The odds that the Dodgers will acquire a ballplayer born in the 1950s continue to increase.

ESPN Insider led me to this article in the Newark Star-Ledger by Akilah Nelson, in which Dodger spokesman John Olguin is quoted as saying, "At this point, we have not committed a scout to watching (Rickey Henderson), but we may be looking at that option not too far down the road."

Nelson writes that the Dodgers would be the first team to show serious interest in Henderson, who was the MVP of Wednesday night's Atlantic League All-Star Game.

"The Dodgers are a respectable organization," Henderson told Nelson. "If they are interested in me, I am interested in them."

Note that Henderson used the first person in speaking about himself.

Meanwhile, one of the players that I identified on June 30 as a logical target for the Dodgers, Boston outfielder Trot Nixon, was nearly acquired by the Dodgers in a deal that would have sent Odalis Perez to the Red Sox, according to the Times. Nixon has hit four home runs in his past eight games. Did Kevin Brown's injury and/or Perez' near-no-hitter scuttle the deal? Or just a realization that trading your youngest starting pitcher was too scary.

Could Florida third baseman Mike Lowell reappear in the radar screen? Think about this - the worse he performs, the harder it will be for the Marlins to stay in the wild-card race and the less teams will have to offer in exchange. It's not the end of the world, but Lowell is hitless in his past 19 at-bats and 7 for his past 44 (.159 average) with six walks and two home runs. (His OPS in that stretch still cracks the .700 barrier, which is more than most Dodgers can say.)