Ken Davidoff's baseball insider

Do you remember when the Yankees signed Tim Raines for the 1996 season? It seemed extraneous at the time, to borrow a line from this movie, and when Raines went on the disabled list from May 22 through August 16, it appeared that George Steinbrenner had handed out a gift to his buddy, Tom Reich, who was Raines' agent.

But when Raines returned from oblivion, he provided some much needed life to a team that saw its AL East lead over Baltimore whittling away. That September, as he turned 37, he compiled an astonishing .412 on-base percentage and .595 slugging percentage. You could argue that the Yankees wouldn't have held on for the division without Raines' help.

Which brings us to Moises Alou and the 2007 Mets. As Alou missed two and a half months with a left quad injury, and as the Mets struggled offensively, the leftfielder stood out as a flop, an $8.5 million waste by Mets GM Omar Minaya. In the last week, however, Alou has raked, providing the big hit in the club's one victory over Atlanta last week and leading the way in the club's current, three-game winning streak.

If the Mets hold on against the nagging Braves and Phillies here in the final six weeks, Alou might very well be a key reason. And if that occurs, Mets fans won't care for a minute how abandoned they felt by Alou, just as Yankees fans quickly forgave "Rock" Raines for his extended disappearance.

This is an interesting week for the NL East contenders, as the Mets, Braves and Phillies wrap up series Thursday against the three NL cellar-dwellers - respectively, the Pirates, Giants and Nationals. The Phillies have split the first two against pesky Washington, and because the Mets and Braves have clobbered the lifeless Pirates and Giants, Charlie Manuel's group has actually lost ground.

If Alou can keep driving the Mets' offense, it's going to be awfully difficult for either the Braves or the Phillies to overcome the defending champs.