Tejada pain-free in start at Bowie

The Baltimore Sun

BOWIE -- Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada emerged from his first minor league game in about nine years with no hits but, most importantly, no pain.

A little more than a month after fracturing his left wrist, Tejada took another step to rejoining the Orioles' lineup yesterday, going 0-for-3 with an RBI in Double-A Bowie's 8-2 victory over the Reading Phillies at Prince George's Stadium.

Hitting third and playing shortstop, Tejada popped out to short, grounded out to second base to bring in a run and grounded out to first before he was pulled from the game after the sixth inning.

He also handled three plays cleanly at shortstop, though all of the ground balls were hit at him. He was never forced to go to his left or to his right to field a ball.

Tejada is expected to play tonight at Single-A Frederick, and, barring a setback, he should be activated by the Orioles and play tomorrow night against the New York Yankees at Camden Yards.

"I'm really excited," Tejada said. "Believe me, I feel like it was my first day that I've ever played baseball. My first at-bat, I was a little bit [nervous], but I swing, and I didn't feel anything. I feel really happy about it."

The Orioles were represented at the game by assistant minor league director Tripp Norton and scout Dean Albany. President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail, executive vice president Mike Flanagan and vice president Jim Duquette did not attend.

Tejada saw a total of 15 pitches in three at-bats. The Baysox had runners on base each time Tejada came to the plate.

His RBI groundout in the third inning came with men on second and third.

His timing appeared a little off as he was late on a couple of fastballs from right-hander Patrick Overholt, but he looked comfortable at the plate, given that he hasn't had an at-bat since his bunt attempt June 21 against the San Diego Padres.

"He looked pretty good for a guy that hasn't played that much," Bowie manager Bien Figueroa said. "His first swing, he was a little off [with his timing]. But that one he popped out, he got a good swing on the ball and just missed it. He looked good.

"When you are out for almost a month, it's hard to make contact. He made contact every at-bat he had. He got some good swings."

Tejada, who was hitting .306 with seven home runs and 41 RBIs in 72 games when he went to the disabled list, fractured his left wrist when he was hit by Doug Brocail's fastball June 20. That ended his streak of 1,152 consecutive games, which was the longest current streak in the league and is the fifth-longest of all time.

"My body is fine. My wrist, I don't feel any pain," Tejada said. "It doesn't matter if I don't get any hits. What I worry about is how I'm feeling. Tomorrow I'm going to have another game, but I believe Friday I'm going to be fine."

Tejada worked out after the game and then bought the post-game food spread for the Baysox, who won the game behind seven strong innings from Fredy Deza. Several players asked him to autograph bats and balls, and Tejada happily obliged. He then said goodbye to all of the players, who appeared to thoroughly enjoy being a teammate of the star shortstop for a day.

"I love it, seeing all the smiles on the guys' faces," said Baysox outfielder Jeff Fiorentino, who had stints with the Orioles in the 2005 and 2006 seasons. "It was a good atmosphere. You can give him this W. He brought out a little extra in everybody."

Tejada, who hasn't played in a minor league game since 1998, when he played for Huntsville, the Oakland Athletics' Double-A affiliate, said he was looking forward to going home and taking a nap. He said he woke up about 6 a.m. to make sure he wasn't late reporting to the stadium.

He arrived about 9 a.m. and took live outdoor batting practice an hour later for the first time since the injury. He hit several homers during batting practice and said afterward that he felt strong.

"He looked real good," Fiorentino said. "He didn't look like he missed a [month]. I was watching him in BP, and same short swing, quick hands. He was crushing balls. It was effortless."

Tejada said he enjoyed the experience but looks forward to returning to the Orioles.

"The team is doing great," he said of the big league club. "I'm going to go up there, and I think we're going to be much better when I get back."

jeff.zrebiec@baltsun.com

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