ESPN Buster Olney Blog

Aaron Hill can joke about the collision now. And as he tells the story, the guy who hit him with an elbow last May 29 is 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, a monster who delivered a blow that resulted in a concussion for Hill and knocked out the second baseman for the rest of the season.

Or maybe the guy who hit him was actually David Eckstein, who will never be confused with Shawne Merriman. "He was just in the right spot," said Hill, laughing over the phone.

But there were a lot of weeks last year when Hill was really worried, when he'd feel dizzy, when the symptoms from his concussion were not dissipating. He left the Toronto Blue Jays in August, against his own instincts, but he had to get away because what he needed to do was to take it easy, to rest. As a player he was trained to react to adversity by pushing himself harder, by redoubling his effort. But a head injury like he suffered wouldn't go away unless he backed off.

He was unsure of when he would feel better, unsure of when he might play again. "This was not what I expected," Hill recalled. From time to time, he would hear stories about others forced to leave baseball because of concussions: Mike Matheny, the former Cardinals catcher, and Corey Koskie, the longtime third baseman for the Twins, Jays and Brewers.

It wasn't until last fall, when he started running around with his year-old golden retriever, Banks, that he began to feel better, and Monday night Hill played in his first regular-season game since his injury. "Opening Day is really special, anyway, but I just felt blessed," Hill said. "I felt really thankful that it worked out. It's terrible that things like this have to happen to make you appreciate it."

Hill had a moment in spring training which reinforced the reality of just how fragile a comeback from a concussion could be. He bumped into Koskie, who attempted a comeback with the Cubs this spring, and while they chatted Hill asked Koskie how he was feeling. He says he could see in the way Koskie answered the question that the third baseman was still bothered, still affected. "I was telling him what everybody had been telling me: 'Hey, take it easy,'" Hill recalled.

Weeks later, Koskie ended his comeback attempt and retired, after reportedly feeling dizziness. Hill is back and playing, and Tuesday night he slammed a three-run homer.

Outside consultant

After last season ended, the Mets assessed the market for closers and locked in on three possibilities: Francisco Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes and J.J. Putz. Omar Minaya had worked with Jack Zduriencik in the Mets organization, and after Zduriencik got the job as Seattle general manager, Minaya called and let him know that if the Mariners ever felt like they might move Putz, the Mets would be interested. In time, the Mets signed Rodriguez and were closing in on a deal for Putz. And as the Mets considered different ways to structure the deal, in a roundabout way they got some help from Boston second baseman Dustin Pedroia.

The Mets heard, as they did their background work in the trade discussions, that Pedroia was impressed with the nasty stuff of Seattle reliever Sean Green. "He's got a bowling-ball sinker," in the mind of one talent evaluator, and as the trade talks for Putz advanced, the Mets asked that Green be put into the deal. On Opening Day, Minaya was in the stands as Green got four outs, Putz three and K-Rod the final three outs.

Afterward, Minaya walked up to Rodriguez to congratulate him on the save, feeling some relief on behalf of the pitcher; not because he had any doubts about whether Rodriguez could be successful, but because Minaya understood how quickly a talk-radio/headliner story would be created in New York if K-Rod blew his first save chance for the Mets considering the bullpen issues the Mets went through last fall.

"They got off on the right foot," Minaya said.

The Mets' bullpen provided some drama last night, but K-Rod is 2-for-2 in save chances.

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