Atlanta Braves pitcher Greg Maddux was right on the mark when he said he felt privileged that he was able to play baseball again, even after turning in a losing effort.

Michael Jordan, who announced yesterday he is returning to the NBA this season, was right in deciding to donate his salary to disaster relief.

Quarterback Vinny Testaverde and the New York Jets were right to make an appearance at the disaster site in downtown Manhattan to buoy the spirits of the workers there.

But lets remember that these athletes were rightnot heroicto do so.

The true heroes are the rescue crews that have and continue to make far greater sacrifices at Ground Zero, as the area in New York has come to be called.

We, as fans and adorers of these pros, need to keep some perspective about ourselves now that the sports world is slowly creeping back into the national consciousness.

Our athletes have certainly displayed true compassion. They have not been the only people to rise to the occasion, however. They have just been some of the more prominent ones.

Any praise we give these athletes must be understood in the proper context. Firefighters, police officers, and relief workers are due more praise (and money, for that matter).

But for now, the clich of gaining perspective means something. As the nation mourns, the cynicism that marked the pro sports world before the events of two weeks ago is experiencing a moratorium of sorts.

Well have to see how long it takes before the next contract squabble occupies our headlines. But if the last week has been any indication, the sports world is learning its lesson and has really begun putting things in perspective.