BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : ‘Class Act’ Worrell Shrugs Off Boos

There was no mistaking the fans’ sentiments. The moment his name was announced Friday night, he was doused by a sea of boos that reverberated throughout Dodger Stadium.

Dodger reliever Todd Worrell has been booed many times in his career, particularly in Los Angeles, but never during pregame introductions at a season opener.

“I don’t think anybody that knows Todd Worrell is going to boo him,” fellow reliever Greg Hansell said, “because of the individual. You’re talking about a class act. It’s amazing how much he helps myself and the rest of the young guys in the bullpen.”

First baseman Eric Karros said: “You never want to see a guy booed like that, especially a good guy like that. But in this game, you’re judged only statistically, not (as) the type of person you are. You can be the biggest jerk in the world, but if you put up big numbers, they’ll cheer you.”

Worrell, the Dodgers’ highest-paid player at $4.25 million, realizes that he hasn’t lived up to expectations. He has saved only 16 games since signing his three-year contract. Yet, he says, it would be devastating to his psyche if he allowed himself to become emotional about fan reaction.

“You can’t take it personally, it’s just part of the territory, part of the game,” he said. “I’m not going to let if affect my performance. I remember one year in St. Louis, people were getting on Lee Smith, and he saved 45 games. It’s all in how you’re perceived.

“There’s never been a guy yet who hasn’t been booed at one point in his career. People get their perceptions of a person from what they read in the paper, and in my case, that hasn’t been good.”

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The screaming noise that startled the Moon Valley neighborhood in Glendale, Ariz., Friday night was just Kathleen Ciuk, mother of Dodger left fielder Billy Ashley.

Ciuk and her husband sat on their back patio straining to hear the Dodgers’ broadcast from a Las Vegas radio station and naturally went a little bonkers when Ashley hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning.

“I think the whole neighborhood knew he hit a home run,” Ciuk said. “But they’re getting used to it from his minor league days. Now they say, ‘Billy must have hit a home run, because his mother’s screaming again.’

“It was a wonderful night, I saw the highlights on TV and everything. But when I talked to him, I said, ‘Now how about a little smile for your mom when you round those bases? You don’t have to be so serious.’ ”

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UCLA’s NCAA champion basketball team was introduced before the game, prompting alumnus Karros to serenade his teammates with the Bruin fight song.

“Oh great,” Ashley moaned, “now we’re going to be hearing Eric humming that for weeks”

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Dodger catcher Mike Piazza put on a show during batting practice, hitting one out of Dodger Stadium and hitting another that crashed against the fourth row from the top of the left-field pavilion. Yet, he still feels a pinching sensation in his right hamstring when he runs and probably won’t be available to play until at least Monday. . . . Right fielder Henry Rodriguez, who is batting .091 through his first three games, was given the night off, allowing Reggie Williams to start. “We just wanted to let him sit back and catch his breath,” Manager Tom Lasorda said. “He’s been pressing a little bit.”