DODGERS NOTEBOOK : WALLACH INJURED, TO MISS 2 WEEKS.

That Dodgers executive vice president Fred Claire was unable - or unwilling - to complete a trade for a third baseman by Wednesday night at least was softened by the presence of Tim Wallach at Class-A San Bernardino. Wallach, in fact, was due to arrive any day.

Ready for the irony?

Wallach, whom the Dodgers signed to a minor-league contract on July 25, broke a rib in a game against Stockton on Wednesday night. He will miss at least two weeks.

A veteran of 17 major-league seasons, Wallach was in his fifth game in Class-A when a Stockton baserunner attempted to steal third base - with two out. The throw drew Wallach into the runner, whose knee broke the ninth rib on Wallach's left side.

Wallach was examined Thursday night by Dr. Frank Jobe.

``I was ready, yeah,'' Wallach said of his imminent return to the big leagues. ``Physically, I was ready.''

Wallach said that he was not angry to be left at Class-A for as long as he was. His contract required a call-up on or before Aug. 5.

``I knew that it could be Aug. 5,'' Wallach said. ``I'm not going to touch that. That's not fair to them or for me.''

The temporary loss of Wallach leaves manager Bill Russell with a Mike Busch-Dave Hansen platoon. Busch is hitless in his past 15 at-bats, including 11 strikeouts. Hansen started Thursday night's game against the Florida Marlins.

He's really here: Chad Curtis has been a part of bad teams for his entire big-league career. And while the Dodgers hardly fall into the juggernaut category, they were tied for first place in the National League West when he arrived Thursday afternoon.

While it was difficult to leave Detroit - he grew up a Tigers fan and owns a home in Grand Rapids, two hours away - Los Angeles brought a new dynamic to his career.

``That's what I've been looking forward to my whole career, coming down to the last month or two of the season playing games that mean something,'' Curtis said.

Curtis was traded from the Tigers for left-handers Joey Eischen and John Cummings a couple of hours before the deadline. He was pulled from the Tigers' game in the eighth inning Wednesday night, and arrived in Los Angeles at about 3 p.m. Thursday.

``I was standing out in center field (at Dodger Stadium),'' Curtis said. ``I kind of shook myself to see if I was really there.

``I'm not going to shy away from any challenge. The bigger the better. When that adrenaline kicks in, it's a wonderful thing. I'm looking forward to that rush again.''

Curtis was in center field and batted leadoff Thursday. Asked if he were surprised, Curtis said, ``I'd be surprised if I wasn't.''

Also: Mike Harkey is pitching well enough at Triple-A Albuquerque to be considered for a promotion into the big-league bullpen. Jim Bruske appears to be the other candidate when the Dodgers replace Eischen. In the meantime, they will operate with a 10-man pitching staff.