Beimel Cut Hand in a Bar, Not Hotel

Dodgers left-hander Joe Beimel said Thursday he was in a New York bar early Tuesday morning when he cut his pitching hand on a broken glass and not in his hotel room, as he had told team officials.

“I realize nothing good happens at a bar after a certain time,” Beimel said by telephone from Los Angeles. “When I did it I was just embarrassed. I realized I shouldn’t have been there at that time. I should have just come out and said where I was.”

Because the wound would not close adequately, the Dodgers left Beimel, one of their most effective relievers, off their roster for the National League Division Series against the left-leaning New York Mets lineup.

As of Thursday evening, Beimel had not contacted Dodgers management to reveal what actually occurred.

Beimel had plastic surgery Thursday in Los Angeles to close a gash on the little finger. He said his doctor advised him not to throw for several days but hoped he would be healed if the Dodgers were to advance to the NL Championship Series.

He said the accident happened at about 2:30 a.m. He initially tried to stem the bleeding in the bar’s bathroom. When that failed, he took a taxi to the team hotel, where he continued those efforts. After a time, he said, he called one of the Dodgers trainers to his room.

Beimel tested his finger while throwing late that morning, before rosters were due to be submitted to the league, but the stitches did not hold. Rookie Chad Billingsley took his place and Beimel returned to Los Angeles.

“I just feel bad for the team,” he said. “I let everybody down. I feel bad for my teammates, the coaches, everybody in the organization. I feel really bad about it. I should have just been honest.”

Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti said he had not tried to reach Beimel or his agent since the incident.

“We’ll deal with it when the season is over,” Colletti said. “I don’t want to make a distraction out of this thing.”

Beimel, 29, a nonroster invitee to spring training, had his best big league season, posting a 2.96 ERA in 70 innings over 62 appearances. He had a 1.32 ERA in 14 September appearances.

Times staff writer Bill Shaikin contributed to this report.

tim.brown@latimes.com