Chill, Milton, chill

Milton Bradley is the closest he's been in his nine-year Major League Baseball career to being an All-Star. So close that Dallas Morning News columnist Tim Cowlishaw even made a nationally televised appeal on his behalf Wednesday on ESPN's "Around the Horn."

The historically volatile Texas Rangers outfielder came into Thursday's play batting a robust .333 with 45 RBIs. Teammate Josh Hamilton may be getting more pub, but no one could argue if Bradley was on the American League squad that will take the field next month at Yankee Stadium. All he'd have to do is keep playing well and maintain his cool.

SO WHY IN THE WORLD WAS BRADLEY STORMING UP FOUR FLIGHTS OF KANSAS CITY'S KAUFFMAN STADIUM AFTER WEDNESDAY'S GAME LOOKING FOR A CONFRONTATION WITH ROYALS TV ANNOUNCER RYAN LEFEBVRE?

Bradley apparently didn't like Lefebvre's on-air comments in which he praised Hamilton for turning his troubled life around as opposed to Bradley, who's had rocky stays with many of the teams he's played for and their fans. Remember the beer bottle incident at Dodger Stadium?

"I came in to watch my at-bat on the video and all of a sudden I heard my name," Bradley said Thursday. "It was a spiel like five minutes out of the blue about me. I didn't think anything he was saying was anything positive.

"I never met him and I heard him talking about me on TV. I was upset and was going to introduce myself. ... All I wanted to do was introduce myself and tell him the stuff you're talking about is uncalled for."

Texas general manager Jon Daniels interceded before Bradley reached Lefebvre. The announcer, son of former Major Leaguer Jim Lefebvre, spoke with Daniels and manager Ron Washington on Thursday to explain his comments.

"It was a conversation about how Josh Hamilton has turned his life around and has been accountable for his mistakes," Lefebvre told The Associated Press. "Right now, it seems like the baseball world and fans are rooting for him. ... It doesn't seem like Milton Bradley has done the same thing in his life."

The Rangers are Bradley's seventh Major League team, quite an accomplishment considering he's burned quite a few bridges over the years. In the midst of a career year, the last thing he needs is to be getting it on with a broadcaster who isn't exactly telling fans something they don't already know.

C'mon, Milton, chill. Try to stay calm long enough so AL manager Terry Francona doesn't have any more excuses to leave you off your first All-Star team.