THE SIDELINES : Reds’ Insurance May Pay Davis

Cincinnati Reds’ outfielder Eric Davis may have the last laugh in his squabble with owner Marge Schott over who pays the bills for his recent hospital stay and flight home from Oakland.

Davis suffered a lacerated kidney while diving for a fly ball in Game 4 of the World Series and was hospitalized in Oakland while the rest of the team flew back to Cincinnati to celebrate the sweep of the Oakland A’s.

Davis, at a cost of $15,000, flew back to Cincinnati last week in a private jet. He wants the Reds to pick up the tab for the flight and accompanying medical supervision.

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation says Davis’ hospital and medical bills can and will be paid through workers’ compensation because he was injured on the job.

However, the Reds are self-insured, meaning they pay their workers’ compensation bills directly instead of paying into the state’s insurance fund.

Linda Murray, a spokesman for the bureau, said it also is possible that the trip home would be covered if it is decided it was part of the medical treatment.