Beltre to Be Activated Today; Reyes Optioned to Triple-A

Third baseman Adrian Beltre will be activated today from the disabled list, and a roster move will be made with utilityman Adam Melhuse, who was called up from triple-A Albuquerque Friday.

Beltre had been on the disabled list since May 29 because of a strained right hamstring.

Beltre is batting .269 with five home runs and 31 runs batted in. He had played a key role offensively, providing production batting seventh in the order, but struggled defensively, committing 12 errors. Manager Davey Johnson wants Beltre to concentrate more in the field.

Earlier, right-hander Al Reyes was optioned to Albuquerque. Reyes, who was obtained by the Dodgers in the June 13 trade that sent right-hander Alan Mills to Baltimore, was 1-0 with a 6.92 earned-run average in 13 appearances for the Orioles. He had not pitched for the Dodgers.

“You don’t necessarily like to bring a guy here and not give him an opportunity to pitch here, but I have no choice,” said Johnson, who needs to fill as many roster spots with position players as a precaution should an arbitrator fail to reduce the pending player suspensions stemming from the Wrigley Field fracas last month.

Johnson also said that right-hander Gregg Olson was better, “but I don’t like to say what we’re gonna do until I see how he feels [Sunday].”

Olson, sidelined since early in the season because of a forearm injury, has pitched two simulated games in the past three days, and Johnson said he wanted the reliever to throw some more in the batting cages Sunday. “We’ll see how he feels, then we’ll probably do something in Houston,” said Johnson, referring to the Dodger’s next trip, which begins Tuesday.

*

The Dodger-Giant game in San Francisco July 2 will be televised on ESPN, not Channel 5 as originally scheduled. The starting time has been moved from 1 p.m. to 5.

DODGERS’

DARREN DREIFORT

(4-4, 4.80 ERA)

vs.

CARDINALS’

ANDY BENES

(6-3, 4.71 ERA)

Dodger Stadium, 1 p.m.

TV--Channel 11.

Radio--KXTA (1150), KWKW (1330).

* Update--Dreifort pitched the best game of his career May 12 in a 13-0 victory over the Cardinals. He threw a two-hitter and struck out six with three walks. Benes hasn’t fared wellat Dodger Stadium, going 1-9 with a 4.50 ERA. He is 7-11 with a 3.37 ERA overall against the Dodgers.