Life Begins at 40???

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Whatever the reasons, here is my tops of the 40s list -- the best players who are 40 or older this calendar year:

1. Barry Bonds (43 in July). is an asshole

2. Roger Clemens (45 in August). He isn't getting older, he's getting richer. For two thirds of a season and practically no clubhouse face time, he'll receive about $19 million, which is more than any other pitcher in baseball. Though unlike Bonds, he hasn't improved in his 40s, it just seems that way. His ERA was 3.10 entering the year he turned 40, and it's 3.12 since. So we can't really say there's been a dropoff, either.

3. Curt Schilling (41 in November). He doesn't throw 97 mph anymore, but he still can dominate on any given night.

4. John Smoltz (turned 40 on Tuesday). Great in any role, and maybe the best competitor of his generation. He suffered a dislocated pinky on Monday night, but apparently he won't miss even one start.

5. Tom Glavine (turned 41 in March). When he struggled for the first time a couple years ago, he reinvented himself by throwing inside more often and rediscovering his curve. But considering he never threw especially hard and never had a superb breaking ball, nobody's gotten more out of his talent than Glavine, who's still an ace for the best team in the NL in what's likely his last year.

6. Trevor Hoffman (40 in October). He has had a couple bad games, but his WHIP is 0.878, lowest of his career. With his style, this could go on awhile.

7. Jamie Moyer (45 in November). His repertoire of finesse pitches has lent itself to longevity. Since he never had any velocity to lose, he's actually gotten better with age and experience (4.22 ERA before he turned 40, 4.02 since).

8. Greg Maddux (turned 41 in April). He's not what he was, but he'll still win his 15, as always, and help several on his staff (see Jake Peavy).

9. Moises Alou (41 in July). One of the most consistent hitters over the past couple decades, he was hitting .301 entering the year he turned 40, and has hit .305 since. His only drawback is he gets hurt even more now.

10. Tim Wakefield (41 in August). His current 1.79 ERA is less than half his career mark (4.25). The knuckleballer has no known expiration date.

11. Randy Johnson (44 in September). He's lost some velocity and the slider doesn't dive like it used to. About the only constants are height, back pain and the scowl. Yet he won 17 last year and can still dominate at times.

12. Orlando Hernandez (42 in October). The Mets are listing him at 37, and if this makes them feel better, who's it going to hurt? The man has a complete bag o' tricks, apparently including a fake birth certificate.

13. Luis Gonzalez (40 in September). Funny career, with an odd home run spike in his prime years. He is still being counted on as one of main Dodger power suppliers, though he isn't what he was. His .413 slugging percentage is his lowest since '97.

14. Mike Stanton (40 in June). The former Braves and Yankees stalwart has made a big comeback after he seemed to have lost it. He became the Giants' unlikely closer late last year, saving eight games (his highest total since '93), and the Reds liked enough of what they saw to give him a two-year deal. So far he isn't duplicating what he did as a Giant (7.50 ERA).

15. Omar Vizquel (turned 40 in April). He's the only middle infielder on the list. Not quite Ozzie Smith, even in his prime, but not that far behind.

Other fortysomethings (or soon to be 40s) still hangin' in there: Woody Williams (40), Craig Biggio (41), Roberto Hernandez (42), Julio Franco (48), David Wells (43), Doug Brocail (turns 40 today), Tom Gordon (turns 40 in November), Kenny Lofton (40 later this month), Mike Timlin (41), Jeff Conine (40), Steve Finley (42), Reggie Sanders (40 in December), Jose Mesa (40).