseball's next argument for cost control - the team that was so ravaged by free agency (and the prospect of it) that its fans could be forgiven for wondering why they kicked in all that public money to build Safeco Field. Future Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson was traded to the Houston Astros during the 1998 season because of the huge contract he would soon command as a free agent.

Ken Griffey is grumbling again. The Cincinnati Reds superstar has grown weary of the scrutiny he has received since he forced the Seattle Mariners to trade him this spring. So, what exactly did he expect? The big-swinging outfielder pushed the Mariners into a corner, got his way and ended up with a smudged image and a bruised ego. It didn't help that he got off to a slow start in Cincinnati or - even more ego-shattering - the Mariners have actually played better without him. The whole trade controversy left him looking petulant and entitled.

ATLANTA - Maybe Sammy Sosa is just an act. Maybe Ken Griffey Jr. is just misunderstood. In an age in which perception is reality, does it even matter? The modern superstar is celebrated for his entertainment value as much as his athletic ability. And if the contrast between Sosa and Griffey wasn't obvious before, it certainly became obvious at baseball's All-Star festivities. It wasn't Griffey's name that fans at Turner Field chanted during the Home Run Derby. And it wasn't Griffey's smile that lit up Atlanta and put a happy face on the sport.

ATLANTA - Seven injured starters missed the All-Star Game. Andres Galarraga missed all of last season. His presence last night was just slightly more important than anyone's absence. Galarraga received three standing ovations from the home crowd at Turner Field - during introductions, before his first at-bat and after he departed for a pinch-runner following a fourth-inning single. He has power to all fields. He has even more power as a cancer survivor. "There are probably no words to explain how happy, how excited I am feeling," Galarraga said.

ATLANTA - The stars will come out tonight at Turner Field - just not all of them. The 75th All-Star Game has been stripped of so much of its starpower that you could almost make a complete All-Star team from the players who have withdrawn because of injuries. Really. The only position not represented on the theoretical All-Star disabled list is second base, and that could change if former Oriole Roberto Alomar is too sore to start tonight. There is an All-Star injured at every other spot on the diamond, many of them among the most popular players in professional sports.

PHILADELPHIA - The Cincinnati Reds are finding out that great expectations aren't always so great. The arrival of superstar Ken Griffey Jr. was supposed to turn last year's 96-win wonder into a dominant playoff team, but instead has magnified disappointment over a .500 start. Griffey has struggled to adjust to a new league. Fellow newcomer Dante Bichette is in a deep slump. The starting rotation needs a jump start. And all the while, the St. Louis Cardinals - the other greatly improved team in the National League Central - have been getting comfortable at the top of the standings.