TIME FOR A CHANGE

Jerry Manuel is a week into the new job, and under his guidance the Mets are . . . playing .500 ball. Sound familiar? Anyway, maybe they'll play at a .550 clip from here out, maybe they won't. I still say they aren't a very good team, but with the Phils in a spiral of suck, who knows how it'll all turn out?

But one thing is clear. As Alex might say, clear as an unsullied lake. Clear as an azure sky. Or as I might say, clear as Willie Randolph's daily planner. And what is that clarified fact?

Carlos Delgado CANNOT be the starting first baseman for a major league team trying to play in October. He's 36 years-old (or at least he will be tomorrow). He's slow. He's an awful fielder. And . . . most importantly, since he plays first base, He Can't Hit!

His numbers through 75 games played are 234/307/405. Last season he hit 258/333/448. That's 1 1/2 seasons of sub-800 OPSing by a first baseman. A first baseman who can't run, nor can he field.

This has to stop. Play Easley against lefties, play Nixon at first against righties, play Nick Evans. But stop trundling this fucking corpse out there day-after-day. Enough.