03/31/2006 12:10 AM ET Notes: Durham planning his return By Tony Kuttner / Special to MLB.com Last year, Ray Durham hit .290 with 12 homers and 62 RBIs, mostly out of the leadoff spot. SAN FRANCISCO -- Inflammation in his left heel has kept second baseman Ray Durham off the diamond since March 25, but that should change on Friday, or maybe on Saturday. "I'll try to get a game in this weekend," said Durham. "It's something that I'll just have to deal with until it wants to leave. "We've thrown everything at it, done all the treatments, been doing all the exercises every day. We'll see what happens." In truth, the Giants haven't thrown everything at the injury -- there's been no cortisone shot yet. "We've talked about it, but I'll let them decide," said Durham. "I'd be all for it, that's for sure." One reason the 34-year-old may be so willing to accept cortisone treatment is his history of injuries since signing with San Francisco before the 2003 season. In his first year as a Giant, Durham was limited -- first by an ankle sprain, later by a pulled hamstring -- to just 110 games. He then missed much of the early part of 2004, first with a strained tendon in his knee and later with another pulled hamstring, and wound up playing in just 120 games. Last year, when he hit .290 with 12 homers and 62 RBIs, mostly out of the leadoff spot, he made it into the lineup 142 times. When healthy, Durham has been extremely productive at the plate, and that's held true through this spring. In 15 Cactus League games, Durham hit .375, with seven RBIs and six runs scored. In addition, he's collected two steals in three attempts. "I'm being realistic, and whether it hurts or not, I'm going to do the best I can," he said. "I've played with it in Spring Training, and I seemed to do pretty well." Digs at the new digs: Seven million-plus people in the Bay Area are happy that they never have to go to Candlestick Park for a baseball game ever again. But one -- a newcomer to San Francisco -- wouldn't mind being back in the old wind tunnel. "I liked to hit at the old Candlestick," said Steve Finley, an outfielder whom general manager Brian Sabean had coveted since the last century and who finally landed in San Francisco thanks to a trade with the Dodgers this past offseason. "When I stood in the batter's box there, it felt like I was going to kill the ball." That he did. In 209 at-bats over 54 games at Candlestick, Finley batted .330, with a dozen homers and 30 RBIs. And what does Finley think of the Giants' current home, where he has gone homerless in 147 at-bats, compiling a .252 average while driving in 11 runs? "I don't like this place as much, but I'll learn to like it," he said. "It seems like every time I came here, I wasn't hitting that well at the time, but I still had a couple of good games here." But unlike some other outfielders when they first put on a Giants jersey, Finley won't have to learn any new defensive tricks patrolling the lawn in front of the irregular walls at AT&T Park. "Defensively, it's easier here," said Finley, who mostly has played center. "They pull the right fielder over to cover the gap, and it makes the field smaller." Greene good to go: Only formalities keep Todd Greene off the Opening Day roster, formalities that are expected to take place no later than Saturday. The Giants have already told the veteran catcher that they plan to keep him around to serve as backup to Mike Matheny. "I wouldn't say that's a surprise," said Greene. "You have to believe in your abilities. "The bottom line is performing, and they gave me an opportunity to prove to them that I'm a quality catcher." Greene, 34, has already proved that through 10 seasons -- mostly as a backup -- with five teams, including Colorado for the past two. Still, he knows that his time on the diamond will be limited. Matheny's 1,122 innings behind the plate last year were the fourth-most by a Giant since the club moved west. "It's an honor to have a guy who's got [four] Gold Gloves on his shelf, and I look forward to learning everything I can from him," said Greene. One thing that Greene and Matheny have already discussed is calling a game in pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, compared with doing so in death-to-pitchers Coors Field. "It mentally fries you, trying to call a game [in Coors]," said Greene. "In Denver you can do the right thing sometimes, but because the ballpark is so big and so many hits fall in, it's still going to end up being a two-, three-, four-run inning. "What I learned there is that I don't care about the single runs. I'll give up a single run to save a three- or four-run inning." Welcome back: The Angels -- the half that wasn't losing to Milwaukee in Tempe -- made their first visit to San Francisco since Game 5 of the 2002 World Series, a 16-4 Giants win. Spring Training for everyone: The reserve catcher was identified as both "Todd Greene" and "Todd Green" on the scorecard, and the center-field scoreboard welcomed the "Los Angeles Angels of Anahiem," which must by somewhere near Anaheim. Up next: The Giants begin their traditional Bay Bridge Series against the A's at home on Friday at 7:15 p.m. PT, followed by a game in Oakland on Saturday and one more at home on Sunday. Left-hander Noah Lowry (1-2, 5.00 ERA) will make his final spring start on Friday. Tony Kuttner is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. -- 问我为何住西子湾头 只因沧海是我的邻居 余光中 作 --

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