Phillies, Astros well-represented; other news, notes

	Shawn Green hit only 11 home runs in 400-plus at-bats for Arizona, precipitating a trade to the Mets. Brad Mangin/SI
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The National League has so many busts this year, I squeezed 28 names onto my 25-man list. The Astros alone could have filled out half the list.

In some cases of NL players, the light went out. In others, it was the power. I wouldn't suggest that the absence of the good stuff is what caused most of these guys to go south, or even many of them. But at least in a couple of cases, it can't be ruled out.

Whatever the reason, all these NL players fell down, fell off, got tripped up or messed up too much. (My scout, a longtime big league guy, provides insight as needed.)

25. Mike Lieberthal, C, Phillies. What does it say that the Red Sox took Javy Lopez over him?

24. Jose Guillen, OF, Nationals. The free agent wasted his walk year. Now he'll have to walk into spring with a make-good contract.

23. and 23a. Pat Burrell and Bobby Abreu, OF, Phillies. Burrell invoked his no-trade clause when the Phillies had a deal to send him to Baltimore for Rodrigo Lopez, while Abreu accepted a trade to the Yankees, a swap that worked wonderfully for everyone. (Oddly, Abreu is now a star in the better league.) Somewhere, former Philly GM Ed Wade is chuckling at what he has wrought.

22. Clint Barmes, SS, Rockies. He hasn't been the same since tripping while carting around deer meat early last season. (That was his story, wasn't it?) Last year Barmes flirted with .400 early; in '06 he's just a little better than half that (.226). A solid defender, but it's only a matter of time before top prospect Troy Tulowitzki, a dynamic hitter, replaces him.

21. Luis Gonzalez, OF, Diamondbacks. Arizona owner Ken Kendrick shouldn't have said what he said. There's no hard evidence. Yet it's hard not to notice that the home run totals rose exponentially for a while. Now they're coming down at almost the same rate (13 homers this year).

20. Jeff Weaver, P, Cardinals. He could have made the list from either league, by all rights, although he's doing a little better with St. Louis than he did with the Angels (5.92 ERA with St. Louis, 6.29 with L.A.).

19. Shawn Green, OF, Mets (formerly of the Diamondbacks). He underperformed so badly that the D-backs had to pay half what's owed him just to get rid of him.

18. Jason Isringhausen, closer, Cardinals. A productive closer for a long time, he's finally running out of steam. He has allowed 10 home runs in 54 1/3 innings.

17. Vinny Castilla, 3B, Padres (now a Colorado Springs Sky Sox). He was replaced with Mark Bellhorn, Geoff Blum and non-third baseman Todd Walker after posting a .579 OPS. It's too bad. Castilla is nearing the end of a fine career.

16. Kaz Matsui, 2B, Rockies. Is this the same guy who wowed everyone in Japan? It's hard to believe. A .562 OPS is impossibly low.

15. and 15a. Mark Prior and Kerry Wood, P, Cubs. Combined, they are 2-8 with a 6.25 ERA.

14. Tim Hudson, P, Braves. "Where's the nasty power stuff?'' a scout wondered. "I don't see the same split.''

13. Brad Lidge, closer, Astros. A year ago at this time he was the game's best closer. Now he's struggling to regain his confidence and his role.

12. Odalis Perez, P, Dodgers (now a Royal). Someone agreed to pay this guy $24 million for three years. Remarkable.

11. Oliver Perez, P, Pirates. A budding star in 2004, he's relegated now to throw-in status in a rushed deadline deal.