Among many other things, spring training serves as the Ghost of Baseball Seasons Past. Today, perusing the scores, I spotted Eric Milton pitching for the Dodgers; allegedly, he is vying for a rotation spot.

Every year, someone really shocks you merely by attempting a comeback. I don't know precisely what it is about Milton; he hasn't pitched since May 2007, and hasn't been good since 2001. That's not unique; the Jays have a guy in camp, Matt Clement, who hasn't pitched since 2006, though at least he was sort-of good in 2005.

Doing a search on my own website for "eric milton", I came across this comment from 2004 - I reprint as a pure act of self-amusement:

ESPN predicts that he will sign with the Yankees. The theory being, I guess, that he is a proven winner when he receives 6.5 runs per game in support, and there is a good chance the Yankees will give him that.

As it turned out, he didn't sign with the Yankees; the Reds signed him to a three year, $25.5 million contract. His record with the Reds was 16-27.

I suppose there are pitchers out there who would shock me even more if they made a major league staff this April. Kirk Rueter hasn't pitched since 2005, while Denny Neagle hasn't pitched since 2003 and Sandy Koufax hasn't pitched since 1966. But still... Eric Milton is just not a name I expected to see again. Oh well, good luck to him; in this economy, being a major league baseball pitcher is a whole lot better than being a bunch of other things.