All baseball fans and human beings had to feel a tinge of sadness along with the thrill of the great performance given by Yankees pitcher, Jose Contreras against the Orioles today. The victory certainly seems to mean that Jeff Weaver has officially lost any shot at ever being a meaningful pitcher for the Yankees.

Weaver has gone in two short years from being the best Tigers pitcher to being the worst Yankee pitcher. How and why did that happen? Was it bad coaching? Bad luck? Unknown injuries? Or is it that baseball is a lot like golf--it's all a mind game. Weaver would be well at this point to move on from the Yankees and get a fresh start elsewhere. One also wonders if he could also use a sports psychologist to restore his confidence.

Weaver heads a list of players who could use a change of scenery. Joe Torre is likely to continue to support pitching Weaver except in long games where the Yankees are being blown out. Sterling Hitchcock is going to benefit from being let go to another team and another chance and Weaver could/should be next.

I don't know if Pat Burrell and Jose Mesa need a change of scenery or a change in who manages the team. The Fan has watched several involving the Phillies and the Fan would be a nervous wreck playing for Larry Bowa. Contrast his style with Tony Pena for the Kansas City Royals. Pena has just as much fire as Bowa for winning but does so with a positive attitude and an understanding of human nature. Bowa reminds me more of Billy Martin who either pushed a player or broke them depending on their makeup.

Lou Piniella has that fire too and can explode into rages as good as Bowa's but Piniella has won every where he's gone so he has to be a major motivator too. For those of you who thought he was too harsh to Ben Grieve, you may have been right...for Ben Grieve, but a similar player with Grieve's personality is Jon Olerud and Pineilla never tried to change Olerud's style of play. The Grieve blowup makes Ben another player who could probably use another place to play.

Another player who could use a change of scenery is Bobby Higginson. Higginson has hit over 25 homers four times in his career and has driven in over a hundred runs twice. And that was all for bad ballclubs. It seems like he is sleepwalking. Good players are good players because they love the competition. It has to have taken a toll on his interest in pushing himself from day to day. By the way, the Tigers broke an eleven game losing streak today.

A change of location can really help a player in a rut. Mike Hampton is the number one example. Colorado was not conducive to his style of pitching and another organization (the Braves) took an interest in him and right now is the hottest pitcher in the league.