Brown Feels Somewhat Encouraged

Kevin Brown played catch for the second consecutive day Sunday and, depending on how his arm reacts to the activity, he might play catch again Tuesday at Dodger Stadium.

“It felt pretty good,” said Brown, on the disabled list since June 4 because of an irritated nerve in his neck.

Brown is also regaining strength in his right (pitching) arm and hand.

“I’m encouraged,” Brown said. “You have to look at the two sides--how it feels when you’re working it and how it reacts. We just have to play it by ear.”

Manager Jim Tracy said Brown lately has been in better spirits.

“A lot of it has to do with him being relieved as far as the neck is concerned and it not being something that’s going to require surgery or anything like that,” Tracy said. “That’s a big load off of his mind.”

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Rookie utility player Hiram Bocachica was not in the lineup Sunday after coming out in the seventh inning of Saturday night’s loss to the Angels because of tightening in his left hamstring.

Bocachica was hit by a pitch in the hamstring Friday night by Angel reliever Ben Weber.

“It tightened up when I was running,” Bocachica said. “With the situation we’re going through [with injuries], hurting it worse would be the last thing we’d need right now.”

Said Tracy: “He’s definitely usable today but we’re going to err on the side of caution because we’re more than likely going to see two left-handed pitchers Tuesday and Wednesday [against the Arizona Diamondbacks].”

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Shawn Green grew up in Tustin and experienced first-hand two of the more seminal moments in Southland baseball history. Yet, as a young fan, the allure of a Freeway Series never meant much to the Dodger right fielder.

“I just grew up playing all the time so I was more a baseball fan,” Green said. “I wouldn’t say I had a certain team I would follow so much.

“But I followed the Dodgers when they won the World Series and followed the Angels when they went to the playoffs.”

Green, 28, was in the Anaheim Stadium stands on Oct. 12, 1986, when Angel closer Donnie Moore surrendered the American League championship series-altering home run to Boston’s Dave Henderson.

Green also was at Dodger Stadium two years later when Kirk Gibson limped to the plate on Oct. 15, 1988 and hit his game-winning homer off Oakland’s Dennis Eckersley in Game 1 of the World Series.

In six Freeway Series games this season, Green batted .240 (six for 25) with a double and one run batted in and scored two runs.

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Alex Cora extended his hitting streak to five games with a second-inning run-scoring single Sunday. He has raised his average 10 points to .230 in the last week and is batting .350 during his streak. . . . The Dodger record on the road dropped to 13-21.