Furcal still out because of tight back

DENVER -- Rafael Furcal’s tight lower back was improved Wednesday but not enough for the shortstop to play. And the Dodgers aren’t sure when he’ll return to the lineup.

“It doesn’t seem to be real serious,” trainer Stan Conte said. “But there’s definitely tightness in his low back. It’s not radiating. It’s not anything that looks like a nerve or a disk.

“It just looks some muscle tightness and some joint irritation.”

Conte said Furcal, who has played all season with a sprained left ankle and missed much of spring training because of a sore right shoulder, complained of back stiffness after Sunday’s home game with Arizona. The pain got worse during the two-hour flight to Denver on Monday and by the seventh inning of Tuesday’s first game he could no longer play.

“Right now he doesn’t have enough range to play. As much as he wants to get in there, he just can’t do it,” Conte said. “But he is progressing.”

Because he has played hurt all season, Furcal is on pace to set a career low in batting (.270) while his six homers and 87 runs scored are his lowest totals since his second big league season in 2001.

“He’s played through so much this year it’s unbelievable,” Manager Grady Little said. “This guy’s a good player. When he’s totally healthy he’s one of the best players in the league. And he’s certainly one of our best players.”

Ramon Martinez started in Furcal’s place in Tuesday’s second game, and rookie Tony Abreu played shortstop Wednesday.

The Dodgers downplayed reports they are one of nearly half a dozen teams being considered for a series of exhibitions to be played next March in China. The games are tentatively scheduled to be played in the stadium being built for next summer’s Beijing Olympics.

“There is still a lot to learn before decisions can be made,” said Camille Johnston, the Dodgers’ senior vice president for communications. “But we would welcome the opportunity.”

Two baseball officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Associated Press that the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres are also among the teams in the running for the proposed trip.

Delwyn Young has emerged as one of the Dodgers’ top young hitting prospects after a season in which he led the triple-A Pacific Coast League in runs (106) and doubles (54). But backup catcher Chad Moeller says he has found another area in which Young is a budding talent: chess.

“Delwyn is just learning this. It’s good for his third game right there,” Moeller said after schooling the rookie outfielder -- literally and figuratively -- before the game Wednesday.

During the three years Moeller spent in Milwaukee, the Brewers’ clubhouse developed quite a following for the game, with nearly half the team playing regularly, some on computers.

So now he’s hoping chess catches on with the Dodgers, perhaps replacing cards, dominoes and some of the other things players do in their downtime.

“There’s not many guys on this team that know how to play,” he said.

--

kevin.baxter@latimes.com