Henderson Isn’t Ready to Retire

Rickey Henderson is back in baseball.

The 45-year-old outfielder signed Sunday with the Newark Bears of the independent Atlantic League, where he played last season before returning to the majors with the Dodgers.

Henderson has the most runs (2,295), stolen bases (1,406) and walks (2,190) in major league history.

The likely Hall of Famer excelled during 56 games with Newark last year, then joined the Dodgers in July.

He played in 30 games with the Dodgers, his ninth big league team, and batted .208 with two homers, five runs batted in and three steals.

Henderson is expected to join the Bears on Wednesday and be ready for their season opener Thursday at home against the Long Island Ducks.

“The Newark Bears are a premier organization, and I will always appreciate that they allowed me to showcase my skills last season, giving me the chance to return to the majors with the Dodgers,” Henderson said in a statement released by the team.

Henderson hit .339 with eight homers, 33 RBIs, 52 runs and nine stolen bases with the Bears last season. The 10-time major league All-Star was named MVP of the Atlantic League All-Star game.

Considered the greatest leadoff hitter in history, Henderson has 3,055 hits, 1,115 RBIs and 297 home runs during his 25-year major league career.

He was the 1990 AL MVP and has played in three World Series, winning championships with Oakland in 1989 and Toronto in ’93.

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Syd Thrift, a former Pittsburgh Pirate general manager and New York Yankee and Baltimore Oriole vice president, retired as a Tampa Bay Devil Ray consultant after nearly five decades in professional baseball.

Thrift began his career in 1949 as a left-handed pitcher and first baseman in the Yankee system.

He was assistant general manager of the Chicago Cubs in the 1990s and a scout for the Yankees and Pirates in the 1950s. He also has worked for the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics and Chicago Cubs and as a consultant with the Dodgers, New York Mets and San Francisco Giants.

Thrift spent eight seasons with the Orioles organization before coming to Tampa Bay last year.

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Outfielder Kenny Lofton was activated by the New York Yankees and outfielder Bubba Crosby was optioned to the team’s triple-A affiliate at Columbus.

Lofton had been on the disabled list since April 18 because of a strained right quad after going hitless in his last 10 at-bats.

He was hitting .167 in six games.

Crosby made the team out of spring training and batted .222 in 11 games with two home runs.