MLB

DAMON LOOKS TO AVOID DL

PITTSBURGH — Johnny Damon has his fingers firmly crossed that the pain coming from his left arch doesn’t land him on the disabled list for the first time.

“I hope not,” Damon said when asked if the shelf was a possibility. “I don’t know, but Sunday it was real bad. Toward the end of the game it wasn’t good.”

Damon first felt discomfort in the foot Sunday during batting practice, but with Hideki Matsui’s left knee barking, Damon played through the 4-1 victory over the Reds at Yankee Stadium, going 0-for-4.

“I couldn’t move,” said Damon, who was third among AL batters with a .323 average, 10th in on-base percentage at .390, seventh in hitting with runners in scoring position at .351, and tops against right-handed pitchers with a .328 average prior to tonight’s game in Pittsburgh. “I had no chance swinging the bat or running out there at all.”

Damon, replaced in left field by call-up Justin Christian, said he fears the problem turning into what happened to Jason Giambi last season when a torn tendon in the same foot cost the first baseman nine weeks.

“I don’t want to get into the same situation that happened to Jason,” Damon said. “We don’t think it’s plantar fasciaitis, but we don’t want it to turn into something that like that and miss a lot of time. Hopefully, I will be back (Wednesday). It’s really the first time this year I have felt bad.”

Damon hasn’t been sent for tests and hasn’t taken a shot for the problem, though he said if one would help he would get in line.

Joe Girardi didn’t seem that concerned prior to the game when he said, “He is available. I wanted to get Justin in there right away. I was probably going to give (Damon) one day off here, so it’s today.”

With Matsui’s knee injured, the Pirates starting three lefties in the three-game series, and no DH in play, Damon’s departure from the lineup created a void.

“I know when I am healthy I can be a pain in the butt to other teams and do a lot of good things,” Damon said. “Sunday was awful. I had nothing going for me. There are too many good pitchers that will expose you when you are not healthy.”

Girardi moved Melky Cabrera to fill Damon’s leadoff spot and batted Christian, making his major league debut, eighth.