Koskie's not angry, just not quite ready

Jim Souhan
Star Tribune

DUNEDIN, FLA. -- Corey Koskie, the former Twins third baseman, decided not to make the trip to Fort Myers today with his new team.

He'd like to see his friends, but not yet, not when his presence would be the story, when his decision to sign with Toronto this winter would be tilled like fertile soil.

"I just want to let the dust settle," he said.

From afar, Koskie's departure seemed predestined. At least two teams outbid the Twins for his services, and he chose the one he grew up watching from Anola, Manitoba -- chose the only Canadian team remaining in Major League Baseball.

The Twins habitually replace position players with cheaper alternatives from their farm system, and in Michael Cuddyer and Terry Tiffee, they have two intriguing alternatives at third base.

Yes, from afar, it appears Koskie's departure was a certainty.

Then you spend a morning talking to Koskie in the Blue Jays' clubhouse, and realize that even obvious choices can cause pangs.

"It was the toughest decision of my baseball career," he said. "It was almost like we were fighting to stay. My agent would get upset with me, say, 'Corey, you've gone above and beyond in trying to stay with this team,' because I kept saying, 'What if we try this?'

"It's a hard negotiation to be a part of. When you're the product, it's personal."

Koskie signed a three-year contract with the Blue Jays worth $17 million. The Twins' last offer was for two years and about $8.5 million. We're talking guaranteed money, so if Koskie suffered a career-ending injury tomorrow, he would make twice as much from the Jays as he would have from the Twins.

The Dodgers outbid the Blue Jays, but by the time that happened, Koskie had decided on Toronto.

"I called my agent and said, 'Let's get this done -- I want to play in Toronto,' " Koskie said.

Koskie wanted a little more money from the Twins, and a no-trade clause.

"I was willing to give them a big hometown discount," Koskie said. "But I didn't want to do that, then get traded to Los Angeles during the season, and be playing for a hometown discount for another team."

Koskie said three offseason events convinced him he wouldn't return: The Twins' signings of shortstop Juan Castro and catcher Mike Redmond, and the Twins saying they wouldn't offer Koskie arbitration, then doing so.

"I saw the writing on the wall," Koskie said. "They basically locked up $4 million over the next two years in two guys who might be backups, and in our negotiations, they said they had no money.

"If they really wanted to sign me, they could have found a way to get me where I wanted to be. Through our negotiations, I read between the lines. The stuff with the arbitration really left a bad taste in my mouth."

You can't feel sorry for anybody here. The Twins are following their plan, and Koskie, who grew up listening to Blue Jays broadcasts, will get rich in his own backyard.

Koskie was known as much as a volleyball and hockey player in high school as he was for baseball, and only a savvy evaluation by Twins scout Howard Norsetter encouraged the Twins to spend a 26th-round draft pick on Koskie in 1994.

By 2002, Koskie was a core player on a team that would win three consecutive division titles, an emblematic player because of his deft glove and dry wit.

"My first memories of the Jays are from '91-92," Koskie said. "I remember Tony Fernandez making those great picks at shortstop and Manny Lee and Candy Maldonado, and Kelly Gruber hitting two home runs against the Red Sox.

"It's amazing to me, when you look back at where I came from, now I'm playing for the team I grew up watching. The Blue Jays had a chance to draft me but decided not to. It's amazing, how the circle has taken us to this point."

This winter, when Koskie's Twins career became a semicircle, he wanted Twins fans to know how he felt, so he took out a "thank you" ad in the Star Tribune.

It was a classy move by a classy guy. His former teammates talk about Koskie taking blame for teammates' mistakes, for comforting shaken rookies, for pulling practical jokes that kept the clubhouse loose.

"I'm not mad at the Twins," he said. "I'm really thankful for the opportunity they gave me."

Next time the Blue Jays bus to Fort Myers, Koskie might tell them that in person.