Tampa Bay traded outfielder Jose Cruz Jr. and cash to the Arizona Diamondbacks yesterday for left-handed pitcher Casey Fossum.

Cruz hit .242 with 21 home runs and 78 RBIs for the Devil Rays last season. He has 175 homers and 535 RBIs in eight seasons with Seattle, Toronto, San Francisco and Tampa Bay.

Cruz won a Gold Glove with the San Francisco Giants in 2003, but also is remembered for his dropped fly ball in the 11th inning of Game 3 of the division series against Florida. The error allowed the Marlins to rally for a 4-3 victory on their way to the World Series.

Fossum joined the Diamondbacks last offseason as the key prospect in the trade that sent Curt Schilling to Boston. The left-hander started 27 games for Arizona, going 4-15 with a 6.65 ERA. He struck out 117 and walked 63 in 142 innings.

Fossum made $345,000 and is eligible for arbitration for the first time. He is asking for $1.35 million, and the Devil Rays inherit the arbitration figure of $800,000. The case is scheduled to be heard today in Tampa, which is why the deal was announced yesterday.

The Devil Rays also agreed to a $1.3 million, one-year contract with free-agent first baseman Travis Lee, who can make an additional $200,000 in performance bonuses.

Phillies

A dentist who lost some of his vision after he was beaned at a Philadelphia game is suing the team, alleging that not enough was done to protect spectators.

Neil Pakett, of Elkins Park, Pa., would have been protected during the June 25, 2001, game at Veterans Stadium if the backstop was wide enough to meet the recommendations of the Architectural Graphic Standards and had been angled differently, according to court documents citing an expert hired by Pakett's attorney.

Pakett was struck when a foul ball flew off the bat of Phillies' shortstop Jimmy Rollins, who was batting left-handed. Pakett attempted to catch the ball, instead of protecting himself, according to court documents.

Both the city of Philadelphia and the Phillies are defendants in the case.

A Philadelphia Common Pleas judge dismissed the Phillies from the case in October, but Pakett appealed to the state Commonwealth Court. Oral arguments in the case are scheduled March 3.