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Tuesday, April 29, 1997

Deion Sanders makes a smashing return

By JOE KAY AP Sports Writer

CINCINNATI (AP) - Something's different about Deion Sanders.

When he left baseball two years ago to devote himself to the NFL, his legacy was lacking. The cornerback/center fielder was an average leadoff hitter who never figured out how to get on base enough to use his speed.

Look at him now.

One month into his comeback season, Sanders has remade himself. He leads the major leagues with 18 steals, leads the Cincinnati Reds in hitting at .398 and is leading those around him to conclude he has finally arrived as a baseball player.

"Deion used to be an athlete playing baseball," shortstop Barry Larkin said. "Now he's matured. He knows what he can do and he's accepted it."

Nobody anticipated so much so soon when Sanders decided to give baseball another try last January. The Reds needed a leadoff hitter they could afford; Sanders needed the camaraderie of the clubhouse.

They struck an unusual $1.2 million deal that returned him to two-sport status with the Reds and Dallas Cowboys, then waited to see how long it would take him to overcome a year's worth of rust and an eye injury left over from the NFL playoffs.

He didn't need much time.

"I'm different than most guys," Sanders said. "I expect the best, I really do. I expect the best out of myself no matter what the situation."

April has been the best month of his nine-year career. He hit safely in 19 of the Reds' first 22 games and led the majors in triples (4) and multiple-hit games (13) in addition to steals.

The 18 steals are the most in April since Rickey Henderson had 20 in 1988. He stole a career-high four bases in one game, tied his career high with four hits in another.

There is reason to think it could develop into more than a one-month fling. Sanders has gotten away from some of the bad habits that made him an easy out all too often.

When he walked away from the game two years ago, Sanders was an impatient hitter who swung at the first thing resembling a strike. He played right into the pitchers' hands.

"He used to go up there and swing and in three pitches, whatever was going to be done was done," manager Ray Knight said. "It didn't take him many more than three pitches to get his business done."

That's changing. Sanders still doesn't walk much - only seven bases on balls in 22 games - but he's going deeper in counts and waiting for a pitch he can handle. The on-base percentage, never anything for Prime Time to brag about in the past, is an enviable .446.

He's also going to the opposite field instead of trying to pull everything with his warning-track power.

"His swing is still very aggressive and quick, but he's cut down on it a little bit so that instead of fouling balls off, he's now hitting them hard," Knight said. "He works at the plate."

Sanders, who turns 30 in August, thinks it has something to do with accepting his limitations on the baseball field.

"It's truly a step," he said. "I just know myself now. That's pretty much it. You learn your limitations. You learn what you can and cannot do. Once you're able to accept that, everything is fine out there.

"I've accepted quite a few things I know I cannot do. I'm not a guy who's going to hit the ball out of the park. I could if I changed my stance, but I wouldn't be hitting what I'm hitting."

And he wouldn't be in position to steal the way he's stealing. At his current pace, Sanders would break Lou Brock's National League mark of 118 steals and challenge Henderson's major-league record of 130.

"That's not going to happen," Sanders said. "That record is going to be there for a long time. Just getting on base at that rate is unbelievable, man. Only a guy like Rickey could do that because he walks so much and he's just on base so much."

There's also a subtle factor at work in Sanders' transformation. He came back to Cincinnati because he likes the organization and feels comfortable in the community and supported in the clubhouse.

For instance, when the NL objected to Sanders trimming his uniform sleeves in tribute to Jackie Robinson, his teammates got behind him and decided to change theirs, too.

"It's a factor any time in baseball, when you know a team's fully behind you," he said. "If you're comfortable doing anything, it's going to translate into your life."