Padre Notebook : Greg Harris’ Odds of Making Team Improve

Rookie Greg Harris’ chances of making the Padres began snowballing Sunday.

In his debut against big-league hitters, a 3-0 victory over the Angels, Harris threw three shutout innings, allowing one hit and one walk and striking out two bona fide big-league hitters, Tony Armas and Jack Howell.

Then he acted like he wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. “It was, uh, fun, yeah, I had fun,” he said in a thick southern drawl, choosing his words as if searching a dictionary.

Nervous?

“The first time out was a big deal, yeah, but I had to treat it like any other time.”

How did you sleep night before?

“Slept pretty good.”

Strategy?

“To throw strikes.”

As the media crowd around him departed, Greg Harris shook his head.

“I’m sorry,” he said, “but I don’t want to set myself up for a letdown I can’t handle.”

Explained roommate Eric Nolte: “He knows what the odds are. That’s why he doesn’t want to say anything.”

Whatever the odds were, they aren’t that anymore. They have gone down such that, with a pack of potential starters, Manager Larry Bowa Sunday suggested an alternate way to get him into the big leagues.

“Why can’t a starter come up and be the long reliever, getting a lot of innings, let us groom him,” Bowa said. “The Orioles always did that.”

Said Pat Dobson, pitching coach: “I think it works better that way. Get his feet on the ground, give him mop-up work, then slowly increase the pressure on him.”

“Any way to the big leagues,” he said. “I just want to be there.”

Harris was one of three pitchers who got work Sunday. Andy Hawkins allowed four hits and struckout one in three innings. Mark Grant allowed three hits and struckout one in three innings.

After three exhibition games, five of the six Padre starting pitching candidates have thrown, combining to allow just three runs in 15 innings.

Tony Gwynn says it’s no big deal, but he missed Sunday’s game, and will sit out today’s game in Mesa against Chicago, with a recurring problem in his left index finger.

Saturday afternoon Gwynn received a shot of cortisone in the finger, and has been advised not to swing or throw until Tuesday.

The problem, which has bothered Gwynn since the middle of last season, is almost appropriate for a batting champion. The finger, as it is placed around the bat, locks into that position. It must be manually straightened out before re-gripping the bat.

Doctors can’t decide whether it’s a ligament or nerve problem, and probably won’t know without surgery. Gwynn could have had that surgery this winter, but decided to rest it. The rest didn’t work.

He could still have that surgery, but it would mean missing four weeks, which Gwynn doesn’t want to do. Thus, he opted for the cortisone shot.

“If I have surgery, it will not be until after this season,” he said. “It’s not worth it now. It doesn’t hurt.

“The biggest problem is, it’s tiresome. I have to straighten out the finger after every swing. But I can play with it, I did last year.”

A little bit, yes. The finger first started locking in June. That month he hit .473. After hitting .292 in July, he hit .402 in August and .385 in September.

“I don’t think it will effect me, no,” Gwynn said.