BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : Velarde’s Bump Is Ruled Incidental

Randy Velarde nearly ran the Angels out of their three-run sixth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday, but an umpire’s ruling spared the leadoff batter--and the Angels.

Velarde was on first when Jim Edmonds doubled down the left-field line. When Milwaukee’s Greg Vaughn bobbled the ball, Velarde took a huge turn past third and bumped into third-base coach Rick Burleson before retreating to the base.

Milwaukee Manager Phil Garner argued that Velarde should have been automatically out because of the collision, but home-plate umpire Dan Morrison, after conferring with third-base umpire Al Clark, ruled the contact was incidental and allowed Velarde to remain at third.

Tim Salmon (single) and Chili Davis (double) followed with RBI hits and Garret Anderson added a sacrifice fly, as the Angels took a 4-2 lead.

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Davis declined to comment on a lawsuit filed against him by a Brewer fan, who, according to police reports, was poked and slapped in the face by Davis during a July 30 game in County Stadium last season.

Milwaukee resident Andrew Johannsen is seeking unspecified damages in excess of $5,000, plus legal costs, and claims in the suit that he was assaulted by Davis without provocation. Davis was in the on-deck circle in the third inning when the incident, sparked by fan heckling, occurred. Davis was cited by the Milwaukee Sheriff’s Department for disorderly conduct and paid a $287 fine. The American League also fined Davis $5,000.

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Center fielder Edmonds has stopped wearing a protective wrap around his left elbow “because I don’t want other teams to know [about his sore arm] and start running on me,” he said. “Teams haven’t really run on me lately. Hopefully my reputation [of having a strong arm] has given me a chance to survive.”. . . Minor league utility player Chris Turner and outfielder Marquis Riley, designated for assignment off the Angels’ 40-man roster last week, both cleared waivers and will be reassigned to triple-A Vancouver.