Parent a Fit Padre After Treatment for Muscle Strain

The Padres received a scare when backup catcher Mark Parent strained muscle tissue in his back this past week while lifting weights this past week. After receiving several treatments, he was pronounced fit in an examination Monday.

“It was a scare more than anything,” Parent said. “But after seeing that scar on (former teammate) Eric Show’s back, I didn’t want to take any chances. The doctors said I’ll be fine.”

Parent is one of 38 players the Padres protected on their 40-man roster, which was submitted Tuesday to the National League office. The Padres previously had only 36 players, but added outfielder Mike Humphreys and relief pitcher Candy Sierra.

Humphreys is considered one of the Padres’ top prospects. He batted .276 with 17 homers and 79 RBIs, and had 37 stolen bases for double-A Wichita before being promoted to triple-A Las Vegas for the final 12 games of the season. Sierra was 3-4 with a 2.14 ERA in 38 games for Class-A Riverside, and was 2-1 with a 5.89 ERA in 15 games for Las Vegas.

In other news, Sandy Alomar, fired as the Padre third-base coach in October, stopped by the stadium Tuesday to clean out his locker. Alomar, who also was recently fired as manager of the Ponce, Puerto Rico, team in winter ball, says he has been hired as a roving minor-league instructor for the Chicago Cubs.

The Padres say they will open spring training Feb. 25, when pitchers and catchers are required to report, with their first workouts scheduled Feb. 26. The rest of the team is scheduled to report Feb. 28, with their first workout on March 1.