BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : Strawberry Could Play on Monday

When Darryl Strawberry promised that he could recover from his back injury sooner than everyone thought, he apparently meant even the Dodgers.

Despite tentative plans to send him to triple-A Albuquerque Sunday, there is a chance Strawberry could be in a Dodger uniform Monday in the first game of a doubleheader against the Montreal Expos.

Strawberry met with Fred Claire, Dodger vice president, and Tom Lasorda late Wednesday afternoon to plead his case.

He is so serious about wanting to return to the lineup, Strawberry set up the meeting by phoning Claire in his private box during Wednesday’s game against the San Diego Padres.

“I got kind of discouraged thinking about Albuquerque and thinking, ‘there is no need for me to go there,’ ” Strawberry said. “I told him, ‘I am ready to play here, now.’ ”

After running the bases hard Thursday, Strawberry has done virtually everything he can do in preparation for live action.

He is hitting the ball hard during batting practice. He is moving well in the field.

Claire said he would evaluate Strawberry’s condition daily and probably will not make a decision until Sunday.

“Darryl is very anxious. If he had it his way, he would be in the lineup today,” Claire said. “But I also have to listen to the doctors and trainers. I want to see how he feels (today), Saturday, Sunday.”

Claire said “there is not any question,” that Strawberry’s initial timing would be helped by going to Albuquerque.

But he admitted, “Darryl is an accomplished hitter, so I don’t know how much that would matter.”

Pedro Astacio arrived at the Dodger clubhouse Thursday from Albuquerque and will make his major league debut in the second game of today’s doubleheader. Astacio is 4-6 with a 5.86 earned-run average for Albuquerque. “Yeah, but you know what happened the last time they called up a Dominican pitcher who throws hard,” said the Phillies John Kruk, referring to Ramon Martinez, who pitched a shutout in his major league debut in 1989. . . . For the first time in recent memory, the lineup card in the Dodger dugout Thursday contained the name of the visiting team above that team’s lineup. The reason? Batting leadoff for the Phillies was Stan Javier, shortly after he had been traded for the Dodgers. Manager Tom Lasorda did not want any confusion. . . . Knowing that Javier would probably try to impress his former teammates, Eric Davis joked, “We’re going to play him to pull the ball all night.” . . . Attempting to fight off his recent wildness, reliever Steve Wilson spent early Thursday practicing pickoff throws to each base with bullpen catcher Todd Maulding on otherwise empty field. . . . This weekend series is the first time the Dodgers have played a five-game series since they swept the Chicago Cubs in 1988. Next week against the Montreal Expos will mark their first six-game series since coming to Los Angeles in 1958.