Weaver for the NL Cy Young? Two conditions: Pedro Martinez and Jason Schmidt have off-years. Martinez looks ready to return to form, so let's see if his arm holds. If the Giants had a closer the past two seasons, Schmidt would have won a lot more than 35 games.
-- Eric Jensen, La Jolla, Calif.

Those guys and Roger Clemens definitely are the frontrunners. I was looking for dark horses. Let me throw out two more names: Florida's Josh Beckett and Dontrelle Willis, neither of whom have allowed a run in their first two starts.

Why do people get up in arms over fans booing Mariano Rivera at the Stadium? Think about it for a minute. They cheer him because he does well. They stand and stomp for him because he is exceptional. So it stands to reason that they sit in stunned silence when he drops back from exceptional to normal (i.e., blowing a postseason save or two or three), and it is completely reasonable for them to boo when he disappoints them with regularity, as fans perceive at this point in the year. There is no heinous crime here. No one is above being booed. Booing isn't throwing stuff at him (see: Yankee fans and Dave Winfield) or spitting at him (see: Yankee fans at every Boston game before last year).
-- Barry Spiegel, Peoria, Ariz.

Interesting take, Barry. Not that I want to, but it'd be hard to argue your point. The problem is that booing one day and cheering the next makes fans look fickle.

Why is everyone dumping on Rivera? It took the Sox like 150 Rivera appearances before they finally started to figure him out. Just like the Yankees started to own Pedro after about 50 starts. How can anyone forget the game was over when Rivera came in? Or that Pedro had a 17 K, one-hit performance at Yankee Stadium? How quickly we forget (or use one or two instances to forget the entire past).
-- Peter George, Boston

I guess Barry's point is that fans don't necessarily forget. They just don't dole out their applause based on past performance. Yankees fans are aware of what Rivera has done for the team. But if he's not cutting it lately, get ready for the ol' Bronx cheer. Hey, it's a tough crowd.

When will the A's look to move Barry Zito? He would be the perfect No. 2 or No. 3 starter the Mets need. If the Mets can send Mike Cameron (and pay his salary for this and next season), whom Billy Beane is a big fan of, to Oakland for Zito, why not?
-- Dan Gallagher, Wilmington, N.C.

Congratulations on being the first repeat questioner of the year. We've already heard whispers of moving Zito. But Beane won't move him -- won't even consider it, I think -- unless the A's fall hopelessly out of contention or Zito becomes hopelessly inept. I don't expect either will happen any time soon, certainly not before the trade deadline.

What's up with all the Mets hate? I am surprised the Mets started 0-5 but the first two games were very winnable (bullpen blew it) and the Mets now have won three in a row playing good fundamental baseball. I personally think the Mets are a playoff-caliber team and, once they get rolling, will be a tough team to go up against.
-- Eddie, Brooklyn, N.Y.

See, Eddie, I wasn't hating on the Mets at all. I like Carlos Beltran and Martinez. I like Tom Glavine and David Wright. I like Cliff Floyd. I really like Willie Randolph's attitude. The Mets will be better than a lot of people realize. They can be a .500 team. That's not nearly good enough in the NL East. But it's certainly not hating.

What is it with baseball players and their constant need to remind us they are human beings? Your Willie Randolph quote was the most recent, but I see it constantly. I know we are all worried about the effects of steroids, but do clueless major-leaguers really think we forget they are also human?
-- Matt Gamewell, Chicago

Maybe. But it's OK. I think players sometimes forget fans are human, too.

In your April 4 column, you state, "Yeah, Anaheim and L.A. are two different cities and all, 25 or 30 miles apart. But we all know that they're all part of that Southern California sprawl. Face it. Live with it. It's OK." By that logic, you should roll the Padres in, too, since that SoCal sprawl starts in Tijuana and doesn't stop until Santa Barbara, and goes east to Riverside/San Bernardino. L.A. and Anaheim are as different as New York and New Jersey, and no one seems to want to "relocate" the Nets or the Devils based on artificial marketing concerns that amount to a load of nonsense.
-- Brant Guillory, Columbus, Ohio

I refuse to back off the premise that L.A. and Anaheim are part of the greater Los Angeles metro area. Hoboken, N.J., in my mind, is part of the New York City area, too, and Covington, Ky., is part of the Cincinnati market and Arlington is part of Dallas. I want to point out, too, that neither L.A. nor Anaheim is talking about moving. Each team drew more than 3 million fans last season. But, yeah, they'd both like bigger slices of that already ample L.A. pie.