Line drives to left-center field. Home runs into the blue and green seats. Without looking at the man in the batting cage Tuesday, any bystander could tell Sean Casey was hitting.

        Casey seemed to be at full strength while taking full-fledged, pregame batting practice for the first time since suffering a chip fracture on the base of his right thumb April 1.

        The Reds tentatively planned to let the first baseman play a pair of injury-rehabilitation games with Triple-A Louisville in Columbus on Thursday and Friday. But General Manager Jim Bowden could change his mind after watching Casey hit Tuesday.

        “He really doesn't need rehab games for at-bats,” Bowden said of Casey. “He's like Kevin Mitchell. He can roll out of bed and hit.”

        Casey looked wide awake as he took his practice cuts.

        “I wasn't nervous or anything,” he said. “I just wanted to get a feel for swinging the bat, then try to let it go, with my first couple of swings. Pretty soon, I forgot I was in there with a thumb injury. To swing like that and not feel anything is a step in the right direction.”

        Just the simple act of hitting thrilled Casey: “You don't know how much you miss it until you can't do it.”

        Casey, who was injured while trying to field a Will Clark line drive during an exhibition game against Baltimore, said his thumb felt relatively normal.

        “I can squeeze or put a lot of pressure on my thumb and I don't have any pain,” he said. “Obviously, it'll take a couple of weeks to fully heal. But I have no pain doing what I do.”

        D.T. IS OK: First baseman D.T. Cromer's spot on the roster could be endangered when Casey returns. Manager Jack McKeon won't tip his hand regarding how the Reds will clear roster space for Casey, because he doesn't have to at this point. Optioning Cromer to Triple-A is an obvious solution. Trimming the pitching staff from 11 to 10 is another option, albeit an unlikely one.

        Either way, McKeon's esteem for Cromer is apparent. The 29-year-old rookie made his third consecutive start at first base Tuesday.

        “He's knocked in some key runs for us,” McKeon said of Cromer, who entered the game hitting .500 (9-for-18) with a homer and five RBI.

        EARLY WORK: Ken Griffey Jr., who entered the game hitting .191, took about 20 minutes of extra batting practice with third baseman Mark Lewis in an effort to sharpen his stroke.

        Reds bench coach Ken Griffey Sr., who knows his son's hitting style better than anybody else, handled the pitching chores and occasionally offered advice between swings. Mostly, Senior told Junior to concentrate on hitting line drives.

        “He's cutting off his swing, and he knows it, too,” Reds hitting coach Denis Menke said of Griffey Jr. “I was only trying to get him to keep going through the ball like he did in spring training. He has such a great swing; it's basically a home-run swing. All he needs is for a few hits to fall in for him, and he's going to take off. That's all it takes. That's what builds up your confidence.”

        Junior went 0-for-4 Tuesday night.

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