"There's not a whole lot of Amazin' happening with the Mets these days, except for Gary Sheffield, who has surprised everyone but himself by becoming a dependable everyday player and, at the tender age of 40, being one of the few veterans to avoid the disabled list.

"I'm surprised and impressed, more impressed with the fact that he's able to go out and defend and still be a threat at the plate," Jerry Manuel said before the Mets took on the Dodgers Wednesday night at Citi Field. "He is really carrying us."

Entering Wednesday night's game, Sheffield was hitting .361 (22-for-61) with five home runs, 11 RBI and 10 runs scored over his last 17 starts. He started once again Wednesday night, batting fourth and playing left, and providing perhaps the lone power threat in the Mets' struggling lineup.

"I'm always put in positions to defend questions about, 'Can I hold up? Can I do this?' I've been doing this for years. It's self-explanatory," said Sheffield, whose 10 home runs make him the only Met to have reached double digits. "My bat speed hasn't changed. My desire to play hasn't changed."

Sheffield, however, came to Queens via Detroit with warning labels.

Was there any pop left in his bat? Would his body hold up playing the field in the National League? Would he accept his new role, pinch-hitting and playing in the field just a few times a week? Would he be disruptive in the clubhouse?

Pressed into everyday service, Sheffield has proven to be more than just an aging player hobbling to the plate for a few career-extending at-bats.

"I just find it laughable when people think I'm a bench player," Sheffield said. "I'm not the player that I was when I was 20, nobody is, but at the same time, I've looked at everybody's roster and I can guarantee that I'm better than 80% of them.""