It was an up-and-down season for Sheffield, who was cut loose by the Tigers in March, blasted his 500th career homer in April and wound up sidelined with back problems for most of the season's final month. Still, he was one of the team's most consistent sluggers when healthy. A return to an AL team, where he would get the chance to DH, could lead to another productive season for the 40-year-old.

Sheffield wants to drop 10 pounds to 212 and continue playing. To regain playing time, the veteran slugger may have to accept a reserve role on an AL team, where he can earn extra playing time as a DH.

The news came two days after Mets skipper Jerry Manuel said Sheffield was likely done for the season, but things changed following Thursday's exam. Sheffield took batting practice and ran in the outfield hours after declining to have an injection in his back.

Manager Jerry Manuel emphasized that Sheff is still available to pinch-hit. He's been a decent addition to NL-only lineups, as he's posted a .280 batting average to go with 10 home runs and 43 RBIs. Cory Sullivan received the start in left field for the second game in a row.

There are reports that Sheffield had spoken to the Mets about the possibility of a contract extension and was turned down. One Mets player said he heard that Sheffield was "gone" because he had been claimed off waivers. But Sheffield was placed on waivers earlier in August and was pulled back by the Mets after another team claimed him. The Mets, then, can no longer trade the veteran outfielder; they can only grant him his release. Manager Jerry Manuel said Sheffield just needed a break. "He asked for a day off to clear some thoughts and things," Manuel said. "It would do him good both physically and mentally to take a day." Cory Sullivan started in his place.

An important game for Sheffield, who hadn’t registered an extra-base hit in the last eight tilts, going 5-for-20 over that stretch before busting out with the pair of doubles Tuesday. The elder statesman may have struggled to stay in the lineup at times, but when he’s healthy he can still destroy the ball, as evidenced by a .290 average and 43 RBIs in 87 affairs this season.

With David Wright joining a small legion of his teammates on the disabled list Sunday, Francoeur has become the Mets' de facto cleanup man and the only real source of power left -- other than Gary Sheffield -- in New York's lineup. Frenchy's value, however, remains mostly the same, since Wright was one of the few teammates that could offer him protection in the lineup. Expect the Mets' new cleanup man to be pitched around often by opposing hurlers.

Sheffield, who has been nursing a sore right hamstring, said he was going to take fly balls and do a bit of running with the hope of possibly being a late addition to the lineup at Chase Field against the D-backs, but Manager Jerry Manuel opted to keep Sheff on the bench as a precaution. Sheffield, 40, hasn't played much since he left a game at Atlanta on July 17 with a cramp in his right hamstring. He has since endured a DL stint and missed all four games of the just-concluded series in San Diego. His .286-10-38 line (in just 79 games) suggests that he can still help NL-only owners, although that obviously only holds true if he's actually playing.

Sheffield also expects to be a gametime decision for Friday, but you can probably find better outfielders out there than an injury-prone slugger making one last hurrah in New York.

Sheffield, who spent two weeks on the DL with a hamstring injury in late July, walked off under his own power and was replaced in left field by Cory Sullivan. The slugger is batting .286 with 10 homers and 38 RBIs in 78 games this season.

A nice effort from Sheffield, who is 3-for-10 with a pair of doubles in three games since returning from a strained right hamstring. Chances are he wasn’t dropped during his brief stint away, but if he happens to be available in any format, there are definitely owners who could use his .286 average and 10 homers.

Sheffield, who was hitting .286 with 10 homers before landing on the DL July 25 with a strained right hamstring, was not in the starting lineup against the D-backs on Sunday (possibly because of the wet and rainy conditions in New York), but the veteran should work his way back into the lineup sooner rather than later, giving the Mets some needed pop in the middle of the order. Sheffield's activation should significantly cut into Cory Sullivan's at-bats.

Sheffield, who hasn't played since July 18 with a right leg cramp, participated in an intense lower-body workout at Minute Maid Park on Friday, and both he and the Mets front office insisted that he'd be good to go on Saturday. Whether he was or wasn't, he hit the DL when starter Jonathon Niese was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo. He'll be eligible to return in a week's time, but while Sheff has been a pleasant surprise for NL-only owners this year, this sort of thing was bound to happen. He's 40 years old, after all, and playing far more than expected. That he's also playing far better than expected means that owners should be patient and slot him back in as they usually would upon his return. Cory Sullivan will fill in until Sheff returns.

Sheffield, who hasn't played since July 18 with a right leg cramp, participated in an intense lower-body workout at Minute Maid Park on Friday. Sheffield was not in the lineup and was not available to pinch-hit, because the Mets did not want to waste the four games this week in which he did not play -- which can be used as retroactive time on a disabled-list stint. Yet both Sheffield and the Mets insist that he can return Saturday, which is why he is not already on the disabled list. "I feel like I can play today," Sheffield said after his workout Friday. "But at the same time, we've got to make sure how I feel tomorrow after what I did today."

Sheffield has been out of action since July 17 due to leg cramps. Asked if the veteran outfielder may need time on the DL, Manuel responded: "If it comes to Friday [and he doesn't feel healthy], that would be a possibility. No question." Manuel had hoped to start Sheffield against Nationals left-hander John Lannan on Tuesday, but Sheffield felt soreness after running on Monday. He will be an "emergency pinch-hitter" until after the Mets' off-day Thursday. A move to the DL would be retroactive to July 18.