Bay realizes return this season highly unlikely

Jason Bay was one of the several dozens of Mets players on the field for batting practice Wednesday, and he was dressed in his uniform just like everyone else.

But while his teammates took their swings, all Bay did was stand behind the cage and watch. Sidelined with a concussion that he suffered July 23, Bay still refuses to rule out a return this season. Yet at the same time the leftfielder is admittedly coming to grips with the fact that realistically it's probably not going to happen.

"I understand it's probably highly unlikely," Bay said. "But it's still a goal."

The headaches have been gone for almost two weeks now, which he said he barely noticed at first because he had gotten so used to them.

That Bay can joke about the headaches that dogged him on and off for more than a month has to be viewed as a good sign. Standing in the dugout after batting practice, Bay said it's felt good to start being physically active again, even if it's just stretching with his teammates, running and playing catch.

A large part of his motivation to return in the final weeks is so he can end his disappointing first season with the Mets on something resembling a positive note.

"Things didn't go as well as I wanted to on a number of fronts," said Bay, who is hitting .259 with six home runs in 348 at-bats. He's in the first year of his four-year, $66-million contract.

Last Friday Bay spoke optimistically about hoping to swing a bat for the first time sometime soon, but that hasn't happened.

That doesn't bode well for Bay's hopes of returning sometime within the Mets' final 16 games, and he knows it.

"I hate to sit here right now and say I'm not going to play again, but every day that passes and you don't take these giant leaps forward, you realize that you're that much further behind," he said. "And like I said, I realize the ramifications of the days and where I'm at. I'm not going to squash it, but I'm realistic."

The Mets apparently feel the same way. When general manager Omar Minaya was asked earlier if he still thinks there's a chance Bay is going to return this season, he said, "I'm not going to say he's not , but right now he's only running and playing catch."

After the Mets finished batting practice, Bay stayed on the field to catch up with the people he knows from his days with the Pirates. It's only been a little more than two years since they traded him to Boston, but he said there's only a handful of people still remaining.

"Seems like it's been a lot longer than it has," he said.

The same thing could be said about his first year with the Mets, and in that sense he admitted he's already looking forward to the clean slate that comes with spring training.

"Next year," he said, "is a year to redeem yourself."