OAKLAND -- According to an article in Wednesday's edition of the Los Angeles Times, Jose Contreras has been implicated in offering $200,000 to finance the smuggling operation bringing his wife and two daughters to Florida from Cuba in June 2004.

That accusation was made Tuesday in a Florida courtroom by Geoffrey Rodrigues, a convicted felon who admitted to participating in two smuggling operations in 2004. According to the article, Rodrigues testified that he received $5,000 for recruiting Edward Hernandez to co-pilot the boat that brought Miriam Murillo, Contreras' wife, their children and seven other friends and relatives to the United States. Hernandez and Roberto Yosvany, a second pilot, split another $65,000, according to reports on the testimony.

Contreras had no comment on the matter Wednesday morning. But manager Ozzie Guillen, a strong advocate of putting family matters above all else and a knowledgeable individual concerning the world of Latin American politics, gave his opinion during a regular pregame session with the media.

"I'm big with family, and if I have the money, I'll try to do that," said Guillen of Contreras' reported situation. "My family is first, no matter what, especially when you leave that [stuff]. I don't want to come here and leave my family there.

"But people have to understand, at least he has the money. Some people think his family is here with $200. People have to understand the reality about Cuba. People have to understand the [bad] politics between the United States and Cuba.

"People understand the kids are in the middle of the situation. You want your kids out of there as quick as you can. You want your kids to be with you. If they told me, 'You got to jump in the ocean to get your kids back here,' I will do that. That's the way people are doing right now."

Contreras defected from Cuba on Oct. 25, 2002, but had to initially leave his family behind. They came to the United States shortly before Contreras was traded from the Yankees to the White Sox on July 31, 2004, in exchange for Esteban Loaiza.

Guillen believes Contreras' name being brought up in this particular case won't affect his pitching. He also stressed Wednesday that Contreras would not be the first individual to offer up money to help bring his family home from Cuba.

"He might be No. 3,000," Guillen said. "For $200,000, I'd swim to Cuba to get his family. I'd say, 'Jump on my shoulders and I'll swim back to Miami.' Some guys do it for 200 bucks. It's a bad, political situation. That [stuff] happens every day when you live there.

"I'm behind Jose 100 percent. His wife suffered a lot coming to this country. She tried to escape three-to-five different times, and people have to realize how easy they got it here. But the legal stuff shouldn't bother him. Why? Maybe has to testify, maybe not.

"I'm not saying that's the right thing to do. But why not?" Guillen added. "That's my kids, that's my family, I got to get them out of there. Do I got to pay? [Sure], I'll pay. That's my opinion. That's the way I look at it. Maybe some people got a different way to look at stuff."