Pedro Martinez is ready to stage his second-half comeback. After an OK showing at the World Baseball Classic, he spent the first half of this season trying to drum up interest from contending teams.

Tipsheet was hoping the Cardinals would make a bid, since Pedro could add some presence to this rotation while only costing money.

Do you think Albert Pujols would like having Pedro in the fifth rotation spot?

Alas, it appears the Phillies will take this plunge instead.

If reports are true from the Dominican Republic – that Martinez hit 93 miles per hour with his fastball this week – then Philadelphia will be glad to have him.

So what if he is just a five- or six-inning pitcher at this point of his career? Many teams (the Cards included) employ five- and six-inning starters possessing none of Pedro’s big-game credentials.

Philadelphia Daily News columnist Phil Hoffman had reservations about Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. making this move: “It would be a reach into the past. It would be wishful thinking writ large. If it is the only move Amaro can make - either for budgetary reasons or because no one else shakes loose - it would become the shorthand that everyone would use for the general manager’s first season.”

BILLY GOAT CURSE, CONT.

Chicago Tribune columnist Rick Morrissey wonders if the Cubs should start looking for the white flag:

“When Ryan Dempster broke his toe jumping over a short fence in front of the Cubs’ dugout the other day, it should have made the standard North Side fan stand up, take notice and begin the wallowing-in-self-pity process. Lou Piniella coined the term ‘Cubbie occurrence’ to describe the strange things that seem to happen regularly to this franchise. He probably regrets coming up with the phrase now, having seen his share of them in 2 1/2 years on the job.

“But he was dead-on with it, and Dempster’s injury is absolutely one of those Cubbie occurrences.

“Given the Cubs’ history, that broken big toe would seem to be a blinking neon light indicating this most definitely is not the year. The team hasn’t played well, hitters who normally are consistent hitters aren’t … and now this. It looks a lot like cosmic taunting, probably because it is.”

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while wondering how the Cardinals can go out in public wearing those mustaches:

• Isn’t it fun watching Tony La Russa and Piniella approach this mid-July series like a playoff series, juggling their pitching rotations and the like?
• Shouldn’t both managers just focus on getting their under-productive veterans on track for the second half of the season?
• Now that Ryan Ludwick is hitting again, do the A’s regret not acquiring him from the Cards in a deal for Matt Holliday?
• Since Holliday hasn’t hit a home run since June 5 — and has just six RBI since June 6 — what can Oakland realistic expect to get in a trade for him now?
• Should ESPN ever put Erin Andrews into the line of fire?
• Would anybody be surprised if Jose Canseco ended up marrying Tonya Harding in another one of his publicity stunts?
• Why did Sports illustrated airbrush away the tattoo adorning the back of St. Louis Aces star Anna Kournikova? Why couldn’t SI let Anna be Anna?
• Why would a man wear a bra to the ballpark in support of Manny Ramirez?

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Terrence Moore, FanHouse, on Mark McGwire: “There is no better time than now for the former St. Louis Cardinals star to end his cowardly seclusion. He could leave the shadows of southern California to speak in the spotlight of the All-Star festivities that begin this weekend in St. Louis. He could do so without a Jimmy Swaggert confession, but it wouldn’t hurt his rapidly sliding chances for reaching Cooperstown if he included some crying and a lot of pleading. Now is the time for McGwire to do what he hasn’t done since the start of his little controversy involving performance-enhancing drugs, and that is, provide folks with answers to a slew of questions. Did you use steroids to bash most of those home runs? If so, when did you start the practice? If you are innocent, why did you vanish regarding baseball in general and the Cardinals in particular? Now is the time for McGwire to tell us the truth. Now is the time for McGwire to tell us everything. Now is the time for McGwire to tell us something.”

Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle: “The Cubs have some interesting chemistry working, with blow tops Lou Piniella, Carlos Zambrano and others feeding off the group’s mad energy. May I suggest two moves? Hire Bobby Knight to coach third base, and hang a piñata in the dugout.”

Greg Cote, Miami Herald: “North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams has an autobiography out in November called, Hard Work: My Life On and Off the Court. I just hope the book is half as exciting as the title!”

Joe Posnanski, SI.com: “You can’t compare Roger Federer to Tiger Woods. There’s no way. No way. They’re in totally different sports. Their styles are too contrasting. And yet, how can you NOT compare them? Here we are, living in this time when Federer and Woods are making their arguments for history, their cases as the greatest tennis player and greatest golfer ever. They are ever-present. They are friends. They are the two most dominant athletes in the world. How can you not compare them? Do you want to compare their numbers and trophies? Pointless. Futile. It’s like trying to find the starting point of a circle or the strengths of the Washington Nationals.”

Patrick Hruby, ESPN.com: “In a new book, Los Angeles Galaxy teammate Landon Donovan rips pricey MLS import-cum-American soccer savior (David) Beckham as overpaid, undercommitted and a poor leader, shocking the futbol world with the revelations that: a) there is something called MLS; b) MLS has a team nicknamed Galaxy; c) the Galaxy feature a guy named Landon Donovan.”

Ostler again: “The Arizona Diamondbacks saluted one of their fans for punching out 50,000 All-Star Game ballots. Apparently there were some hanging chads, and now, somehow, Eric Byrnes is the president of the United States.”

MEGAPHONE

“NASCAR can take steps to look at it. If the second-place driver dumps the leader, then black flag his (backside). He doesn’t get the win. If he’s up alongside the leader and dumps him, give the third-place car the victory.”

Kyle Busch, reacting to Tony Stewart’s impolite bump-and-pass victory at Daytona.