Rickey Henderson is starting to feel like a forgotten man.

Henderson appeared in 64 of Boston's first 128 games but has started only one of the last 18, leaving the future Hall of Famer's days in a Red Sox uniform in question.

''It's not in my hands,'' Henderson said before Saturday's game, a 6-4 victory over the Orioles. ''If I could do something about it, I would, because I don't think I got a fair shot at playing on this ball team.''

Henderson's .368 on-base percentage ranked third on the team behind Manny Ramirez (.437) and Cliff Floyd (.381). Entering Saturday, he had batted only six times since Aug. 27, including a strikeout in a pinch-hitting role Friday night.

''I thought I proved what I was capable of doing, but I didn't get the opportunity,'' he said. ''So I guess I wasn't in their plans.''

Henderson said he holds no grudges and has nothing but the deepest respect for manager Grady Little. He also wondered whether the informal invitation he believed he had to play for the Red Sox next season still stood and said he was unsure he would accept it if it did.

''I don't know,'' he said, ''but I know I'm playing baseball next year because I know I can play the game.''