The team's strategy is understandable and sound: Ignore him and hope he goes away quietly. And believe me, he's going to go. The team surely will reject his $13 million option, and Sheffield has to know this by now.

Now Sheffield is telling people in the Yankees clubhouse that he'd love to play for the Red Sox or the Mets, two big-market teams who may have an interest. Sheffield apparently does love New York. And why wouldn't he? In the supposedly tough town, no one's called him on anything yet. Some suggest he has selected those two teams as targets merely to get back at the Yankees, but if that's the case, it won't have the desired effect. While the Yankees won't reveal their intentions, they'll be happy if he goes quietly.

Green is no Alou, or even Nady

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The Mets never should have traded Xavier Nady for Roberto Hernandez and Oliver Perez as a quick elixir after losing Duaner Sanchez in a cab accident. It was pure panic. And now they have replaced Nady, an improving young player, with Shawn Green, a fading star.

Nady has a .477 slugging percentage to Green's .429, and in 97 fewer at-bats Nady has hit four more homers (15 to 11) and has driven in only two fewer runs (51 to 49).

Some Mets officials much preferred Moises Alou, and they haven't given up hope that it still can be accomplished. Alou is right-handed (which fits the Mets better), has more power than Green and is more clutch than just about anybody. "Green isn't a guy to go to the World Series with,'' one Mets dissenter said just before the team acquired him by paying about half the $13 million remaining on his contract through next year.

Obviously, others in the organization like Green better. But if they could get Alou, too, they'd all be happy.

The big hangup in Alou's case is whether the Giants will give him up. As of Tuesday they still weren't sellers. That could change with a few more losses, but the expiration date on the potential trade is Aug. 31, the deadline to set playoff rosters.

Around the majors

• Good guy Mike Hargrove probably shot to the front of the "Most Likely to Be Fired'' list with the Mariners' stunning recent 20-game intradivision losing streak. You can't blame Hargrove for doing what he can, moving Ichiro to center field. But Hargrove lost Ichiro long ago, and he'll almost surely lose his job at season's end.

• Mets officials not only are relieved that Tom Glavine doesn't need surgery but are also encouraged that the new treatment will help Glavine get back on track. He hasn't been himself lately (one win in his last 10 starts), at least not his new, improved self.

• Stretching for any reason to hope, the Mets like the fact that Guillermo Mota had success pitching to Paul Lo Duca in Los Angeles.

• Speaking of Lo Duca, MLB felt compelled to take another brief look at his gambling habit after someone leaked that there were "rumors'' of a gambling problem. Rumors? MLB already had looked into it and found nothing, and once again they found nothing. But perhaps Lo Duca learned his lesson; switching agents can lead to a lot of bad press later.

• It's been a big summer for agent Scott Boras, who has added Carlos Lee to his stable of clients. No surprise in that Lee surely saw the contract Boras got for his former White Sox teammate Magglio Ordoñez: $75 million that could become $105 million for what was then an injured player. Six weeks earlier Boras signed Barry Zito. Timing counts, as both players are ready to sign big free-agent contracts.

You'll hear as many as a dozen teams connected to each player, but my early favorites for Zito are, in order, the Yankees, Dodgers and Mets; for Lee, the Astros and Rangers.

• I thought it was a joke when I saw the press release announcing MLB's "partnership'' with Alyssa Milano on a clothing deal. She's already partnered with 60 percent of a pretty good pitching staff: Brad Penny, Carl Pavano and Zito.

• I don't care that Boston is dead. I still say Big Papi is my AL MVP.

• And Carlos Beltran is my NL MVP.

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