Because I need to be reminded that a whole bunch of A's are hurt:

A's missing full deck

"The kinds of injuries that we've done that with are the type that take a few days to evaluate how severe it is or how many days it will be," assistant general manager David Forst said. "With Rich (Harden), we put him on the DL immediately. It was a clear-cut injury. The obliques, the hamstrings, you don't want to make too hasty a judgment because a player might bounce back sooner than you thought."
Harden not pumped up about theory "Yeah, it's really frustrating when people think I lift too much or I'm trying to get big just to look good," said the A's top starter, who is expected to be out another two or three weeks. "I'm not trying to be on the cover of Men's Health, that's just a cheap shot. I put all my time and effort into being in the best possible physical shape for baseball. Everything I do is very specific for baseball and for pitching. There is a lot of thought put into it." Team orthopedist Dr. Jerrald Goldman doesn't believe there is a correlation between Harden's workouts and the muscle strains.

"People ask if (the three DL trips) are because of the weight lifting, but I don't believe it's a cause that would explain it," Goldman said. "When you look at it, Bobby Kielty also gets these kinds of injuries, and he doesn't look like a beach god."

Proper stretching is not an issue, either. Harden does rotational exercises for his torso and plenty of work to maintain flexibility, and he also does active-release techniques and deep tissue massage to keep loose. He's extremely flexible, in fact, putting the back of his hands on the floor to demonstrate. He conducts much of his winter work with Canadian sprinters who are Olympic hopefuls, and his sessions are monitored by personal trainers. Mychael Urban better watch out. I think Harden is ready to kick some ass.

In two to three weeks.

Steve Karsay will probably join the team today.

Karsay said that pitching at Triple-A Buffalo that past few weeks helped him regain his split-finger and breaking ball, pitches he'd struggled to find after shoulder surgery in 2003. He's completely healthy and looking forward to returning to his former team. Jeremy Brown will leave Oakland without an at bat. Yay.

Also, Kennedy could be available tonight.

Reliever Joe Kennedy hasn't pitched in a week because of biceps pain and then shoulder tendinitis, but he was aiming to go tonight.

According to team orthopedist Jerrald Goldman, Kennedy needs to be stretched out thoroughly to get the tightness out of his left arm and shoulder, but there is no serious problem.

Oh, and it's Cupcakes vs. Felix Hernandez tonight. Again. I would appreciate a winning streak right about now, because this hopeless feeling isn't doing anything for me. May has been brutal, and there's still two more weeks left. Guys like DJ and Crosby need to pick this team up. They're due.

Speaking of Crosby, he does not believe in the sophomore jinx.

"He's [Dan Johnson] still learning himself a little bit, but everyone knows he's a good hitter," said A's shortstop Bobby Crosby, the 2004 AL Rookie of the Year. "I don't believe in this whole sophomore thing. I don't buy into it."

But Crosby had a painful sophomore season, playing in barely half the games because of rib and ankle injuries. He still hit .276 with nine homers and 38 RBI.

"My injuries were freak deals," Crosby said. "When people think of the sophomore slump they think of people having success their first year and then guys figure them out in their second year and they struggle. I felt better in my second year than I did in my first year by a long shot.

And this year?

The Yankees are interested in trading for someone to play left field.

Brad Wilkerson, Raul Ibanez, Alfonso Soriano, Torii Hunter, Reggie Sanders, Aubrey Huff, Craig Wilson and Shannon Stewart are all on the list, one that shortens considerably when you count left fielders actually obtainable for Wright, Pavano and their big tickets. But eventually the Yankees are going to have to do something. That list shortens?! Hahahahahahahahahaha...um...yeah...

AWESOME TRADE.