Fort Lauderdale, Fla. ? Baltimore Orioles outfielder Jay Payton could start the season on the disabled list because of a strained left hamstring, although he’s still holding out hope of returning within a week or two.

Payton sustained a grade one strain of his lower hamstring while running from second to third Monday in a spring training game against Minnesota. When he arrived at the clubhouse Tuesday, Payton slipped on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt and promptly headed toward the training room.

“I’m going to do whatever I have to do to get it right. I don’t want it to be something that’s going to linger,” he said. “After these first few days we’ll get a better gauge.”

Payton signed as a free agent with the Orioles during the offseason after hitting .296 with Oakland last year. He was poised to start on opening day next week against the Twins, but that’s almost certainly not going to happen.

“We’ll just treat it, be aggressive with it but be smart. Hopefully it won’t be a month,” he said. “It’s just a matter of whether it will be a week, two weeks. It’s kind of hard to tell right now. I can walk, but obviously I can’t run.”

The last time Payton was on the disabled list was in 2001, when he missed two months with the New York Mets with a strained right hamstring. He also missed seven weeks with a right hamstring injury in 1998, when he was in the minor leagues.

“This isn’t like that. When I did that, I couldn’t even walk,” Payton said.

But he’s a long way from sprinting from first to third on a single. Asked if Payton might start the season on the DL, Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo replied, “It’s a realistic possibility.”

Said Payton: “If I have to, I have to. My goal is not to. I’ve only been on the DL once in the last seven years. My preference is not to be on it. But if that’s what has to happen, it’s better to be a little cautious now. I’ve got a week here that I’m not really missing any games, and if I have to miss a few games in the early going to be right, then so be it.”

If Payton can’t play on opening day, Corey Patterson will likely start in center field against the Twins on opening day.