Lake Buena Vista, Fla. -- An unfamiliar name has been a part of Braves camp all spring, and the best part for 21-year-old Kevin McGlinchy is that he's still around.

Manager Bobby Cox first mentioned the name of McGlinchy, the hard-throwing 6-foot-5 right-hander from Malden, Mass., as a young pitcher to watch at the pre-spring "Camp Leo." Now it's one of the few still attached to a locker in the big-league clubhouse at Disney.

"I don't know what they have in store for me, but I'm still here," said McGlinchy, among three non-roster pitchers still around. "It's nice to be up here. It's better than being in a lot of places, believe me."

McGlinchy, a fifth-round draft pick in 1995, has done much to help himself in six spring appearances. His 4.05 ERA is third in the bullpen behind John Rocker (0.00) and Odalis Perez (2.45), better than Mike Cather (5.14), Mike Remlinger (5.79), Rudy Seanez (7.50) and Mark Wohlers (9.00).

"It's one of those things where, really, I had nothing to lose," McGlinchy said. "I just try to look like I'm in control out there, get ahead, throw strikes and be aggressive. And pretty much I've done that every time. Some days I'd come out real pumped up, and I'd lose focus. But these last couple games I've come out under control, throwing strikes."

McGlinchy has pitched only six games above the Class A level in his three-year minor-league career, and all of those were as a starter last season for the Class AA Greenville Braves. He was sent to Puerto Rico over the winter to make the conversion to a reliever, something Rocker proved could be a faster way to the majors.

Making the 25-man roster is a long shot for McGlinchy, given his lack of experience, and he might be gone after the next round of cuts later this week. But the door is still open, with the uncertainty in the Braves bullpen created by Kerry Ligtenberg's elbow injury and Wohlers' comeback.

"I like his makeup," Cox said. "He's so young and inexperienced, (but) he throws strikes anyway, so what's the big deal? He's not experienced, but he's pretty gifted. He's around the dish. We'll see. It really boils down to just getting outs. I'm not opposed to anything. If they're going to contribute, why not? You don't have to have a big name to do a job."

McGlinchy will buy that. "It's not where you start, it's where you end," he said. "I think I'll make it up here someday. The only way I can do that is take the ball every time out and do the best I can."