Nakamura Called Up; Perez Injured

It sounds like a tired cliche: Norihiro Nakamura thought he was dreaming when informed the Dodgers had called him up from triple A.

But this familiar story has a twist. Nakamura was awakened from a deep sleep after midnight Sunday in a Colorado Springs hotel room by Jerry Royster, manager of the Las Vegas 51s, who told him he would leave in the morning for Bank One Ballpark.

Nakamura, 31, didn’t remember the conversation until showering the next morning. “Only then did I realize I was promoted,” he said. “The dream became a reality.”

His flight left the ground just before a snowstorm hit. Nothing but blue skies in Arizona, though. He lined a single to right field as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning.

“This is why I left Japan, to play in the major leagues,” he said.

Nakamura was five for 10 with six runs batted in and two home runs for Las Vegas. A Dodger roster spot opened when utility infielder Antonio Perez went on the disabled list because of a pulled left hamstring.

The loss of Perez leaves the Dodgers thin at second base. No one besides starter Jeff Kent has played extensively there. Third baseman Jose Valentin has logged 19 games at second in 13 seasons.

Nakamura, 31, says he is willing to play second in a pinch, although Manager Jim Tracy said Valentin was the first option.

Triple-A reliever Frank Brooks was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for Nakamura. Brooks was passed over for a bullpen spot in favor of Kelly Wunsch and will remain at Las Vegas unless he is picked up by another team on waivers in the next 10 days.

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Brad Penny is scheduled to throw 70 pitches against minor leaguers Wednesday, and Tracy says he hopes the outing is in a Florida State League game and not just another simulated setting at Dodgertown.

It has become increasingly clear that Penny determines the pace of his rehabilitation from a biceps injury, not the Dodgers.

“There is what we’d like to see, and there is what he’s feeling,” Tracy said. “Do we want him to feel like we are rushing him? No.”

Tracy said the earliest Penny could pitch for the Dodgers would be April 24 at Colorado, although some point during the nine-game homestand that follows is more realistic.

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J. D. Drew was due. The Dodger outfielder signed to a five-year, $55-million contract stepped to the plate in the seventh inning 0 for 25.

He singled past shortstop Royce Clayton, then hit another single to open the ninth, raising his average to .074.

“You can’t get wrapped up in your numbers this early,” he said. “I’ve been through this kind of thing before. You just keep swinging and keep believing in yourself, and the hits start falling.”

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Outfielder Milton Bradley did not start, because of soreness caused when he made a diving catch in the eighth inning Saturday. ... Minor league outfielder Jon Weber is serving a 15-day suspension for having tested positive for an illegal substance last season before the Dodgers signed him. Weber, who said he used an over-the-counter supplement containing ephedra, will play in double A this season.