Does the hamate bone exist for any reason except to sideline baseball players? Holy Benny Agbayani — how many outfielders can one playoff contender lose and still stay upright? With Carlos Gomez lost until September, I had to remind myself not to look askance at Ricky Ledee. Because if not him, who? The Mets were obviously thinking the same thing, hastily bringing back David Newhan and dispatching Lastings Milledge to play anywhere — Binghamton, Cooperstown, a rap studio, an argyle-sweater factory — where he could get some quick at-bats. With Moises Alou still trapped in the Quad Zone, perhaps Lastings will get the extended audition fate denied him repeatedly after all. If the Mets' line of outfield succession was like that of the presidency, Lastings would be the Secretary of Labor. But looks like he'll make the Oval Office — I mean, left field — anyway.
This week I keep missing the beginning of games, which means I've been missing the only part one would want to see. It's strange to see your team is up 2-0 and mutter obscenities. Fortunately, neither Reyes nor Delgado nor Castro nor Beltran nor the reluctantly accepted Ledee were done [1]. Neither was John Maine, who pitched like he was hurling a gauntlet down before Roy Oswalt. I can strike people out too, All-Star. I've got 10 wins, All-Star. What are you going to do, All-Star? (By the way, with Smoltz 86'ed the Braves somehow have just one All-Star.)
Oliver on the shelf. Sosa on the shelf. Alou still on the shelf. Gomez on the shelf. Lastings trying to get off the shelf. The reconstructed, glued-back-together Pedro not yet ready for picking up from the shelf. Yes sirree, we live in interesting times.