Abreu’s right leg is tested in return

VERO BEACH, Fla. -- Tony Abreu returned to the lineup for the first time in 10 days Sunday and immediately gave his questionable right leg a test, racing around the bases on a single, a double and a sacrifice fly in the second inning of the Dodgers’ 7-6 loss to the Florida Marlins.

“I don’t feel really good. But it’s better now,” said Abreu, who reached on a line-drive single to center, moved to third on a double by Blake DeWitt, then scored on Derek Lowe’s line out to right.

“It’s been a long time since I played,” said Abreu, who went one for two in only his second Grapefruit League game of the spring. “The most difficult thing is when I have to run.”

Abreu, expected to get considerable playing time this season as a backup to third baseman Nomar Garciaparra and second baseman Jeff Kent, was limping noticeably after his sprint to the plate. But he stayed in the game, playing five innings at second, an inning more than planned.

“He ran the bases well and he looked good,” said bench coach Bob Schaefer. “I think he’s probably got a little thought process of ‘maybe it’s going to hurt again.’ It takes a while for a guy that’s been hurt to come back and have the confidence to know that he’s not going to be hurt again. No sense pressing him right now.

“He’s an important part of our team. He can do a lot of things for us.”

Schaefer said Abreu would sit out today’s game but was expected to play Tuesday in the Dodgers’ final Grapefruit League contest.

“He needs to get some at-bats against live pitching,” Schaefer said. “We’ll see how he is.”

On the mound, Lowe had another lackluster outing, giving up four runs on homers to Dan Uggla and Jorge Cantu in his five innings. Lowe struck out seven but also allowed six hits.

“I really haven’t had too bad a game. But I haven’t had too good a game either,” said Lowe, who has given up 12 runs in his last 11 innings. “They’ve all been pretty inconsistent. [I] really haven’t been getting into a good rhythm where outs are easy.”

Juan Pierre had two hits and two runs batted in, DeWitt doubled twice and scored twice and Jason Repko had a two-run ninth-inning homer in the Dodgers’ penultimate game at Dodgertown.

Reliever Yhency Brazoban, who has struggled in four Grapefruit League appearances, threw 20 pitches in a minor league intrasquad game on a back field Sunday morning, giving up a bloop single and a line-drive double that one-hopped the right-field fence.

Brazoban, limited by shoulder and elbow surgery to 6 2/3 major league innings over the last two seasons, said his arm feels fine but his breaking pitches have had no bite this spring.

“The velocity is there. But his secondary pitches haven’t been sharp,” pitching coach Rick Honeycutt said.

Catcher Russell Martin and outfielder Andre Ethier took some virtual batting practice as part of a promotion staged by Guinness World Records to mark the release of its book of video game records.

Using a Nintendo Wii system, Martin and Ethier tried to break the video-game home run derby standard of 51, set Friday by a 12-year-old in Ft. Myers. Martin came closest, hitting 33 homers as the Phillies’ Ryan Howard before making 10 outs. Batting as himself in his first try at the record, he homered once.

“I’ve got no pop in this game,” said Martin, who confessed to being a big fan of Wii’s table tennis game.

Ethier hit 14 and 20 homers in his two games.

Garciaparra, who hasn’t played since taking a pitch off his right wrist 10 days ago, is cutting short the Florida part of spring training to rejoin Manager Joe Torre in Arizona. Torre and the Dodgers’ split squad arrived in Phoenix from China late Sunday. . . . Pitcher Eric Hull, catcher Lucas May and outfielder Xavier Paul, who made the trip to China, were optioned to minor league camp while pitchers Tanyon Sturtze and Matt Riley, infielders Terry Tiffee and John Lindsey and outfielders George Lombard and John Ford-Griffin were reassigned. Also optioned to the minors was pitcher Cory Wade.

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kevin.baxter@latimes.com