Parrish and Karros Survive the Final Cuts : Freeway Series: Dodgers keep rookie first baseman. Angels go with veteran catcher as starter.

Baseball has no conscience when it comes to roster reductions. The hearts of Angel catcher Lance Parrish, a 14-year veteran, and Eric Karros, a wide-eyed Dodger rookie first baseman, beat equally fast as Sunday’s deadline approached for reducing opening-day rosters to 25.

After the Angels’ 7-5 victory in the Freeway Series finale before a crowd of 27,618 at Dodger Stadium, it was difficult to distinguish veteran from rookie when both players learned they had made their teams. Not only did Parrish make the cut, he was named the Angels’ opening-day catcher Tuesday against the Chicago White Sox.

“It looked like things worked out,” a relieved Parrish said afterward. “I will try to take advantage of the situation. I expect myself to play better than I did last year.”

Parrish, coming off a season in which he batted .216, entered the final exhibition series uncertain of his status.

Angel Manager Buck Rodgers, however, said he had actually decided a few days ago that the team would carry three catchers, Parrish among them.

Parrish’s performance in the series--he had two hits Saturday night and hit the ball hard Sunday--earned him the starting job.

The decision to keep Parrish affected infielder Luis Sojo, who was sent down to the team’s triple-A affiliate in Edmonton.

Karros had his bags packed to Albuquerque, home of the Dodgers’ triple-A affiliate, when Manager Tommy Lasorda and Vice President Fred Claire summoned him for a meeting before the game.

Told by Claire that he was being sent down, Karros said he expected as much.

Then, the punch line.

“Fred said, ‘We’re sending you down to Vero Beach (the Dodgers’ Class-A affiliate) and you’re going to start all over,’ ” Karros recounted.

Lasorda and Claire then broke into laughter and told Karros he had made the final 25.

“They were chuckling,” Karros said. “I don’t know how funny I thought it was.”

How long Karros remains is not clear. When it was announced that pitcher Jay Howell was being placed on the 15-day disabled list because of a recurring shoulder problem, it seemed to secure a roster spot for reliever Kip Gross.

Instead, the Dodgers sent Gross to Albuquerque and kept Karros, leaving the team with three first basemen.

While they were busy manipulating their roster, the Angels received a scare when Sunday’s starting pitcher, Chuck Finley, aggravated the injury to his left toe when he tripped over first base running out a bunt in the second inning.

Finley had surgery on his left big toe in December. He left the game after pitching two scoreless innings, and his first scheduled start of the season, Friday at Milwaukee, is in doubt.

If he wasn’t already, Rodgers became a believer of the designated hitter.

“I’m glad he’s an American League pitcher,” Rodgers said of Finley. “He doesn’t have to come to bat or run the bases.”

Freeway Series Notes

Jay Howell’s 15-day stay on the disabled list is retroactive to April 4. Tuesday, he will pitch a simulated game at Dodger Stadium, then travel Wednesday to Vero Beach for a rehabilitation assignment. . . . To reduce their roster to 25, the Angels returned infielder Rene Gonzales and pitcher Chris Beasley to the minor leagues for reassignment.

After being held scoreless for 21 innings in the series, the Dodgers broke through in the fourth on a solo home run by Mike Sharperson. . . . Joe Grahe of the Angels won the Lefty Phillips Award for being the series’ outstanding pitcher. The Fresco Thompson Award for outstanding player in the series went to Angel infielder Gary DiSarcina. . . . The Angels swept the series for the second time. . . . Eric Davis was shaken after colliding with Brett Butler while the two were chasing down what turned out to be a triple by John Morris in the first inning. Davis, though, remained in the game.