L.A. to Giants: Take the Party Elsewhere

Barry Bonds and the San Francisco Giants will have to celebrate elsewhere if he hits his 71st home run at Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers said Monday.

Citing intense National League playoff races and their history with the rival Giants, the Dodgers rejected a request from the commissioner’s office to consider honoring Bonds if he surpasses Mark McGwire’s record of 70 homers in a three-game series at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers will not stop a game to permit Bonds to address the crowd, or conduct a postgame on-field ceremony.

“Major league baseball asked us to consider the idea of having a postgame on-field celebration, to which we have refused,” said Derrick Hall, senior vice president. “We will not allow the game to be stopped, or have a ceremony on the field. We’re in the middle of a pennant race, and the Giants are one of the teams we are battling.

“We would not recognize one of their players during that stretch run. We don’t believe our fans want to sit through a ceremony for the Giants in Dodger Stadium.”

The Dodgers would be reluctant to honor a Giant player in their stadium in any season, and they are especially uncomfortable doing so while chasing San Francisco for the West Division championship and league wild-bard berth.

Beginning play Monday, the third-place Dodgers were two games behind the second-place Giants in the division and wild-card standings.

The Dodgers acknowledge that there is national interest in Bonds’ pursuit of McGwire’s mark, and they said the Giants should honor the perennial all-star if he breaks the record.

But not it their house.

“Major league baseball has an obligation to its fans and to the player involved, and we completely respect that they are trying to cover their bases and plan for the best possible situation,” Hall said.

“They have to, but we do not feel it’s appropriate to have such a celebration here.”

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Shawn Green, who is Jewish, plans to sit out Wednesday’s game against the Giants in observance of Yom Kippur--the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.

Green said he will donate one game’s pay, about $70,000, to a charity in New York assisting families affected by the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

“People who work with me are checking out which [charities] are the most efficient in taking care of what we’re trying to accomplish,” he said. “Originally, I had thought about donating to a couple of different charities before all this happened.

“Once this took place, I decided this is the most important cause at the present time. It’s something I want to contribute to.”

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A day after being ejected in the first inning of a 6-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks, cleanup batter Gary Sheffield said he was confused by umpire CB Bucknor’s hasty decision.

“I’ve never [been] kicked out of a game for saying what I said,” said Sheffield, who acknowledged he used profanity in arguing with Bucknor. “What I said, I’ve said that all the time.”

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Manager Jim Tracy said that Terry Adams, James Baldwin and Chan Ho Park are scheduled to start in a three-game series against Arizona at Bank One Ballpark beginning Sept. 28. ... Terry Mulholland will start Wednesday against the Giants.

TONIGHT

DODGERS’ CHAN HO PARK

(13-11, 3.30 ERA)

vs.

GIANTS’ KIRK RUETER

(13-11, 4.61 ERA) Dodger Stadium, 7

TV--Fox Sports Net 2.

Radio--KXTA (1150), KWKW (1330).

Update--Park, second in the major leagues with 25 quality starts, is 1-2 with a 4.39 earned-run average against the Giants this season. Rueter is 1-1 with a 5.28 ERA against the Dodgers.