No pain for Jeter after first baserunning drill

ARLINGTON -- Derek Jeter ran the bases without incident on Thursday at Rangers Ballpark, showing no ill effects from his right quadriceps strain. Could a return to the Yankees' lineup be on deck?

Jeter has said that he hopes to be activated for Saturday's game against the Rays at Yankee Stadium.

"I don't feel it, so that's good," Jeter said. "Whatever they tell me, man. I think I can play today. I do what I'm told. I'll go inside and see what we have tomorrow."

Jeter ran several times on the basepaths, including from first base to third base and second base to home plate, under the watch of conditioning coach Dana Cavalea.

The Yankees' captain also took a round of batting practice, slicing line drives to the outfield, and he went through fielding practice at shortstop with infield coach Mick Kelleher.

"I feel good," Jeter said. "That's the only thing I can say; I feel good. I don't feel [pain in] my leg, which is good. Now, it's up to them. I don't know what they have planned."

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said he would still be surprised if Jeter is playing on Saturday, but he wouldn't rule it out.

"The one thing that you can't do is say, 'Well, he's definitely going to be there,' and then when he's not there, all these flags go up," Girardi said. "Let's see how today goes, then we'll see how tomorrow goes, then we'll go from there."

After a three-game homestand with the Rays beginning on Friday, the Yankees will head for the West Coast to play the Dodgers and Padres. Jeter said that he did not believe playing in National League cities would be an issue.

"No problem -- we have a lot of days off coming up," Jeter said. "We have this weekend, then a day off [Monday], then two games and we have a day off. Then six games and another day off. We have a lot of days off. I'm not concerned with that. I don't make the lineup, but I'm not worried about that."