Getting leg up in arms race

OMAR MINAYA One more starter

It's no secret that both of the New York teams would love to add a quality starter to their pitching staffs -- whether it's today, tomorrow, or a month from now. The Mets are so good that one more guy between Tom Glavine and John Maine might be enough to win their epic struggle with the Atlanta Braves.

We've seen the Yankees enough to know why they need one.

"I'd say right now it's probably just a little bit too early [for a trade]," said Mets general manager Omar Minaya. "I think there'll be less pitching available this year.

"About four years ago, you had clubs in need of dumping big salaries, but now it seems the teams have more money to work with and that need isn't quite there."

Yet Minaya, who says he's confident that Pedro Martínez will return in August, is also hoping to add a starter before the trading deadline. He sees two possibilities: getting a guy who has gotten off to a poor start and needs a change of scenery, or trading from a surplus in one area for something in another team's area of surplus.

Minaya has a major chip with outfielder Lastings Milledge, but can he get a quality arm in return for such an outstanding player?

In the Bronx, Brian Cashman doesn't want to stray far from his plan of building with youth, but he knows he has to or the Yankees will be swimming in mediocrity all season. While Mike Mussina, Andy Pettitte, and Chien-Ming Wang should provide the stability the Yankees have been missing, there is a lot of ground to make up.

With Carl Pavano possibly facing Tommy John surgery and Phil Hughes gone for up to six weeks with a hamstring injury, it's up to Kei Igawa and the Young Guy of the Week to bear some responsibility. Which is why the Roger Clemens decision will be so critical later this month.

The Yankees need him, want him, have to have him. Pettitte, Clemens's buddy, has been putting on a full-court press. Put it this way: If the Yankees don't get Clemens, they'd better have a very good Plan B.

They'd love a healthy Rich Harden, and while the A's have not said they are shopping him, a couple of GMs I spoke to last week believe he could be had if you gave up a ton. Harden is currently on the disabled list with irritation in his shoulder. (For a guy so talented, he sure has a lot of things wrong with him.)

Because GM Billy Beane back-loaded Harden's deal, the A's are coming into his higher-priced years and, quite frankly, if the injury bug continues with Harden, his performance won't match the value of his contract. But put him with the Mets, Yankees, or Red Sox, and he could be a division-winning player if healthy.

If we're talking surplus, Boston might be a team that fields calls. We all know that Jon Lester is going to be in the rotation at some point. We all know someone has to go.

Does Julian Tavarez float anyone's boat?

"Absolutely," said one GM looking for pitching. "Experience. Versatile. I'd be surprised if Boston made him available, unless they got a ton back for him, and then you have to measure your desperation and whether it's worth trading Jeff Bagwell for Larry Andersen."

Certainly, there are names out there.

The Giants could make Matt Morris or even Noah Lowry available if they feel they have to have another bat. The Devil Rays would hand you Casey Fossum. The Indians might consider moving Paul Byrd when Jake Westbrook is healed so they have a permanent spot for Fausto Carmona.

With Jason Schmidt out, the Dodgers likely won't do anything, but if Schmidt comes back in late May or June, perhaps Brad Penny would be available, though he's pitching very well. The Royals might deal Odalis Perez or Zack Greinke. The Reds would drive Eric Milton to you. Jon Lieber could be had from the Phillies, but they'd want bullpen help. The Rockies would part with Josh Fogg or (gulp) Byung-Hyun Kim.

If the White Sox fall out of contention, might lefty Mark Buehrle, at the end of his deal, wind up somewhere else?

The Brewers would likely not mess with success unless they begin to struggle; then you could pry Claudio Vargas and maybe Dave Bush from them. When the Cardinals get Mark Mulder back by July, Kip Wells (11-28 since 2005) could be had. And this could be the Yankees' dilemma: Do they trade a Kyle Farnsworth for a starting pitcher?

"Guys don't want to give up the big pieces unless you have big pieces to give back," Minaya said. "Most of us have tied up the good ones long term anyway. We're not going to part with guys like that."

A few questions for commissioner Bud Selig:

In the wake of the tragic death of Cardinals reliever Josh Hancock, do you believe there should be an across-the-board alcohol policy in baseball?

BS: "Each club is free to do what they think is right. I intend to discuss this further with the owners in the near future, but I don't want to say too much right now out of respect for Josh Hancock and his family."

(Note: It was not confirmed until after the interview that Hancock was driving under the influence. Also, the Red Sox may be re evaluating their policy; they don't have alcohol in the clubhouse but do in the players' lounge.)

It certainly doesn't appear there'll be any team moving to a different city or that expansion is anywhere in the future, but how do you feel about the possibility of a team in Las Vegas? BS: "For many reasons that I don't feel I want to go into at this time, I will say that in the 2 1/2 or three years I have remaining in my term, there will not be a team in Las Vegas. I know that when the Montreal Expos were searching for a new home, Las Vegas was one of the cities that was considered. But at this time I don't see it happening."

An emotional topic here in Boston is the recent edict to not allow Johnny Pesky to remain a uniformed coach in the dugout. BS: "First of all, let me say that I have admired Mr. Pesky for many, many years. I certainly understand what Johnny has meant to baseball in general and to the Boston Red Sox . He's part of the fabric of that great organization, and his contribution to baseball should never be forgotten.

"This was a rule put in place by a vote of the general managers. I was not involved in that vote and didn't have anything to do with it. It was put in place to limit the number of uniformed personnel in the dugout and there are certainly more now than there ever have been. Six coaches are a lot of coaches."

Jimmie Lee Solomon of your staff indicated that the rule to limit the number of coaches in uniform on the bench has been there for many years, but that it was finally enforced when either major league baseball or someone from another team pointed Pesky out. What harm does it do for there to be an exception in this rare case of a baseball icon?

BS: "I think that most teams have a person similar to Johnny in their organization and they all serve as great ambassadors for the game. Baseball loves the Peskys of this great game. If anyone wants to invoke change with this rule, they should have a discussion with the general managers."

Cleveland manager Eric Wedge probably won't be off the hot seat until the Indians are playoff-bound, but for now his team is clicking pretty well, despite four snowouts and three games transferred to Milwaukee.

"We've really played well lately, and, I mean, there's always room for improvement," said Wedge. "We'd like to get some of our guys going better, but we've had some people banged up and we're starting to get them back, so we're hoping that our team can start to play together as the unit we had planned on at the start of the year."

Wedge, whose contract is up after this season, feels two former Red Sox -- Trot Nixon and Kelly Shoppach -- have made huge contributions.

"Trot has brought all of the leadership qualities he had in Boston to us," Wedge said. "He brings such a positive energy to everyone with the way he approaches the game and the way he plays it on the field. We're thrilled to have him.

"Kelly is doing a terrific job behind the plate. We love what he can do back there, and he handles our pitching staff very well. While Victor [Martinez] was out, he did a nice job."

Wedge says Fausto Carmona has been a life-saver, first filling in for Cliff Lee and now Jake Westbrook. And Joe Borowski has emerged as the closer after Keith Foulke called it quits before spring training.

"Fausto has pitched very well for us," said Wedge. "Quality, quality starts and innings. Joe is a veteran guy who has that closer's mentality, and he's been excellent out there."

As for whether the strong start will bring a contract extension in the near future, Wedge said, "We need to focus our attention on the season and the games and playing to the best of our ability."

Apropos of nothing: 1. Over a stretch of 13 plate appearances last week, Diamondbacks shortstop Stephen Drew struck out eight times. During the same stretch, but over 14 plate appearances, brother J.D. Drew whiffed five times. 2. Funny game, eh, Bruce Bochy? His former closer, Trevor Hoffman, blew two saves in April (5 for 7), while his new closer, Armando Benitez, was perfect (7 for 7). 3. Don't you think Doug Melvin is terribly underrated as the Brewers' general manager? 4. Yellow or brown mustard on ballpark hot dogs? 5. Yep, Lou Gorman signed Red Sox hitting coach Dave Magadan out of Alabama for the Mets.

Remember how horrible the Angels looked when they played the Red Sox in April at Fenway? If you watched them closely in that series, you realized that much of their ineffectiveness was due to their inability to handle the cold. They looked uncomfortable. Now we have some empirical evidence that that was the case. When the game-time temperature has been 60 degrees or lower, they're 2-9, and both of those wins came in Anaheim. But when it is 61 or higher, they're 14-3. They average only 2.8 runs when it's cold, 5.3 when it's warm.

The yin: One scout who watched Sox righthander Clay Buchholz take a no-hitter into the seventh for Portland last Monday said, "He's got a great pitcher's body. Tall, lanky, strong. He has that sharp 12-6 curveball, a slider, and he throws that fastball 95-96 with movement. Tremendous performance. It shouldn't take this kid long to be up in Boston." The yang: You want to give the guy the benefit of the doubt because he works hard and has the potential to be a good hitter, but right now George Kottaras (.197 through Thursday) looks far from being Boston's catcher of the future. One former catcher who watched him the other night in Pawtucket said he had "serious mechanical flaws." Kottaras worked with Sox bullpen coach Gary Tuck in spring training but may need a remedial course. Through Thursday, Kottaras was 1 for 29 throwing out runners. He also had four passed balls and two errors. In Jon Lester's start Wednesday night, Kottaras had four bases stolen against him and never threw the ball.

A's owner Lew Wolff has hotel properties in Las Vegas and thinks a major league franchise would do well there. Wolff said of the gambling environment, "I'm of the opinion that if you're going to gamble, you can gamble anywhere."

Always enjoy it when the Maniacal One, Chuck Waseleski, contributes: After Thursday, Julio Franco had played in 2,484 games without a World Series appearance to move into fifth place. Just ahead are Billy Williams with 2,488 and Ernie Banks with 2,528. He'll likely surpass them this year. Farther ahead are Andre Dawson with 2,627 and Rafael Palmeiro with 2,831. Don't know if Julio can make it that far.

The Josh Beckett deal keeps looking better. Anibal Sanchez, who went 10-3 with a 2.85 ERA and a no-hitter last season for Florida, was optioned to Triple A Albuquerque to get some seasoning and work out of some difficulties. It's all about command, as he has thrown only 57.6 percent strikes and averaged only five innings per start. Opponents have hit him for a .341 average. There don't seem to be physical ailments; he really had it going last season and now has lost the feel of his pitches. Sanchez, Hanley Ramirez, and two young relievers were traded by the Sox for Beckett and Mike Lowell.

Washington always seemed an excellent fit for Wily Mo Peña. Jim Bowden traded for him in Cincinnati years ago and loved his potential for power. It's too bad Peña can't go someplace where he could play every day and really develop as a hitter. The Nationals are in rebuilding mode. No pressure. And Peña would surely kick up an offense that's on pace to score fewer than 500 runs. In the offseason, there were Chad Cordero rumors involving Boston but the price was too high. Wonder if a bigger deal gets resurrected if Mike Timlin has recurring shoulder problems?

Thirteen years later, replacement players are still not part of the union. "They never will be," said a Red Sox player. "The subject never comes up anymore. At some point, they'll all retire." There are fewer and fewer left. One is Boston's Brendan Donnelly. Among the others remaining in baseball: Texas reliever Ron Mahay, a former Sox outfielder; former Sox first baseman Kevin Millar; Baltimore lefty Jamie Walker; and Milwaukee catcher Damian Miller. Cory Lidle, who died in a plane crash last year, was another.

Nick Cafardo's e-mail address is cafardo@globe.com.