Green Makes Himself Handy With the Blue Jays : Baseball: Injury, slump test the patience, courage of former Tustin High standout.

Ever since he tied the State record with 147 hits and was named to the USA Today All-USA team as a senior at Tustin High, Shawn Green has been streaking down the expressway to the big leagues.

If his baseball career were reviewed like a movie, it would certainly be two thumbs up. In fact, two thumbs down have been the only things holding him back during his sprint to the majors.

He was selected by Toronto in the first round of the 1991 draft and was named to the Class-A Florida State League All-Star team in 1992 before fracturing his left thumb sliding into second base. In 1993, he moved up to double-A Knoxville, where he had 102 hits in 99 games despite spending six weeks on the disabled list with a broken right thumb.

Last season, he won the International League batting title with a .344 average for triple-A Syracuse and was named the league’s Rookie of the Year.

A .345 average in spring training was enough to ensure that Green wouldn’t have to worry about a sophomore jinx. He was a rookie again, this time in a Blue Jay uniform.

Green, 22, began the season starting about half of the games in right field and was playing like he planned on taking over the position on a full-time basis. He hit five home runs in May and his average June 4 was a very unrookie-like .320.

Then Green slipped off the fast track and this time he couldn’t point a finger at a thumb. He was healthy, but mired in a sickly slump, managing only seven hits in 53 at-bats while his once lofty batting average plummeted to a very average .241.

Wednesday night, Green made only his second start in the last six games, but provided himself with a boost of confidence and his team with the margin of victory when he slammed a two-run homer to right in the sixth inning of the Blue Jays’ 6-5 victory over the Angels.

“I was swinging the bat really well for a while and then we hit a stretch where we faced a bunch of lefties,” said Green, a left-handed hitter. “I was in and out of the lineup a lot, I think I probably got half as many at-bats in June as I got in May, and I just sort of lost my rhythm.

“It’s hard not to be overanxious when you’re not playing regularly. You just try to do too much with each at-bat. So I’m trying to stay within myself and I had a pretty good night tonight. It’s nice to contribute to a victory when you’ve been struggling.”

It’s also nice to hit a game-winning homer in front of your mother, father, sister and grandmother. But Green’s not only popular in Orange County.

He may not be a candidate for any postseason awards after this season, but he’s already forever endeared himself to Blue Jay fans. He donated a portion of his signing bonus to the Metropolitan Housing Authority Breakfast Club, a charity that provides needy children in Toronto with healthy meals on a daily basis.