KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- If you're watching an Atlanta Braves game on cable this spring and see the face of Kevin McGlinchy looking like that of a kid at an amusement park, don't blame him for his extra enthusiasm.

Yes, he's supposed to be there. But not yet.

The Braves organization brass always had thought the big right-hander from Massachusetts with the control of a seasoned veteran would be one of their pitchers of the future, but at 21 he may be getting ready to make his major-league debut a little earlier than expected.

Last season at this time, he never would have guessed it. After going 3-7 with a 4.90 ERA for the '97 Durham Bulls -- the last Atlanta Class A team to call Durham home -- he spent most of last season in the Carolina League again with the well-kept secret that was the Danville '97s.

But he put together an all-star campaign at Danville, going 9-8 with a 2.91 ERA and 129 strikeouts against 29 walks before getting promoted to Double-A Greenville for his last six starts.

Let's see now -- McGlinchy, a fifth-round pick in '95 -- has 344 strikeouts against 95 walks in his minor-league career and an arm like a howitzer. The Braves' starting rotation is fine while the bullpen is the club's one glaring weakness ...

So the Braves sent him to winter ball in Puerto Rico as a reliever, where he had 30 strikeouts in 30 innings at Caguas. Thus far the change is working out fine.

"They sent me down there to learn how to be a reliever -- that was the way I learned about the change," said McGlinchy, whose best fastball has been clocked above 95 mph. "I went down there and pitched well, and I'm comfortable with the role. I don't care whether it's as a starter or as a reliever, I just want to do what it takes to get to the big leagues and stay there."

Although a few eyebrows might have been raised when McGlinchy was sent for a sophomore season in the Carolina League, he said it was a great move by the Braves. "It actually helped for me to go back to A-ball and get my feet wet again," McGlinchy said. "I was able to work on a few things, and last year was the most focused I've ever been.

"I don't know when I'll be closer and when I'll be [a] setup [man], but I've just got to be ready to go throw strikes in the seventh, eighth or ninth innings. And when I know I'm going to face just a few batters, I can really let go of the ball. I have to just go out and throw strikes, have a good presence out there and a lot of confidence. That right there is half the battle."

McGlinchy appeared in relief Thursday during the Braves' 7-1 loss to the Houston Astros at Disney's Wide World of Sports, pitching a 1-2-3 seventh inning with a strikeout.

McGlinchy -- 0-2 with a 3.28 ERA, two saves and 14 strikeouts against four walks in 11 spring innings, hasn't definitely made the club for Opening Day, but the odds seem to be in his favor.

"We've still got a couple of pitching moves to make," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "But I wouldn't mind having him on our staff one bit. He's had a great spring."

McGlinchy said he's optimistic about making his debut when the Braves open next week. "But don't say I think I've made the club," McGlinchy said with a chuckle. "I don't want to jinx anything."