Fonville Likely to Be Sent to White Sox in Lewis Deal

The player to be named later in the Darren Lewis deal with the Chicago White Sox is expected to be infielder Chad Fonville, if he clears waivers, according to sources close to the team.

After being picked up on waivers from the Montreal Expos in 1995, Fonville played a key role in the Dodgers’ drive to the National League West divisional title. But he hit only .204 for the team last season and this year only had eight at-bats with the Dodgers.

With triple-A Albuquerque, Fonville is hitting .220 with no home runs, 22 RBIs and 23 stolen bases in 100 games.

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Right-hander Chan Ho Park, originally scheduled to pitch Tuesday, will be rested until Saturday. Everybody else in the rotation will move up, with Hideo Nomo going Tuesday against the Texas Rangers.

There is nothing wrong with Park, according to the Dodgers. But with two off-days this week, team officials want to make sure that the man who has become one of their most effective pitchers is well rested for the stretch run.

The Korean-born pitcher had never pitched more than 110 innings in a season in this country. This season, he has already logged 167 1/3 innings.

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What do you get the man who has everything, including a 14-year major league career and a multimillion-dollar salary, for his birthday?

If you’re Donna Candiotti, wife of Dodger pitcher Tom Candiotti, you get him his own web site. It’s up and functioning on the World Wide Web, complete with photos, statistics and soon, “the magic formula to the mystifying knuckleball.”

It’s all available at www.tomcandiotti.com.

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The first player taken in the 1993 June draft was shortstop Alex Rodriguez, selected by the Seattle Mariners. The second player taken was pitcher Darren Dreifort, chosen by the Dodgers.

Prior to Sunday’s game, Rodriguez came over ask Dodger executive vice-president Fred Claire if the Dodgers would have taken him had the Mariners passed.

Claire’s answer?

“That was a no-brainer.”

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Seattle ace left-hander Randy Johnson, out since Aug. 20 because of tendinitis in the middle finger on his throwing hand, tried tossing the ball on the sideline before Sunday’s game, including 12 pitches from the regulation distance.

Johnson (17-4, 2.32 earned-run average) had been tentatively scheduled to return to the rotation Wednesday when the Mariners play host to the San Diego Padres.

“The good news is, he’s getting better,” Seattle Manager Lou Piniella said. “The not-so-good news is that he might not be quite ready for Wednesday’s start. He’s still experiencing some discomfort.”