Baseball asks for Canseco’s help

Jose Canseco was approached by two employees from Major League Baseball before a book signing appearance, and the lawyer for the former AL MVP said they asked for assistance in drug investigations.

“You could have knocked us over with a feather,” Canseco’s lawyer, Robert Saunooke, said Thursday. “Four years of denial and treating him as a pariah, and now they want his help.”

Saunooke said he and Canseco spoke with the investigators, Eduardo Dominguez Jr. and Victor Burgos, for about 15 minutes Wednesday in the green room of a Barnes & Noble bookstore in Manhattan.

“We asked, ‘Why didn’t you come before?’ ” Saunooke said, “and they said, ‘Those are good points. You’re right, and now we want you help. Anything you can do to help us, we would be very interested in.’ ”

Saunooke said that he or Canseco would call them when Canseco finishes a book tour that is scheduled to run through next week.

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Atlanta Braves left-hander Mike Hampton had another setback in his much-anticipated comeback when he was scratched from his scheduled start because of a chest injury Thursday night.

Hampton, scheduled to make his first start since Aug. 19, 2005, strained his left pectoral muscle while warming up in the bullpen before Atlanta’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was seen grimacing after throwing a pitch.

Hampton was listed as day to day.

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Bartolo Colon struck out five and gave up one hit in five scoreless innings for Triple-A Pawtucket.

The former AL Cy Young Award winner, who signed a minor league deal with Boston during the off-season, walked one and faced only 16 batters. He threw 45 of his 74 pitches for strikes and topped out at 96 mph.