"Gary Sheffield left San Diego too soon, and he would likely be coming back too late. He is 40 years old, defensively deficient, burdened by a recent history of shoulder problems and a 2008 batting average of .225.

Fresh from a last-place season, located at the epicenter of America's economic turmoil, the Detroit Tigers have nonetheless chosen to swallow Sheffield's $14 million salary rather than allow him to earn it - this though his next big league home run would be No. 500.

This means that once Sheffield clears waivers this morning, any club can sign him for the major league minimum of $400,000. This does not mean, however, that the waiver-watching, Dumpster-diving Padres will make a run at their 1992 National League batting champion.

"Have not given it much thought," General Manager Kevin Towers said yesterday via e-mail. "We need to not only stay focused on the present, but also be thinking about our club long term. We need to find out what we have with (Scott) Hairston and (Chase) Headley, and by bringing in Sheffield, that would defeat the purpose for POTENTIALLY a short term benefit."

Though there's a certain symmetry to bringing Sheffield back to where he first attained stardom, and while it's worth noting that he has yet to strike out as many times in one season as Hairston or Headley did last year, the Padres are not oblivious to perceptions. They have to know that adding a 40-year-old designated hitter could seem antithetical to a youth movement in a non-DH league.

To forward-looking Friars fans, signing Sheffield might look more like a stunt than a strategy: at best, a nostalgic step backward; at worst, a desperate grab for a gate attraction. But to those citizens of Padre Nation who witnessed 99 losses last season and are hard-pressed to see progress - and my unscientific survey says that's most of you - such a stunt might be preferable to more of the status quo.

What new Padres CEO Jeff Moorad needs to evaluate is whether the young players who make up the core of his club are legitimate prospects or just warm bodies. Given Moorad's brief tenure, those evaluations may take some time. Still, because Moorad has already traded Hairston once (from the Arizona Diamondbacks), and for a pitcher with a broken hand (Leo Rosales), some of his due diligence may already be done."