There’s no truth to the rumor Lastings Milledge is demanding a trade to Atlanta. From BP Sports.net (link swiped from Repoz and Baseball Think Factory).

Q: What advice would you give to athletes and coaches on embracing leadership roles?

John Smolz : The one thing I often hear is, œHow do I gain favor? How do I reach people where I™m at? Let™s say, for my sport, you™ve got a rookie who doesn™t feel like he can speak up or voice things. And that may be true in the sense of his status in the game, but his status in the game of life is as Christ™s, and there we are all at that same level. That is the beauty of the body of Christ”knowing that He died for everybody. He didn™t just die to elevate some and not others; we all have it.

So, my advice is just to stay the course. Find out who God wants you to be and stay the course. Draw that line in the sand, because over time you are going to gain favor. Immediately you may hear, œGet away, rook™, or, œYou don™t know what you™re talking about. That may be part of it, and you may not get to have an audible voice, but you will have a visual appearance. You™ll have an impact with how you carry yourself and how you influence and serve others.