Maddon to be cautious with Upton

Manager will make sure quad feels good.

By EDUARDO A. ENCINA
Published July 14, 2007

ST. PETERSBURG - B.J. Upton returned to the starting lineup Friday night, but how often he plays is still uncertain.

Upton, shelved since June 9 with a left quadriceps strain, started in centerfield and batted sixth, drawing three walks and hitting a sacrifice fly in four plate appearances in the Rays' 6-4 win over the Yankees at Tropicana Field.

Upton said before the game he felt 100 percent, and he appeared steady while covering a lot of ground in centerfield.

"You saw B.J. in centerfield really roam the range out there very nicely, very easily," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.

Still, Maddon said he's not sure how he will use Upton as he returns from the leg injury. He said Upton will be re-evaluated today.

"If everybody believes he's good, he might be out there (today)," Maddon said. "If not, maybe we'll skip a day. Maybe we'll go two on and one off. We'll see how that works out, but I want him to be very honest."

Maddon said Upton will primarily play centerfield but might see time at second.

He also said that ideally he would like to move Upton up to the middle of the order once he is certain he has regained his timing and strike zone awareness.

Upton sparked the Rays offense before his injury, hitting .320 with nine homers and 30 RBIs in 55 games. The team went 8-21 in his absence.

"I tried not to watch (games on TV) because it was killing me not being out there," Upton said. "Now I'm back, and I'm going to make the best of it. I'm just looking forward to getting back on the field.

"The first half is behind us now. We've just got to move on."

LINEUP SWITCH: Maddon said he wanted to go with his best defensive lineup against future Hall of Famer Roger Clemens, so he gave utility infielder Josh Wilson the start at second over Ty Wigginton.

Wigginton was 1-for-6 against Clemens with two strikeouts. The 26-year-old Wilson, who entered Friday with 93 major-league at-bats, had never faced the 44-year-old Clemens.

"He hasn't been in (Class) A ball for a while," said Wilson, who tripled to center in his first at-bat.

"It's probably better facing him now than when he was 22 or 23, but he's still good."

Maddon also sat hot-hitting Jonny Gomes (9-for-18 in his past five games) in favor of Greg Norton, who was 6-for-13 against Clemens, at designated hitter.

MINOR MATTERS: Triple-A Durham RHP Mitch Talbot allowed one run and four hits over five innings, striking out eight and walking one Friday. RHP Chad Orvella blew a save opportunity, allowing three runs in one inning. ... At Double-A Montgomery, RHP Chris Mason won his 11th game, allowing one run on six hits over six innings. ... C Shawn Riggans was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts with Class A Vero Beach. He is 6-for-21 in six rehab games there.

Miscellany: 1B Carlos Pena is scheduled to sign autographs from 10:30 to noon today at Checkers, 8199 U.S. 19 N, Pinellas Park. RHP James Shields is scheduled to sign autographs from noon to 1 at Wal-Mart, 6192 Gunn Highway, Tampa. ... Yankees CF Melky Cabrera extended his hitting streak to a career-high 10 games. ... The Yankees hit consecutive homers for the fourth time this season and the second time in as many nights.

[Last modified July 14, 2007, 01:57:06]