D-Backs notebook: Byrnes on DL for first time in career

Eric Byrnes was placed on the disabled list Tuesday, his hamstrings never able to sufficiently recover from a footrace with Chris Young in Tucson the day before position players began spring training work.

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“We were having some fun, pushing each other,” said Byrnes, on the disabled list for the first time in his pro career.

“It was just a little tweak that stayed there and stayed there and stayed there. What happened was, I overcompensated on the other side, and then I definitely felt something go on the other side.”

Byrnes, hitting .219 with six home runs and 23 RBIs, admitted that he has not been able to run the way he normally does, although he would not say his recent 14-for-91 skid is injury-related.

At the same time, “each day I came to the ballpark, it was a mystery until I went out there,” he said of his condition.

“One day one feels great and the other one feels terrible. And the next day, it is the exact opposite,” Byrnes said.

The D-Backs approached Byrnes about the possibility of going on the disabled list during the last homestand, but believed he was improving enough to let him play on the road trip.

“He’s not 100 percent in my opinion, not really even close,” manager Bob Melvin said. “He needs all his weapons to be Eric Byrnes, and we need him to be 100 percent.”

Byrnes became the 11th major leaguer to hit 20 home runs and steal 50 bases in the same season when he did it last year, but he has just four steals in seven attempts this season.

“I think they made the decision that was best for the team,” Byrnes said. “Whether I like it or not now, I agree with it.”

Jeff Salazar and Chris Burke will get starts in left field in Byrnes’ absence, Melvin said.

DAVIS HOME AGAIN

Doug Davis will make his first home start today since undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous thyroid. He made his return last Friday, in an 11-1 victory in Atlanta.

“I got the first one out of the way, so I’ll be able to control my emotions a little more because I know what to expect,” said Davis, who gave up one run in seven innings. “I just went from one pitch to the next. It never was in the back of my mind that I just got back from cancer, which is what I wanted.

As for today’s start, “I’m just hoping I don’t disappoint,” Davis said.

Told that doesn’t seem possible, he said: “I hope I don’t disappoint myself, then, my expectations.”

SHORT HOPS

Chad Tracy started at third base Tuesday, his second straight start since returning from a rehab assignment at Class AAA Tucson. Tracy started at first base Monday. Both his starts have come against left-handed pitchers, although his role is a work in progress, Melvin said.

“I don’t have a formula. I don’t know how it will play out. We do have regulars we run out there, which he will go in there and spell. When he is not in the starting lineup, he will be a bat off the bench. The one thing we have missed a little bit is a power guy off the bench, and he gives us that.”

Reynolds will start at third the next two days against lefties Jonathan Sanchez and Barry Zito, Melvin said. …

Alex Romero was recalled from Triple-A Tucson to take Byrnes’ spot on the roster. Romero, hitting .331 with two home runs and 12 RBIs, was chosen over Trot Nixon, who was hitting .299 with seven homers and 25 RBIs.

The D-Backs would have had to create a spot on the 40-man roster for Nixon, and Romero is considered a more versatile defender, capable of playing all three outfield positions.