Mets know they're in for lots of nervous time  —  Carlos Beltran was wearing a neophrene hood that made his face look as if it was peering out of a small ship's porthole.  Julio Franco came in from batting practice rubbing his hands together and said, "Look.  They're freezing."

Randolph to be only Met to wear No. 42  —  Manager Willie Randolph confirmed yesterday that he will be the only Met to wear uniform No. 42 on Sunday to honor the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's major-league debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers.  —  Damion Easley and Lastings Milledge …

Prior leaves game with sore shoulder  —  Mark Prior's first extended spring outing ended badly on Thursday when the injury-plagued right-hander was forced to leave his start early.  —  Prior experienced discomfort in his right shoulder, according to a statement by the Cubs.

Nats blank Braves in finale  —  Bergmann, three relievers combine on two-hit shutout  —  ATLANTA — At 9:32 p.m. ET on Thursday night, the Nationals took a lead for the first time since beating the Marlins on a walk-off single by Dmitri Young on April 4.  The lead stuck and they blanked the Braves …

No act: Reyes balanced  —  They sound like baseball oxymorons, phrases that appear contradictory but make perfect sense upon closer examination.  Be quick but don't hurry.  Be intense but not tense.  Or Willie Randolph's favorite when it comes to Jose Reyes' hitting style: Be aggressive but be patient.

Milledge sent to Minors  —  Move makes room on 25-man roster for Pelfrey  —  NEW YORK — For one, it was an opportunity cut short — a fleeting glimpse of the limelight that never turned into more.  For the other, it's a new shot at that same opportunity, and a chance to stick around for good.

Ahead of the pack  —  Angels stand out as top World Series contender  —  Also in this column:  —  Everyone in baseball is talking about the current state of parity, how there are no superpowers anymore and about how almost anyone can win any division (no, not the Nationals).

Notes: Dotel setback, return uncertain  —  Pain forces reliever to cut Thursday's rehab session short  —  BALTIMORE — Octavio Dotel's recovery from a strained left oblique muscle took another detour Thursday when the Royals reliever had to cut short a rehabilitation session at the team's Spring Training facility in Surprise, Ariz.

Benoit getting his opportunity  —  Manager once wondered why reliever didn't have bigger role  —  ARLINGTON — Ron Washington, coaching third base for the Oakland Athletics, was not the first to wonder about Joaquin Benoit.  —  He was hardly the first or the only one to wonder what a pitcher …

Parking system rallies after tough start  —  Controlled-zone process moves on after 'difficult' opener  —  LOS ANGELES — At 5:45 p.m. PT on Wednesday, the entrance to Dodger Stadium on Elysian Park already was becoming quite busy, as cars passed through the gates and headed to the parking lots …

Cleveland 4, LA Angels 2  —  MILWAUKEE (AP) — After taking two out of three games from the Los Angeles Angels in their retractable-roof refuge from the snow, the Cleveland Indians are ready for a real home opener — no matter how cold, wet and miserable it gets at Jacobs Field.

MLB Trade Value for 2007  —  About a year and a half ago, I did a post on who has the most trade value in the major leagues, blatently stealing off an idea from Bill Simmons of a column he's been doing for a while on NBA players.  It was pretty popular, so last summer, I did something similar for just the AL West.