Memo to D-Backs: Clay is unavailable for pennant run

Today’s question: What exactly does it mean when a baseball player gets “designated for assignment?” My shoulder has been bothering me lately. I’m not sure what I did to it. I only mention this because it is my right shoulder, my throwing arm, so I am afraid I will not be available if the Diamondbacks were hoping to call me up later in the season for their pennant run.

But I cannot be designated for assignment, since I wasn’t designated to begin with.

A player who is designated for assignment is removed from his team’s 40-man roster (the reserve list) and the 25-man active roster.

The club then has seven days to release him, trade him or send him to the minors.

There are a lot of other details regarding salaries, contracts, trade strategies, years of service and so on, but I am too depressed about my shoulder to go into them just now. What is the “D” in D-Day? People have all sorts of ideas about this — designated, disembarkation, death, decision, doomsday and so on and so forth.

In fact, the “D” didn’t really mean anything other than “day.” It was just a sort of code, like “H” for hour. Why is there silica in sunscreen? Silica is a very common mineral that is used in sunscreen and cosmetics and other stuff for a number of reasons.

It absorbs oils and sweat, helps sunscreen and cosmetics stick to your skin and thickens the consistency of sunscreens or lotions. Because it absorbs moisture it is used in some food as a flow agent.