Gagne throws without arm pain in a Rangers’ ‘B’ game

Eric Gagne finally felt again as he did during his dominating run as the Dodgers closer. He pitched in a game without any pain.

Gagne faced hitters for the first time this year, throwing 11 pitches for the Texas Rangers in a “B” game Monday.

“It’s just good to be out there, be free and not have to worry about anything but making your pitches. It’s been a while since I felt that way,” Gagne said. “It’s the best I’ve felt in two years. It’s pretty positive.”

In a nearly empty stadium, Gagne pitched to three Milwaukee minor league players, throwing five strikes and six balls with his fastball in the range of 88-91 mph. There were two groundouts before a four-pitch walk on which Gagne was trying to get his curveball over the plate.

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Catcher Javy Lopez, who had been competing to make Colorado’s opening-day roster, was released by the Rockies.

Lopez, most valuable player of the 1996 National League championship series while with Atlanta, had agreed in January to a $750,000, one-year contract that wasn’t guaranteed. He will receive 30 days’ termination pay: $122,951.

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Greg Maddux was scratched from a scheduled start for the San Diego Padres because of a mild lower abdominal strain.

Maddux felt a slight strain on the second-to-last pitch of his last start, on March 8.

“He would have been available during the season, but why push it on March 12?” Manager Bud Black said.

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Jason Isringhausen is set to make his spring-training debut Thursday, right on schedule.

The St. Louis Cardinals closer sat out the World Series after hip surgery in September. He threw to hitters on a back field for the third time Monday.

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Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones sprained his left ankle on his first at-bat and was removed from a game against St. Louis. Jones broke awkwardly from the batter’s box on a grounder to first base and jogged a few steps before limping to the dugout.