"All I can say is we'd have been very interested," said one NL club official. "And we've let them know in the past we had interest in Strickland. I have to admit, it made us wonder: What's the extent of Omar's connection with his old team?"

"We didn't know he was available, and I guarantee you we would have made overtures if we'd known," said an official of another NL team. "Strickland has better makeup to close games than the guy they've got closing (Armando Benitez). I don't think they got enough."

But Minaya, a man of great integrity, says: "I spoke to other clubs about him. I did not only speak with the Mets. I just felt the guys I got from the Mets were the best players available. I had the ability to get two young starting pitchers. One is 23. One is 24. And I was taught that whenever you get the opportunity to get two starting pitchers for a guy whose history has been as a setup man, that's a good deal."

No one disputes Chen has a good arm, though there are questions about why this is his fourth team (all in the NL East) in less than two years. There are more questions about Gonzalez's up side, with most scouts we surveyed describing him as ultimately being "a swing man or a setup guy."

But to Minaya, the two were known quantities. And to those who question this deal, he says this: "Tell people that if they have interest in any of our players, please call me. If you want to call, I'll tell you who's available. Or call and tell me who you want. I'm open to conversation. And I return phone calls."

"Their starting pitching scares me," says one scout. "D'Amico scares the heck out of me, with his (injury) history. And if he can't go, I don't know who they have who could come up and start. In their system, there's nobody near ready. Dicky Gonzalez was that guy. And Chen was their other guy. But one thing about Steve (Phillips) -- he's amazing; he plays that waiver wire so well, he'll come up with somebody."

His ballpark is no longer full. His team no longer wins. He has to fend off the threat of a team moving to Washington or Northern Virginia. So he can use all the friends on Bud Selig's team he can muster.

In other words, seven years ago, Angelos' appointment would have been looked at far differently -- by both sides -- than it is now.

"I never thought there would be a strike," says one baseball man who has been a longtime optimist and peace advocate. "But I think there's going to be one now. There's a deal to be made here. But I don't see much chance of making it anymore without a work stoppage. The only hope I've got is that nobody can afford another work stoppage, and I mean nobody."

The Rangers weren't enamored of Mario Ramos' finesse-type repertoire this spring. And of the three position players they got, only outfielder Ryan Ludwick looked like someone who might eventually crack their formidable lineup.

Hart relied heavily on Fuson's knowledge of the Oakland system when he chose this trade over other offers for Pena. So the sooner Ludwick arrives and contributes, the less one-sided this swap will look.

This year, they traded Antonio Alfonseca to make room for Braden Looper. And Looper's failure to carry that baton has come as no surprise to a number of baseball people.

"People get enamored with velocity," said one GM. "But just look at his numbers, and you'll see there's more to it."

Looper is 5 for 19 lifetime in save opportunities, 0 for 2 this year.

"He might have the best stuff ever," says one scout, "of a pitcher who just can't do that role."

Looper is viewed as a guy whose temperament ought to be as even as his fastball, and whose fastball ought to be as jumpy as his demeanor. Now he already has lost the closer's job to Vladimir Nunez. And their setup crew includes three rookies (Michael Tejera, Garry Knotts, Kevin Olsen) who had all been starters in the minor leagues. Tejera, who had the staff's only save through Tuesday, hadn't saved a game since the Gulf Coast League in '95.

"I'm patient with myself," said Smoltz, still dazed by giving up eight runs in the ninth inning Saturday. "It's hard to deal with everything else -- all the expectations, people thinking I'll come in and teams will just roll over. ... Closers have this aura about them, based on the way they close games. I was able to get that before I actually earned it. Everyone else who has that aura earned it. Unlike guys like Rivera and Trevor Hoffman, I didn't earn mine. And I should have to."

Ah, but we beg to differ: He did earn that aura. He just earned it as a starter.

"The first start, I watched him throw two pitches and said, 'Get him out right now. Look where his arm is,'" said one scout. "He had no command and very little movement. The second start, he threw better, but he threw very few breaking balls. And that suggests something is bothering him. I have one rule: Little right-handers always break down eventually.

"The thing about Pedro is he could lose his fastball and still be a good pitcher. But he needs that breaking ball to win. I probably shouldn't say that about somebody like him, though. He's probably got the aptitude to throw a knuckleball, smart as he is."

"He's a different pitcher," said one NL scout. "His arm slot's different. He's way out front. He's trying so hard to make the ball sink, his body is way out front of his arm. He's just trying to do so much to make the ball sink or ride, he's forgotten how he used to make it do that. I know he feels the pressure of the contract. But you can't try to live up to it by trying to be better than you are."