"Coming to the ballpark a little after 1 p.m. today, Milton Bradley knew the Chicago media was coming to him - and so did teammate Mike Sweeney.

After giving it a little thought, most of the thinking going back to last year with the Chicago Cubs, Bradley was ready to deliver a three-word greeting when the press arrived.

"I was going to say, 'Kiss my ass,'" Bradley said.

And then, Sweeney approached him and handed him a Bible passage - Phillippians 3: 13-14, which says:

"... one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

Sweeney offered practical advice along with those two verses.

"He said I had the chance to answer a few questions and glorify God," Bradley said. "Why do something that might distract the team?""