DODGERS NOTEBOOK: BULLPEN MINDSET DIFFICULT FOR DAAL.

Byline: Jill Painter Staff Writer

Omar Daal still wants to be a starter. The Dodgers still want him to pitch out of the bullpen.

If he's not a starter, Daal still wants to be traded. The Dodgers still have no plans to trade him.

Nothing's changed. Except now Daal is in the process of changing his routine.

``Every day I have to come with the mentality that I'm going to pitch,'' Daal said. ``It's difficult because I haven't pitched out of the bullpen the last four years. I'm going to have to get used to it. Quick.''

On opening day Tuesday, Daal relieved Kevin Brown in the fifth inning. Last year on opening day, Daal started for Philadelphia.

Daal will earn $5 million this year and becomes a free agent when the season is over. Daal pitched two shutout innings Tuesday before allowing two earned runs on three hits.

``I never doubted that Omar Daal wasn't a pro,'' Dodgers general manager Dan Evans said. ``I always knew he was a team player. The key is that he knows and we know that before the season is over, he's going to have to take the ball in some significant situations, whether it's as a reliever or as a starter.

``We're counting on him to be the pro that he's always been. I know he's going to start games before the season's over because that's just the way this game is.''

And with Brown's ugly start Tuesday and the control problems left-hander Kazuhisa Ishii had in spring training, it's even more plausible.

``It's in their hands, it's not in my hands,'' Daal said. ``Of course I want to be traded because I want to go somewhere I can start. If they give me the opportunity to start here, I'll stay here. It's not that I don't want to be here. I want to be where I can start.''

--Armchair quarterbacks: Brown's woeful start Tuesday - in which he allowed seven earned runs in four innings - had everyone wondering whether he was ready after September surgery to repair a torn flexor muscle in his right elbow.

``Unequivocably, he should've started,'' Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said.

--Christensen a Met: The New York Mets obtained Dodgers outfielder McKay Christensen off waivers Wednesday morning. Christensen left Wednesday and will report to the Mets today, in time for the game against Pittsburgh.

Christensen didn't make the Dodgers' 25-man roster, after Dave Roberts won the starting center fielder/leadoff job, and was out of options.

--Odds and ends: Ishii, who struggled through spring training, is scheduled to make his first start with the Dodgers on Saturday, Tracy said. ... Hall of Fame golfer Amy Alcott threw out the first pitch at Dodger Stadium. ... The Dodgers observed a moment of silence at 9:11 p.m. in honor of those who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. ... Bryan Corey, a right- handed pitcher on the Dodgers' Triple-A team in Las Vegas, suffered a broken jaw on Tuesday when he was hit by a batted ball in batting practice in Las Vegas. Corey, a Thousand Oaks High graduate, is expected to be out at least six weeks.

DODGERS vs. SAN FRANCISCO

Time: 7:10 p.m., Dodger Stadium.

TV/Radio: Fox Sports Net 2; 1150-AM, 1330-AM (Spanish).

Matchup: LHP Odalis Perez, who won the fifth-starter spot over Omar Daal, makes his first start - the 34th in his career - with the Dodgers. Perez was acquired along with Brian Jordan in a January trade that sent Gary Sheffield to Atlanta. He was 7-8 with a 4.91 ERA with the Braves last year. RHP Ryan Jensen, who made his major-league debut last year, makes his 11th career start for the Giants. Jensen was 1-2 with a 4.25 ERA last season.

- Jill Painter

CAPTION(S):

box

Box:

DODGERS vs. SAN FRANCISCO (see text)