To watch Jermaine Dye hit is to wonder what all the fuss is about. His long arms still whip through the zone, the crack is pure and sound and the ball rockets away as hard and fast as always.

But the fuss is fair, because after making contact Dye can't break out of the box as hard and fast as always. Not even close. The left tibia he gruesomely broke by fouling a ball off that leg during the playoffs last season remains unhealed. It's sore. He limps. Maybe if Dye didn't have to run -- where's Herb Washington when you need him? -- but even Herb couldn't burn to first base for Dye, who will almost certainly sit out the first 10-20 days of the season waiting for the soreness to subside.

	Jermaine Dye hit 13 homers in 61 games for the A's last year after being acquired from the Royals.

"I don't feel it when I hit," Dye said. "It's when I push off to run -- that's when I feel it."

The A's will feel it for as long as Dye is out. He is the projected cleanup hitter in a lineup that already has been transformed by the loss of Jason Giambi, the best offensive player in the American League. Dye drove in 59 runs in his 61 games with Oakland last season after his parole from Kansas City. He hit .297 with 13 home runs. (Their non-Dye cleanup hitters batted a shockingly anemic .208-10-48 for the season. While the A's were turning things around before his arrival, the team was clearly different with Dye: They went 48-13 after his arrival.

Though they knew Dye's injury could keep him out during part of this April, Oakland still considered him all but the necessary replacement for Giambi and signed him to a three-year, $32 million extension.

But hoping to get off to a start just a tad better than last year's 8-18, the A's will simply make do without him. Chances are that when he returns it will be as a DH only until he's fully ready to get back to right field and his Gold Glove defense.

For now David Justice will play right, with Jeremy Giambi, more of a natural DH, moving to left. As it turns out Dye's absence might wind up opening spots for both hot-hitting veteran Scott Hatteberg and poor-hitting prospect Carlos Pena, resolving an intriguing situation, with one playing first base and the other DHing. The batting order looks to find Justice hitting third, third baseman Eric Chavez fourth, shortstop Miguel Batista fifth and center fielder Terrence Long sixth until Dye returns.

The A's are understandably being cautious. Even though pitchers are coming back from rotator cuff and Tommy John surgery faster and healthier than ever, broken bones, particularly those supporting 230-pound mounds of muscle, are a separate matter. "We're keeping things as controlled as possible," A's assistant trainer Steve Sayles said. "It's a weight-bearing bone." It probably won't be an issue of Dye ever returning to his fine speed and baserunning -- if Robin Ventura and Jason Kendall can come back from their grotesque ankle-shatterings, anyone can -- but an issue of when.

Right Fielders On The Spot

ESPN analysts tell us who's on the hot seat: Dave Campbell Tim Salmon, Angels. If the Angels hope to come anywhere close to contending in the West, Salmon has to rebound from a very bad year. Tom Candiotti Gary Sheffield, Braves. Sheffield got his wish and left the Dodgers for the offense-starved Braves. Sheff and Chipper Jones could be the best one-two punch in baseball. Rob Dibble Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners. Ichiro, do you think I'm happy to have your name on my butt? Let's see you top last year! I dare you! Well ... maybe not.

"When you're first told it's a broken leg, you wonder what will be the damage to my career," said Dye, 28. "When they told me it was in a good spot to heal 100 percent I felt more at ease." Dye has also said he's willing to be patient -- anything to avoid breaking it again and missing the entire season.

Losing Dye last Oct. 14 immediately changed the face and outlook of the A's. "It was deflating," left-hander Barry Zito recalled. "We knew it was Game 4 and we knew we were losing. We knew to have a good chance we needed him in the lineup. We were thinking, 'Maybe he can come back. Maybe he can take a few painkillers and be back out there.' "

The bad break came in the bottom of the third inning with the A's down 4-0, but in the middle of a rally that later cut the score to 4-2. In the next half-inning the Yankees chased Cory Lidle with three quick runs and cruised to a 9-2 win to force Game 5 back in New York. Oakland instantly felt Dye's absence in that game: Jason Giambi got four straight singles in the three hole, but cleanup hitter Chavez -- coming off a monster second half -- grounded into an inning-ending double play in the top of the first inning and never advanced Giambi in his three other at-bats. Neither did Long or Ron Gant after him, as Giambi was left stranded each time, and the results were devastating: The A's lost, 5-3, to end their season.

Dye watched from home literally "crying my eyes out," he admitted. His leg stayed in a cast for six weeks, followed by a walking brace, and after those were removed he underwent physical therapy for up to 2-3 hours a day. Avoiding hard surfaces that would send shock waves up the leg, he occasionally bounced on a trampoline to gain strength. He also ran laps in a pool for less stressful training. "I wanted to get moving and get good muscle back," he said. Dye lived in Scottsdale, Ariz. to stay close to Oakland trainers and jumped in the batting cage as soon as it was safe. He quickly proved that his hitting should be fine. He has gotten about 25 at-bats in three simulated games at the A's minor league training complex.

But with Dye unable to run, manager Art Howe has vowed to wait for the full OK from trainers before pushing his top slugger back into the lineup. Until then the A's will have a shockingly left-handed order: Giambi, Long, Chavez, Justice, Pena and Hatteberg all bat from that side. Only Tejada is a key right-handed force.

That has some A's concerned about the number of quality lefties the team will face in the unbalance-scheduled AL West -- they have 19 consecutive intradivisional games beginning Opening Day through April 21. Seattle has Jamie Moyer, Anaheim has Jarrod Washburn and Scott Schoeneweis and Texas has Kenny Rogers and Doug Davis. Should Dye be out longer than those first three weeks, which is not expected but possible, Oakland then runs into the Yankees (Andy Pettitte and David Wells) and White Sox (Mark Buehrle and Jim Parque, who will not begin the season in the starting rotation as he has been slow to recover from shoulder surgery but could regain his spot if he comes around) for four straight series.

"Jermaine is really important," Chavez said. "You're talking about the four hole."

And a big hole without him.

Five other right fielders to watch
1. Gary Sheffield, Braves. In this lineup, he's good for 40 HRs and 100 RBI. But wait, shh ... what's that ticking noise?
2. Jeromy Burnitz, Mets. Big pickup for the Mets -- Burnitz has four straight seasons of 30-plus HRs. But with him (150 K last year) and Mo Vaughn (181 K in 2000), you'll feel the breeze all the way to Staten Island.
3. Bobby Abreu, Phillies. Organization used Abreu's spring mega-deal -- highest in Phillies' history -- to prove to Scott Rolen that they were committed to keeping talent. Now, after career highs in 2001 with 31 HR and 110 RBI while playing all 162 games, Abreu needs to prove he's worth it.
4. Reggie Sanders, Giants. Classic streak hitter can send balls out in droves -- or whiff for a week straight. After a career-high 33 HRs last season, Sanders and Barry Bonds should keep Pac Bell fans busy.
5. Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners. Obviously, the M's won’t win 116 again. But this guy might be too good for a sophomore slump.

Alan Schwarz is the Senior Writer of Baseball America magazine and a regular contributor to ESPN.com.