The term "hit batsman" doesn’t sit well with me. Who decided that a batter becomes a batsman when he gets hit by a pitch? Is a batsman supposed to be the baseball equivalent of a casualty of war? Or is it the plural of batman gone terribly wrong? And if a batter gets beaned while attempting to bunt, does he suddenly become a "hit buntsman"? …

Is a grown-up bat boy a bat man? And is Batman nothing more than a grown-up bat boy? …

Rarely does an injury boil down to Mike Tyson’s reading level, but Mets rookie right-hander Brian Bannister is on the 15-day disabled list with a
grade 1 hamstring strain. …

Is it any coincidence that Mets color man Keith Hernandez is a Just For Men pitchman? …

And for those of you who think Hernandez might lose his endorsement deal with the hair coloring giant for saying the dugout is just for men, consider this: Just For Men is just for men. …

In Oakland, A’s third baseman Eric Chavez has quietly dispelled the notion that he’s a slow starter by hitting .314 with 10 homers and 26 RBIs in his first 29 games. In a related story, first-string Blue Jays catcher Benjie Molina has been chugging around the bases in Toronto like a diesel-powered bus, cementing his reputation as ?- you guessed it ?- a slow starter. …

Mariners manager Mike Hargrove applauded right-hander Joel Pineiro for escaping a no-out, bases-loaded jam unscathed in a recent victory over the Red Sox. "I wouldn’t want to be on the mound (in that situation),"� said the veteran skipper. "I’d want to be somewhere in Tibet, probably." Which makes sense ?- at least philosophically. After all, Hargrove has managed to find baseball’s "Middle Way," sporting a decidedly mediocre .501 winning percentage in 15 seasons at the big-league helm.