Bobby Bonilla

It's not often that a young player reminds baseball's elders of Tony Perez and Orlando Cepeda. When you're 6 feet 3 and swish the bat menacingly across the plate in a low golfer's arc, then rock back, hands low, swaying just a touch to some internal rhumba, it brings back memories of those great right-handed line-drive hitters. Maybe it's that 'round-a-corner cock of the head, too, and that front shoulder tucked a bit more than normal.

The Dodgers and Bobby Bonilla broke up because of irreconcilable differences, ending their stormy relationship after about six months. Trading the outspoken Bonilla was among the Dodgers' top off-season priorities, and the longtime infielder-outfielder was pleased to leave town. But Bonilla, who was dealt along with $1 million to the New York Mets for pitcher Mel Rojas, did not leave quietly.

The Pittsburgh Pirates offered Bobby Bonilla a four-year contract worth $1.5 million.

Completing an expected deal, the Dodgers on Wednesday ended their brief and stormy relationship with Bobby Bonilla, sending the veteran infielder-outfielder and $1 million to the New York Mets for pitcher Mel Rojas. On the third day of the general managers' meetings here, the Dodgers and Mets swapped players they had been discussing trading for several weeks, paving the way for Adrian Beltre to start at third base for the Dodgers next season.

Two days after losing out on Bobby Bonilla, the Chicago White Sox re-signed outfielder Dan Pasqua for $6 million over three years.

Pittsburgh Pirate President Carl Barger said he has made multiyear contract offers to Bobby Bonilla, but refused to disclose details. Both offers are essentially the same as one Bonilla rejected in February, amounting to $16 million over four years, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.

The Dodgers already would have a deal in place to send Bobby Bonilla to the New York Mets if they also were willing to include Eric Young, baseball sources said Saturday. New York General Manager Steve Phillips is willing to take Bonilla, whom the Dodgers are eager to move, if the Dodgers agree to send Young, a second baseman and leadoff batter, to the Mets in a proposed multiplayer trade.

Bobby Bonilla has heard the rumors, and read speculation about his future with the Dodgers. Some believe that the third baseman should not be an everyday player, and that club officials should attempt to trade the high-priced veteran during the off-season. But Bonilla might prove his detractors wrong. He continues to contribute despite being slowed by constant pain, driving in the winning run in a 5-4 victory over the San Diego Padres in 10 innings Sunday.

Third base isn't big enough for Bobby Bonilla and rookie Adrian Beltre, meaning the Dodgers have another problem. The logjam has been created because team officials recently accepted that Bonilla, 35, can't play regularly in the outfield. The 13-year veteran acknowledges that he's lost a step, especially after undergoing off-season surgery on his left Achilles' tendon. Bonilla has performed well while starting the last two games at third.

The Bobby Bonilla experiment in left field is over, ending both his frustration and that of the Dodgers. Manager Glenn Hoffman informed Bonilla before Thursday's game that he will be a pinch-hitter for now while working his way back to limited duty at third base behind rookie Adrian Beltre. Matt Luke, who bats from the left side, and Trenidad Hubbard, who bats from the right, will be platooned in left field. Something had to be done.

The Dodgers activated Bobby Bonilla from the disabled list and optioned infielder Alex Cora to triple-A Albuquerque. Bonilla sat out 21 games because of tendinitis in his left wrist. Bonilla started in left field and also played third base Wednesday night in a 5-1 loss to the Montreal Expos. He singled in four at-bats and was pleased with his performance. "It felt good," Bonilla said. "My wrist felt fine, but I'll know more [today] about how it's feeling because it takes a day.

Interim General Manager Tom Lasorda declined many offers for second baseman Wilton Guerrero. But the Montreal Expos wouldn't have traded pitcher Carlos Perez and shortstop Mark Grudzielanek to the Dodgers on Friday unless Guerrero was included in the deal, so Lasorda did what he hoped to avoid. "I tell Wilton all the time that he has a chance to be a star," Lasorda said.

Bobby Bonilla has been injured and unproductive during his brief tenure with the Dodgers, and things aren't improving for him. He was eligible to be reinstated from the 15-day disabled list today, but that plan was scrapped after the infielder-outfielder experienced pain Wednesday in his surgically repaired left wrist. Bonilla was forced to leave batting practice, which has happened frequently.

Left fielder Bobby Bonilla returned to the 15-day disabled list Friday because of tendinitis in his surgically repaired left wrist. The Dodgers recalled infielder Tripp Cromer from triple-A Albuquerque to take Bonilla's spot on the 25-man roster. Cromer began a rehabilitation assignment at Albuquerque on July 9 after undergoing reconstructive surgery on his right shoulder last September. He is expected to join the team today in St. Louis.