Mark Ellis ran closer to full speed today than he has since straining his right quadriceps muscle on April 26. The Dodgers second baseman looked good as he sprinted in the outfield under the watch of head athletic trainer Sue Falsone, and felt fine afterward.

“It’s not there yet but it’s getting close,” Ellis said. “It’s better than it was a couple days ago.”

Ellis hasn’t run the bases yet and that’s the next item to check off his rehab schedule. He won’t play in a minor-league rehabilitation game until that happens.

“We haven’t talked about when a rehab game would be,” Ellis said.

Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said he thinks Ellis could return close to May 22, the final day of a six-game road trip to Atlanta and Milwuakee. May 23 is an off-day before the Dodgers return home for a five-game homestand.