Even though he is not even close to being an established player, Dickerson is thinking about protecting more than left field.

How about protecting Mother Earth and the environment?

It hit Dickerson as he watched hot dog wrappers and plastic containers littering ballparks after games.

"It started last year when I was playing at Louisville and I tried to get them to install recycling bins and to get players to cut down our use of plastic," he said.

"As athletes, especially at the big-league level, everything is so convenient for us and the fans - a 24/ 7 marketplace that makes it easy to get something to drink in plastic bottles."

Dickerson has done his research, too.

"Our goal is to have players and fans dispose of it adequately and correctly," he said. "Every year, there are 60 billion plastic bottles that are disposed of in landfills.

"That's a tremendous number and people think, 'Well, we'll just throw this away,' but plastic doesn't dissolve for a thousand years."

As Dickerson did his research, he felt it was important to reach out to other athletes and he launched his Web site, which is a popular stop.

In addition to athletes, Dickerson is reaching out to college students and says Xavier University in Cincinnati will be the first to become part of WePlay-Green, in cooperation with Rumpke Waste Management.

"We, as athletes, are trying to cut down on our use and trying to be responsible for waste," said Dickerson, saying players are pushing for nonplastic containers and recycling bins in clubhouses. "Set an example for the fans and for Baseball, a sport that is every day and on an average day 25,000 to 30,000 people show up."

When he isn't extolling the virtues of plastic avoidance, Dickerson is trying to convince manager Dusty Baker and the coaches that he should be the choice to play left field.

"He is fast, he is quick, he can hit and he can chase down balls in the outfield," Baker said. "Injuries have been his problem, and if he can stay away from those he can be a contributor."

Dickerson, already a contributor to society, knows his message has more meaning if he is wearing a bigleague Cincinnati uniform than if he wears a minorleague Louisville uniform.

So far, so good - Dickerson is hitting .308 over six games with two homers, four RBIs and a colossal catch of a long drive Friday against the Twins on which he crashed into the wall - a wooden one, not plastic.