BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : Daal Learning How to Get Ready

For rookie Omar Daal, the only left-handed pitcher on the Dodgers’ staff of 11, learning how to warm up properly in the bullpen has taken some time.

“I have to be careful in the bullpen for how much I throw, because I throw every day,” said Daal, who was called up from triple-A Albuquerque on May 23.

While the game dictates when the right-handed relievers warm up, Daal may be called upon at any time to pitch to a left-handed batter. It took bullpen coach Mark Cresse a while to persuade the 21-year-old not to throw too much in the bullpen.

Daal, from Venezuela, signed with the Dodgers in 1990 and pitched two seasons in the Dominican Republic before splitting last season between San Antonio and Albuquerque. He has been scored upon in four of his last five appearances to raise his ERA to 5.40 with a 1-3 record in 20 innings and 31 appearances.

“I know I can pitch better,” he said.

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Darryl Strawberry, who said last week that he planned on traveling with the team because his rehabilitation therapy program was more intense when supervised by team therapist Pat Screnar, did not make the trip. He continued his therapy at Centinela Hospital Medical Center at the club’s request, said Fred Claire, Dodger executive vice president.