BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : Strawberry Set for Rehabilitation

Sitting at his locker Wednesday, Darryl Strawberry signed a minor league contract in preparation for his rehabilitation assignment that begins Friday at the Dodgers triple-A club in Albuquerque. The contract pays him $1.

Strawberry, who has been on the disabled list since May 13 to strengthen his back, says intense daily, two-hour sessions have helped him. Strawberry will play with Albuquerque while the Dodgers play six road games against the Pittsburgh Pirates and St Louis Cardinals, whose stadiums have artificial turf.

“We thought I would open on grass and play on grass and see how well my back responds,” Strawberry said.

“I am scheduled to come off the disabled list Friday and I’ll play six games down there. It’s not guaranteed that I will be playing when the team returns (June 4), we’ll have to wait and see, that’s the key.”

Strawberry, who thinks he is within at least two weeks of returning to the lineup, says he is eager to come back to the lineup as the player he was when he was healthy.

“I feel the best now that I have felt since the surgery (in October),” Strawberry said. “Better than I felt going into spring training.

“When I go back I will be dominating.”