The Week That Was
Beyond the Box Score
Boston Red Sox outfielder Rickey Henderson made an impact beyond the box score in his first game replacing the injured Manny Ramirez in Boston's 10-4 win last Sunday over the Seattle Mariners.

	Henderson

The box score shows that Henderson was 2-for-5 with two runs scored, one walk and one RBI. But Rickey actually went to the plate seven times. He saw five pitches in a plate appearance that didn't count because Rey Sanchez was thrown out stealing to end the sixth inning; so Rickey led off the seventh. In his overall time at the plate, Henderson saw 37 pitches (more than six per official plate appearance).

That's what makes him the consummate leadoff hitter. He wears pitchers out, watching lots of pitches so his teammates can see them. He also hit some ugly foul balls, where the pitch would fool him and he'd barely take a swing but just put his bat on the ball and foul it off. I've watched Rickey do that intentionally over the years. When he gets a pitch he can't hit, he knows how to foul it off so he can get a pitch he can hit.

Thirty-seven pitches. If all nine batters saw that many in a single game, the opponent's pitch count would be an astronomical 333. It was an absolutely remarkable performance by a guy who people keep trying to write off.

D-Backs' DL Could Fund Devil Rays
The Arizona Diamondbacks have seven players on the disabled list who make a combined $35 million annually -- which is higher than the Devil Rays' entire payroll ($34.3M).

Here's the list of the D-Backs' wealthy wounded: Matt Williams ($9.5M), Jay Bell ($8M), Todd Stottlemyre ($8M), Matt Mantei ($4.3M), Armando Reynoso ($4.1M), Erubiel Durazo ($375,000) and David Dellucci ($775,000).

The D-Backs' combined DL salaries also come close to the other two MLB teams that have a total payroll below $40 million: Expos ($38.6M) and A's ($39.6M). The Yankees top the chart at $125.9 million.

Buehrle and Ritchie and Not Much More Pitchie
The Chicago White Sox (22-18) are in second place in the AL Central, 1½ games behind the Minnesota Twins. The White Sox are winning thanks largely to their hitting (AL-leading 236 runs scored, second-highest batting average at .282). But they can also thank starters Mark Buehrle and Todd Ritchie.

Buehrle (3.30 ERA, 7-2) and Ritchie (3.32, 3-4) have pitched well. But compare their ERAs with the rest of the White Sox starters: Jon Garland (5.95), Dan Wright (6.59) and Jon Rauch (9.82).

Ritchie was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates for Josh Fogg, Kip Wells and Sean Lowe. Fogg (5-1, 2.47) and Wells (5-2, 4.33) are a collective 10-3, so they have more than 50 percent of the Pirates' 19 wins. While Ritchie has pitched well for the White Sox, this has been a tremendous trade for the Pirates because they have two starters making close to the minimum salary who are pitching great.

Pirates Closing the Deal
The effectiveness of Pittsburgh closer Mike Williams has also been key for the young team. Williams has saved 14 of their 19 victories, with no blown saves and a 0.60 ERA. Pittsburgh's record in one-run games is excellent (10-4).

Contrast that with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. During their 15-game losing streak, the Devil Rays lost three straight games in which they had the lead with two outs in the ninth. That's especially tough for a young team.

Concern in Oakland
Even though the Oakland Athletics (18-21) could attribute their recent slump (3-11 in past 14) to a tough schedule -- Yankees, Red Sox, White Sox -- there is reason for A's fans to be concerned.

Their Big Three starters -- Tim Hudson (3-5, 3.92), Mark Mulder (2-2, 6.35) and Barry Zito (4-3, 4.34) -- have been spotty. Mulder isn't completely healthy, and David Justice is on the disabled list.

And look at the list of A's hitters who have been struggling during the slump: third baseman Eric Chavez (.252), catcher Ramon Hernandez (.210), center fielder Terrence Long (.236) and, after a fast start, first baseman Carlos Pena (.222). So a number of components are not meshing right now.

It's true that Oakland has a better record than at this time last year. But it looks like Seattle (27-12) is positioned to win the AL West again -- and unlike last year, both the Red Sox and Yankees are playing well. So the A's need to kick it into gear if they want to make a run at the postseason via the wild card.

Will the Real Angels Please Stand Up
In their first 20 games, the Anaheim Angels were 6-14. They had scored just 72 runs (3.6 per game) and were last in the AL in on-base and slugging percentage. Since then, the Angels have gone 16-2, scoring 142 runs (nearly 7.9 per game).

Included in those stats are a 21-2 thrashing of the Indians and a 19-0 blowout over the White Sox. And Wednesday night, Anaheim beat the Tigers 10-1.

	Erstad

Earlier, nobody was hitting for the Angels except for Garret Anderson. Now Darin Erstad and Tim Salmon have come to life and the pitching has been solid. One conclusion we can draw from this is that the Angels, like lots of teams, will have trouble hitting good pitching, as they did in their first 20 games (14 of which were against Seattle and Oakland). But now Anaheim is beating up on the mediocre pitching of clubs like Detroit and Toronto.

On The Horizon
AL: Angels-White Sox (three-game series in Chicago begins Friday)
This series pits the second-place teams in the AL West (Angels) and AL Central (Sox).

The Angels want to keep on rolling. They go five deep in their rotation, which is something few MLB teams can say. The Angels probably don't have a legitimate No. 1 starter, but they have five guys with solid experience: Kevin Appier, Aaron Sele, Ramon Ortiz, Jarrod Washburn and Scott Schoeneweis. Each is capable of delivering a quality start each time he takes the mound. If their offense continues to click, they'll be in good shape.

The White Sox, meanwhile, need to get some pitching beyond Buehrle and Ritchie (see item above). Beyond those two, no starter has done the job.

NL: Marlins-Giants (three-game series in San Francisco begins Friday)
This series features the first-place teams in the NL East (Marlins) and NL West (Giants).

The Marlins are trying to make a statement. We knew they had tremendous young arms in Josh Beckett, Brad Penny, A.J. Burnett and Ryan Dempster. But don't overlook Florida's offense. Mike Lowell (.363-7-30) and Cliff Floyd (.323-13-29) have been swinging the bats well.

Floyd trade rumors have been swirling this season, but if he's going to be traded it won't be until after the All-Star break. With the wild card giving teams a better shot at the postseason, GMs are more reluctant to deal top players (even soon-to-be free agents) and thus alienate fans. But I don't think Floyd will be traded.

The Giants just want to keep on trucking. Barry Bonds started strong but hasn't gotten a lot of pitches lately (no surprise there). Defensively, the Giants are better this year with Reggie Sanders in right field, Tsuyoshi Shinjo in center and David Bell at third.

If I Were The Skipper
The Situation
In Sunday's game vs. the Mariners, Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez had a 6-1 lead after seven innings and had thrown 91 pitches. Before the game, Pedro said on ESPN TV and Radio that 105 pitches was his limit, regardless of the situation. In the eighth, Seattle got a walk and an infield hit (after long at-bats) and suddenly Pedro's pitch count had hit 105. Boston skipper Grady Little went to the mound. Would you go to the bullpen or let Pedro try to get out of the jam?

Campbell's Call
I'd have told Pedro that we need him for the long haul and I was going to remove him from the game. But as a manager, you have to listen to your players. So if Pedro convinced me that he was still strong and could get the next couple of batters, I'd consider leaving him in. Managers have to listen to their players to an extent, but they have the more objective view. But if Pedro had convinced me to leave him in, I would have gone to the bullpen if one more batter got on base.

What Happened
After talking with Pedro for a while, Little left him in. He threw 11 more pitches, getting a double-play grounder and a fly-ball out to end the inning. Pedro finished with 116 pitches in Boston's 10-4 win -- more than the original plan, but the extra day's rest he'll get this week due to the club's off day might have factored into Little's decision.

Ballpark Focus: Pac Bell Park, San Francisco
Pac Bell is my new favorite park. Before Pac Bell opened, my two favorites were Camden Yards and Coors Field.

Anywhere from the press box down the right field line along the loge or upper deck, there's a spectacular view of San Francisco Bay -- you can see the Bay Bridge and even the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance. The ambience is fantastic.

	Bonds

Pac Bell is a better park to play in than Candlestick, though players still must deal with the elements. It's still chilly in the evenings, even in June and July. The best weather in that part of California usually comes in September and October.

Many thought Pac Bell would be a home-run haven, but the park yielded the second-fewest home runs in the majors last season (Detroit's Comerica Park yielded the fewest).

In 81 games at Pac Bell, visiting teams hit 57 home runs. Meanwhile, Barry Bonds hit 37 of his record-setting 73 homers at home. There are no cheap dingers at Pac Bell, which makes what Bonds did last year even more impressive.

Editor's Note: All statistics are through Wednesday's games. Dave Campbell, who was an infielder for eight seasons in the major leagues (1967-74), works as an analyst for Baseball Tonight and ESPN Radio.