ON THE SIDELINES : Mets’ Gooden Plans to Retire at 30

Dwight Gooden of the New York Mets wants to pitch until he is 30--six seasons from now--and retire from baseball, according to a published report.

“Right now, I plan on getting out by the time I’m 30,” the New York Post quoted Gooden as saying in today’s editions. “I’m serious. I’ve talked about this with my wife and my sister.

“I started thinking about it over the winter,” Gooden said. “I was spending time with my son, Dwight Jr. (3 years old), down in Florida where he lives with his mother. One day, he looked up at me and asked, ‘When are you going back to play ball?’

“He knew it was about time to go back for spring training and that I wouldn’t be there, and it made me sad. Your whole life is baseball for eight months a year, and you’re away from your family. I don’t want that to happen, turn around and see my kids grown up and think it’s too late.”