The dream that Art Canestro conceived while pitching in high school and then nursed during four years in the minor leagues finally came to life during his brief stint as a replacement player.


"It's just unreal. We played in the Astrodome a couple of days ago, and in Coors Field the last two days," said Canestro, 27, a North Bellmore, N.Y., native and left-handed relief pitcher. "That's something that's going to go down in history."


But now, along with hundreds of other wannabes, never-weres and has-beens, it is Canestro's dreams that are history. In a meeting Sunday in Colorado that was duplicated throughout the major leagues, he and the other members of New York Yankees Lite were told their services were no longer needed.


In most cases, the owners or their representatives offered thanks, and some even mentioned a possible trip to the minor leagues that could prolong the dream for months or years.


For many ersatz major-league ballplayers, the return of the regulars means re-entering the real world of working-class wages without much of a cushion, though most did get a $5,000 signing bonus and $80 a day for meals.


"Everybody's disappointed," said Kevin Kobetitisch, 25, a Copiague, N.Y., southpaw who pitched in the minor leagues for the Kansas City Royals until 1992, then alternated between playing in an independent league and driving a truck for a machine shop.


"It was a chance to make money for your family that you could probably never make anywhere else," Kobetitisch said of the $115,000 contract most replacements had signed.


The other disappointment was in coming so close to taking the field.


Canestro, who had a 1-0 record with two saves during the exhibition season, said his pitches were just beginning to hum. "You know, it's a bit of a tease," he said. "I've been getting my arm back in shape."


But none of the replacement players said he was sorry to have followed his dreams, which gave him a chance to play exhibitions on semi-hallowed ground and brought him face-to-face with childhood idols now in management.


"Absolutely, I have no regrets. I mean, spring training was great," said Dave Rodriguez, 24, of Westbury, N.Y., who, until the strike ended, was a Colorado Rockie. "This organization was top-notch. They took care of us. Everything was first-class."