PHOENIX - The Arizona Diamondbacks got some bad news Tuesday: They were unable to trade five-time Cy Young Award winner Randy Johnson, his perfect game and his 4,000 strikeouts to the New York Yankees.

Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?

Johnson is one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball, even at the age of 41. He deserved to win the National League Cy Young Award last year and would have if his teammates didn't have toothpicks for bats.

Johnson is, too, an icon in Arizona, the best athlete to grace the Valley's stage since Charles Barkley was traded to the Phoenix Suns in the summer of 1992. And if Bank One Ballpark seemed like a mausoleum last summer when the Diamondbacks lost 111 games, imagine how empty it will be if Johnson is wearing pinstripes and cashing George Steinbrenner's checks.

So why, after the Los Angeles Dodgers pulled out of the proposed three-team deal with Arizona and New York Tuesday, should the Diamondbacks continue their attempts to try to trade Johnson?

Because this is that rare instance when a team would hold a better hand without an ace.

Johnson will be a free agent after the 2005 season. Through his agents, he's made it clear he wants to finish his career with a team that has a chance to win the World Series. The Yankees fit that criteria. The Diamondbacks — at least in Johnson's estimation — don't.

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Arizona can afford Johnson next year — the team has budgeted his $16 million salary into the payroll — but the long-term cost is too high.

Trade Johnson now, and the Diamondbacks will get several players who will hasten their climb back up the National League West standings. Let him walk away as a free agent, and the organization is left holding an empty bag.

Moving Johnson at the trading deadline in July is not an option.

Johnson has said that wherever he starts the season is where he’ll finish the season.

Now, are the Diamondbacks a better club in 2005 with Johnson on the mound?

Absolutely. But Arizona won't be a playoff contender, the recent free agent signings of Troy Glaus, Russ Ortiz, Royce Clayton and Craig Counsell notwithstanding. Teams just don't go from 111 losses to the postseason, no matter how dramatic their makeover.

The Diamondbacks would have huge holes in the outfield — Shawn Green was slated to play right field; Arizona doesn't have an everyday center fielder, either — and a shallow starting rotation.

At best, the Diamondbacks are a .500 club, and that's not enough of an enticement to keep Johnson and jeopardize the future.

Trading the Big Unit won't be easy. He has a blanket no-trade clause, and there's a short list of teams he's interested in, starting with the Yankees and including, possibly, the Anaheim Angels and St. Louis Cardinals. Johnson hasn't said where he'd like to play, only that the team has to have a legitimate shot at winning a World Series.

A straight-up deal between Arizona and New York won't happen. The Diamondbacks aren't interested in the prospects the Yankees are willing to move — third baseman Eric Duncan and catcher Dioner Navarro — because they're set with Glaus at third and Koyie Hill at catcher. Hill was acquired in the trade last July that sent center fielder Steve Finley to Los Angeles.

A third team will have to get involved to meet the Diamondbacks' asking price: Two major leaguers, at least one a pitcher, and prospects. The Dodgers more than met that criteria with Green, pitcher Brad Penny, relief pitcher Yhency Brazoban and minor league pitcher Brandon Weeden and cash. It was, potentially, a terrific deal for Arizona considering it's unable to shop Johnson to the highest bidder.

What the Diamondbacks can't do is give Johnson away. They were robbed in the Curt Schilling-to-Boston deal in the winter of 2003 — even though Arizona was clearing salary to make room for Richie Sexson, it should have gotten more than Casey Fossum, now slated for the bullpen, and a couple other no-names. Trading Johnson without getting quality in return would set the organization back years.

That said, Arizona shouldn't let Los Angeles' cold feet deter it from pursuing another trade. Johnson is one of the five best starters in baseball. If Steinbrenner wants him badly enough, he'll find a third team to suit the Diamondbacks' needs.

Johnson gave the Diamondbacks an identity when he signed as a free agent in 1998 and a World Series title in 2001. But memories don't win championships.

Arizona — and Johnson — need to move on.

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