WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- It was there for the taking, the emergency replacement fill-in substitute fifth-starter job, but Edwin Jackson didn't seize the opportunity Thursday.

With Wilson Alvarez's shoulder ailing, Jackson gave up seven runs in five innings to the Cleveland Indians, his ERA going up to 8.79, not counting the five runs in two innings he allowed during a rainout against Washington.

Elmer Dessens will pitch in a minor league game Saturday to build endurance, and names like D.J. Houlton, Buddy Carlyle and Ryan Rupe are still in the mix because Alvarez isn't sure he'll be ready for Game 5 in Arizona.

"I'm not worried about it being a bad injury; I'm worried about not being ready for the season," said Alvarez. "This hasn't been a good spring for me."

He was diagnosed with a mild case of shoulder tendinitis earlier this week and with the trade of Kazuhisa Ishii, the timing wasn't great -- Alvarez presumably was to stand in for Ishii until Brad Penny is ready.

Without the injury, Alvarez might have started Game 2 instead of Odalis Perez, who had been slowed by similar shoulder irritation. Now Perez again becomes the likely starter of Game 2, to go as long as he can.

A shoulder injury for Alvarez is a red flag. He had one while with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays that lasted about four years and required surgery, although he said this is different.

"This is something that will go away in a few days," he said. "My problem before was deep inside; this is the muscle. I felt it a few days ago. It was tight, not pain. They just said take a couple of days off."

Alvarez said he would play catch over the next few days, possibly have a bullpen session Saturday and return to game action early next week.

Nonetheless, that puts him further behind schedule, which he said is what led to the injury. Because he missed a week with the flu, Alvarez said he made too many pitches during an intrasquad game last Friday designed to help him catch up.

"I'd only made 20 pitches and 31 pitches in my other two games, and I got up to 84 last week," he said. "That was my fault. Colby (pitching coach Jim Colborn) wanted to take me out; I wanted to throw more. I was trying to rush it. You can't go from 31 pitches to 84. That was my fault. I'm not too far behind to be a reliever, as long as I can get back next week. As a starter, I'm behind."

Jackson isn't behind in innings. He has 14 1/3, which trails only Jeff Weaver, Scott Erickson and Derek Lowe. But he's allowed 19 hits and nine walks with four strikeouts. If you include the rainout, the total is 25 hits and 11 walks. Last spring, when he was given the fifth-starter job and gave it back, he had a 9.28 ERA.

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Werth still hurt: Jayson Werth said his healing left wrist is still sore and he'll probably start the season on the disabled list.

"I've got the flexibility back, but I feel it right there," he said, turning his wrist taking a swing into the air of the clubhouse. "I don't know if I'll make it (by Opening Day). You're asking me questions I don't have the answers to."

Penny in a game: Penny will make his spring debut Friday, when he's scheduled to pitch one inning in a minor league game at Vero Beach.

The right-hander, who has had no setbacks this spring as he slowly recovers from a rare nerve injury to his arm, last pitched in a game Sept. 22 in San Diego, leaving in the fourth inning.

More on Jackson: Colborn said Jackson has made considerable improvement from a year ago.

"His stuff is pretty good, his delivery is more consistent than any point last year, but to get to the point where he can repeat pitches isn't 100 percent," said Colborn. "Every time he pitches a bad pitch, it gets spanked. He's a better pitcher than last year. He still has more to learn."

Colborn cited Jackson's changeup as proof of his progress.

"He didn't even have one last spring," he said. "Today he threw it and actually had a swing and a miss."

Manager Jim Tracy said Jackson's problem Thursday was not throwing strikes early in the count.

"To have an outing like today is not going to work at the Major League level and not many times at the minor league level," said Tracy.

While Tracy said Jackson is "drastically improved from last year," he said the club needs to "sit down and discuss" where Jackson will pitch. When that happens, the decision likely will be Las Vegas. Jackson, 21, has not spent an entire season at Triple-A.

Kent on the NL West: Who better to handicap the dynamics of the National League West without Barry Bonds than his former teammate, new Dodgers second baseman Jeff Kent?

Kent took a partial pass, saying trying to handicap a division in the spring is a waste of time. But he said anyone who draws conclusions from the loss of any one player doesn't understand why teams win.

"Barry never won a championship. To say he makes the difference, that's hard to say," said Kent. "It's not all about Barry Bonds. It's the team that plays together and wins. If the Giants are going to be good, it's because they're a good team; it's not just about Barry. That's why we won there and went to the World Series in 2002. We had a great team. It's the team."

And his impressions of his new team with the season start less than two weeks away?

"This team doesn't have a go-to guy; we've got complementary players, and this team will do good things throughout the year," he said.

Coming up: Erickson, who has done all he can to win a starting spot in the rotation, starts Friday against St. Louis at Vero Beach. But the most critical pitching appearance will be by Penny, who will make his first game appearance in a minor league game at Vero Beach. Penny is returning from an arm nerve injury that will have him start the season on the disabled list.