Alomar Ready to Take Spot in Padre Infield

Rookie second baseman Roberto Alomar is expected to make his major league debut when the Padres play a doubleheader against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, beginning at 4:05 p.m. today.

Alomar, who joined the Padres Tuesday on a surprise recall after only 12 days (two over the minimum) with triple-A Las Vegas of the Pacific Coast League, was to have started at second base Wednesday night, but the Padres and Dodgers were rained out for the second consecutive night.

“I feel happy I’m going to be playing all the time,” Alomar said in a telephone interview. “They give me the second base job and they give me the confidence to play the first day up here. I came here to play hard all the time and to stay here a long, long time.”

Alomar made an impressive showing during spring training, hitting .360, but the Padres were reluctant to include him on their big-league roster because he had never played above the double-A level. He was sent to Las Vegas in one of the team’s final cuts March 25 and left the Padres’ clubhouse in Yuma, Ariz., in tears.

“They just wanted me to get a little bit more experience in triple A,” he said. “I went down there with my head up and never brought it down, and I played hard every day. I was a little disappointed, but I knew I’d be up soon.”

Alomar was hitting .270 at Las Vegas in 37 at-bats, with 2 home runs, 3 stolen bases and a PCL-leading 14 runs batted in 9 games.

“Robbie is really going to solidify our infield,” Padre Manager Larry Bowa said. “That’s what we need most right now. His time down there helped him get his feet back on the ground. I think it was good experience.”

To make room for Alomar, the 20-year-old son of third base coach Sandy Alomar, the Padres sent center fielder Stanley Jefferson to Las Vegas. Jefferson was hitting .105 with no stolen bases in 38 at-bats.

Randy Ready is expected to move from second to third, with Chris Brown, hitting .167 with 12 strikeouts in 30 at-bats, going to the bench.

Alomar will bat second behind Tony Gwynn, the defending National League batting champion.

With Jefferson’s demotion, Bowa said that for the time being, right-handed hitting rookie Shawn Abner (1 for 8) and left-handed hitting Marvell Wynne (2 for 9 with 4 RBIs) will platoon in center field and that Abner will be given every chance to win the full-time job.

“I can’t wait to hopefully show them what I can do,” Abner said. “I don’t like sitting on the bench. I guess this is my chance.”

Staff writer Bill Plaschke contributed to this story.