10:12 AM EST on Friday, March 19, 2004

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

AP photo Brian Daubach, clubbing a grand slam Saturday, has his heart set on once again being an integral part of the Red Sox.

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- In many respects, it's as though Brian Daubach never left.

When he gazes around the Red Sox clubhouse this spring, he sees familiar faces such as Tim Wakefield and Trot Nixon, two of his closest friends from his first tour of duty with the Red Sox.

Other teammates -- from Nomar Garciaparra to Pedro Martinez to Jason Varitek to Derek Lowe -- remain, too. At least for now.

But in other ways, it sometimes feels as though a lifetime has passed since Daubach last wore a Red Sox uniform. There's a new manager in place and a mostly new coaching staff.

And, most obviously, Daubach's role has changed. For four seasons, from 1999 through 2002, Daubach was a regular -- if not everyday -- part of the Red Sox lineup, splitting time between first base and DH.

This spring, he returns as a non-roster invitee. There are no guarantees he will make the Opening Day roster, much less command the 450 or so at-bats that he routinely piled up with the Sox during his previous sting.

Kevin Millar is ahead of him on the depth chart at first base. David Ortiz, who finished fifth in the A.L. MVP voting, is entrenched as the DH, and just for good measure, the Sox imported another prodigal player, veteran Ellis Burks, to help with the DH chores.

Still, Daubach couldn't be happier. He spent last season with the Chicago White Sox. The year started poorly for Daubach -- he hit .074 through the end of April -- and never got much better. One of the few high points came in June when he sliced a game-winning double to defeat his former team. Even then, Daubach celebrated with mixed emotions, breaking down in a live post-game TV interview.

The White Sox mostly underachieved, his playing time was sporadic. Worse, his former teammates enjoyed a memorable season, clinching a wild-card spot, rebounding from an 0-and-2 deficit in the ALDS and coming within five outs of reaching the World Series.

From halfway across the country, Daubach kept close tabs on the Red Sox.

"The (White Sox) got tired of me watching Red Sox games in the clubhouse," jokes Daubach. "They told me I had to cut the cord. I told them, 'Hey, you never know . . .' "

Daubach turned out to be a better soothsayer than a hitter. Over the winter, cut loose by the White Sox, he received a surprise phone call from Theo Epstein, the same GM who had non-tendered him in December of 2002 and cast him into free agency.

"I was very surprised," said Daubach. "But he told me there could definitely be a spot for me on this team."

That spot would be a left-handed bat off the bench, with the ability to play first, left field and DH. Thanks to the logjam at those positions, Daubach is unlikely to see the kind of playing time he enjoyed years ago.

"That's your opinion," said a smiling Daubach.

After all, nothing has ever been handed to Daubach, who spent nine long seasons in the minor leagues before finally getting a shot with the Sox, who had lost Mo Vaughn to free agency.

Those nine years in the minors were split between the New York Mets and Florida Marlins organizations, but Daubach considers Boston to be his ancestral baseball home. It was in Boston where he finally got an opportunity, and it's Boston where he feels he belongs.

No nomadic life for him, thank you.

"You don't want to keep switching teams," said Daubach. "A guy like Reggie Sanders (now with his seventh team in seven seasons), I don't know how he does it."

Last year, his first organization switch since 1998, was difficult enough.

"There are so many new people, new things to adjust to (when changing teams)," he said. "There's the coaching staff, the traveling secretary, the security guys, how you get to the park every day. . . . A lot goes into it."

Now that Daubach is back in more familiar surroundings, he expects his production to reflect that comfort level.

"No matter what you do," he said, "you're going to be more successful when you're comfortable and relaxed."

Though he faces an uphill climb to claim a roster spot, Daubach has found an empathetic figure in manager Terry Francona. Like Daubach, Francona knows what it's like to hopscotch from one organization to another. And like Daubach, he had to sometimes deal with decreased playing time and staying sharp in between playing chances.

Daubach knows that, unlike others who use spring training as a means to get into shape, he must catch someone's attention with his Grapefruit League at-bats. So far, he's succeeding, hitting .304 while tying for the team lead in RBI with eight.

The need to win a job in spring training is nothing new for Daubach.

"I've done it every year -- I'm good with that," he said. "In four years here, I was never penciled in as the regular first baseman."

And yet, every year, he notched between 381 and 495 at-bats before the season was over. Equally impressive was his consistency -- each year, he managed to hit better than 20 homers and collect more than 70 RBI.

That may be harder to match this year on a Red Sox team that led the major leagues in most offensive categories last year and bettered itself with the addition of Burks.

Then again, that would be your opinion -- not Brian Daubach's.