By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

Even for someone who has won just 65 games, it can be said that Cleveland Indians pitcher Bartolo Colon is truly one for the ages.

The ages are: 26, 27 and 30.

All of which have, at one time or another recently, been listed as his official age.

Forget about figuring out Colon's assortment of pitches, it is his birthdate that has had Major League Baseball really guessing.

Fudging on the number of birthdays is nothing new in baseball. Along with doctoring baseballs and stealing signs, it has long surrounded the game. Young players have bumped their ages up to sign contracts before their time and older players have attempted to knock a couple years off in order to prolong their careers.

Indeed, age matters in baseball. Somebody who is a prospect at 25 can become a suspect at 28.

The late Hall of Fame pitcher Satchel Paige — whose motto: "How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?" — used so many ages it got to the point where he didn't know the correct one. Nor was he alone.

These days, however, we are learning just how much company they really had. That as many lies are told about ages as balks. At least nine major leaguers — and many more in the minors — have been forced to fess up since spring training started.

As a result of the increased security in the aftermath of Sept. 11, foreign players have had to furnish more detailed information about themselves which, in many cases, has lead to some surprises.

And not a little embarrassment. Atlanta's Rafael Furcal — the 2000 NL Rookie of the Year who was celebrated for stealing 40 bases as a 19-year-old, thereby surpassing Ty Cobb's mark — actually turns out to have been 21 at the time.

Pitcher Deivi Cruz, 29, is three years older than the San Diego Padres assumed. The Angels learned there was a reason Ramon Ortiz pitched with the poise of a veteran at 25. He was 28. The Rangers cut an infielder they thought was 19 when he was found to be in his mid-20s.

So wide ranging have the fibs become that an Atlanta newspaper has been running a "Guess Their Real Age" contest on its Web site. In the Colorado Rockies' clubhouse they congratulated Juan Uribe on his birthday twice — to make up for the one they didn't know he had when they assumed he was 21. (He was 22).

So far, nobody has questioned pitcher Jesse Orosco, who, according to his listed birthday, turns 45 in April.

Though, come to think of it, can University of Hawai'i volleyball coach Dave Shoji really be just 55?