Kal Daniels will get a chance to bloom in the lush outfield grass at Dodger Stadium.
The Los Angeles Dodgers sent pitcher Tim Leary to the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday for Daniels as part of a four-player deal between National League West rivals struggling to reach .500.The teams also swapped utility infielders, with the Reds getting Mariano Duncan and the Dodgers receiving rookie Lenny Harris. But Daniels and Leary were the key players.
The Dodgers hope to put some punch into the league's least-productive offense with the acquisition of Daniels, a cornerstone in the Reds' rebuilding this decade. The Reds hoped to fill some injury-created holes in their starting rotation and infield with the acquisition of Leary and Duncan.
The trade will give Daniels and Leary a second chance.
Daniels was considered by former general manager Bill Bergesch to be one of the Reds' untouchable "crown jewels." Manager Pete Rose has repeatedly said he thought Daniels could be a batting champion someday.
But the 25-year-old outfielder has never hit consistently enough to aspire to such a level, and his defensive lapses have brought loud derision at Riverfront Stadium. Knee operations also have cut short two of his four major-league seasons.
His best season was 1987, when he overcame arthroscopic surgery on his left knee to hit .334 in 108 games with 26 homers, both career highs. He started slowly this season, had surgery on his right knee, and has been sluggish since returning last month, hitting .218 overall with two homers and nine RBIs.
Leary, 30, is 6-7 with a 3.38 earned-run average in 17 starts and two relief appearances this season. The right-hander was recently demoted to the Dodgers bullpen.
Duncan, 26, hit .250 in 49 games for the Dodgers this season. He was hurt most of last season, when he played for the Class AAA Albuquerque farm club. He's also been disabled twice this season by hand and hamstring injuries.
Harris, 24, hit .223 in 61 games for the Reds, and was inconsistent defensively, committing 13 errors.