By Bill Center, UNION-TRIBUNE

Saturday, August 21, 2010 at 10:46 p.m.

MILWAUKEE

Even before they met the Brewers at Miller Park on Saturday, the Padres were making news.

¢Luis Durango was recalled from Triple-A Portland to bolster the outfield and shortstop Everth Cabrera was optioned to the Beavers to create the necessary opening.

¢Second baseman David Eckstein returned from his rehab assignment and was immediately pressed into the starting lineup because Jerry Hairston Jr. was unavailable for a second straight start.

¢And right-hander Chris Young threw 37 pitches in a two-inning simulated game.

?It was fun to be out there facing hitters off a big league mound, Young said. ?Physically, it felt good. The second-inning was better with more intensity. I need to work on my command.

?The secondary stuff was better. A couple sliders were sharp and tight.

?C.Y. made a little jump, said Padres manager Bud Black. ?More than likely, there will be another simulated game in the middle of next week.

?If he keeps progressing like he has the past three weeks, (pitching in September) is not out of the question.

?C.Y.s velocity looked good, said Matt Stairs, who drove one Young fastball into the second deck in right at Miller Park. ?It was nice to see.

?Any deadline is artificial for me, Young said. ?My arm dictates the schedule. I cant push that. But if things keep going according to this, Im going to start.

Durango returns

The loss of center fielder Tony Gwynn for at least the rest of the regular season triggered the recall of Durango.

The swift Durango can play center and gives the Padres another left-handed bat for the outfield and off the bench. He could also pinch-run if needed.

?Luis gives us more balance, Black said.

This is Durangos third stint with the Padres this season. He was with the Padres from May 23 through June 1 and again from July 16-23. He is 8-for-19 at the plate this season and hitting .467 (14-for-30) in 18 games for the Padres since his debut last September.

Durango has the speed to play center, although he didnt begin to regularly play the position in the minor leagues until last season.

Cabrera, who was hitting only .205 with a .279 on-base percentage and 48 strikeouts in 195 at-bats, became the Padres fifth infielder with the return of Eckstein.

Immediate return

Black didnt expect to immediately start Eckstein when he came off the disabled list.

But with Hairston again sidelined with a migraine, Eckstein was back in action for the first time since he suffered his right calf strain July 20.

?I just made sure the body was functioning, said Eckstein, who went 3-for-9 at the plate and played 17 innings in the field during his three-game stay with Single-A Fort Wayne at Grand Rapids, Mich.

The first ball hit Ecksteins way Saturday was a rocket off the bat of Prince Fielder that ricocheted off Eckstein, allowing the games first run to score.

Full TV slate

Every Padres game for the rest of the season will be on television.

Fox will be televising all three of the Padres September home games on Saturdays: Sept. 4 vs. Colorado, Sept. 11 vs. San Francisco and Sept. 25 vs. Cincinnati. And all three of those games have been moved from 5:35 p.m. to 1:10 p.m.

Because it lost three games from its schedule, Channel 4 San Diego will add three games previously not on the TV schedule: Sept. 1 at Arizona (3:10 p.m.), Sept. 15 at Colorado (12:10 p.m.) and Sept. 30 vs. the Cubs (3:35 p.m.)

Odds and ends

¢Former Padres outfielder Jody Gerut has re-joined the organization, signing a minor league contract and reporting to Portland after being released by the Brewers on Aug. 13. Gerut was hitting .197. Gerut joins such other minor league signees as Josh Barfield, Nick Green and Wily Mo Pena.

¢An error in Saturday mornings story: The Padres have allowed 10 or more runs in only five games this season, not 15.