"Orioles third baseman Melvin Mora will likely miss the rest of the road trip with a strained left hamstring, leaving the lineup without one of its best run producers.

Mora suffered the Grade-I strain in Friday's series opener while trying to beat out a ground ball. He immediately left the game, and manager Dave Trembley said Mora might not return to the lineup until Friday.

"I would think the best-case scenario for Melvin would be to be ready to play when we get off this road trip," Trembley said. "That's kind of how I see it. If he can play before that, I think it's a bonus. From how he feels today, it's improved. But I think it would probably be doubtful for him to play in Boston. He might be limited. He might be able to pinch hit. With a day off Thursday, I think it's more realistic for him to be able to play after [that]."

Mora, who is hitting a major-league-best .393 since the All-Star break, speculated he'll be out "one week," though it could be less.

"I've just had a little cramp or something, but I've never had a pull," he said. "You have to heal and let it heal. I don't want to blow it up, but it depends on how I feel this week."

Because rosters can expand tomorrow, the Orioles won't have to put Mora on the disabled list. Today, they recalled infielder Oscar Salazar, who was recently named to the International League All-Star team after batting .316 with 13 home runs and 85 RBIs for Triple-A Norfolk.

To make room for Salazar, the Orioles optioned Radhames Liz to Norfolk, though he'll be recalled in time to start Tuesday in Boston. Garrett Olson is expected to be recalled from Norfolk to start Monday night.

F. Cabrera fined, disciplined

A day after reliever Fernando Cabrera angered Trembley by flipping the ball to him on the mound rather than handing it to his manager, the reliever was fined and disciplined by the club today.

Cabrera, who was frustrated by giving up back-to-back homers and was annoyed at right fielder Lou Montanez's failure to catch a blooper in shallow right field, apologized after the game and acknowledged that he made a mistake.

"Cabrera was fined an undisclosed amount of money and was disciplined accordingly by me," Trembley said. "That's where we're at. I am satisfied that he recognized that what he did was inappropriate, and I accept his apology."

Trembley closed the clubhouse to hold a short team meeting before batting practice today, but he declined to be specific about what was addressed.

"I talked about what's going on in September and some other things that I had to clear up, but I really don't look to put a whole lot of emphasis on it," Trembley said.

"Every time I have a meeting, it's blown out of proportion. There were just some things that I had to discuss with the team. I don't think it's anything that deserves headline attention.""