THE WORLD SERIES : New York Mets vs. Boston Red Sox : Pettis, Moseby Slightly Injured in Fight on Indian Reservation

Gary Pettis of the Angels and Lloyd Moseby of the Toronto Blue Jays were slightly injured Monday after making a wrong turn during a road rally and getting into a fight with several Indians, who said the players were trespassing on their Pow Wow Grounds, authorities said.

Several Indians told the players they were on private property that was off limits under the tribe’s agreement with the rally sponsors, Agua Caliente Tribal Chairman Richard Milanovich said.

The ballplayers refused to leave, and a fight broke out, during which Moseby was punched several times and Pettis got a nick on the hand, possibly from a knife.

Brett Butler and Cory Snyder of the Cleveland Indians came upon the scene and got a rock through their windshield.

“They had permission to be on the reservation but not on the Pow Wow Grounds,” Milanovich said.

When the ballplayers got back to the nearby Canyon Hotel, they called police, who were unable to find any Indians who would admit to any knowledge of the incident.

Pettis and Moseby went to Desert Hospital, but their injuries were not serious enough to require treatment, nurses said.

Officials from AT&T;, one of the sponsors of the rally, said they had paid the tribe $400 to hold the Jeep Road Rally on Indian land.

The ballplayers were in Palm Springs for the AT&T; Baseball Challenge, a batting, catching and fielding competition.

A Riverside County Sheriff’s Department spokesman said the ballplayers would not be charged, and charges were not likely to be filed against any of the seven Indians who were allegedly involved in the fight.

A tribal spokesman said the Pow Wow Grounds are not sacred, although many of the dances that are held during inter-tribal gatherings are closed to outsiders because of their religious significance to the Indians.