Mondesi Recalls the Good Times

The right-field pavilion was empty Tuesday. There was no one there to cheer for, or to boo, the man who played right field at Dodger Stadium for six seasons and returned there Tuesday.

For the first time since the Dodgers traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays three years ago, Raul Mondesi played at Dodger Stadium. The small announced crowd of 24,991 greeted him with a mixture of “boo” and “Ra-oool,” but fans once alienated by Mondesi had long since gotten over him, in no small part because the Dodgers were able to get Shawn Green for him.

Four hours before game time, Mondesi said he was so excited he wanted to start playing right away. He recalled the good times, the fans who would see him in the streets of Los Angeles, or in a restaurant, and reach out to hug him.

“When I used to play here, they loved me,” he said. “I think I still have some fans here. I know some fans will boo me and say not good things about me, but it doesn’t bother me.”

Mondesi, branded a malcontent in his final season here after an expletive-filled tirade against then-manager Davey Johnson, said he needed to be traded from the Dodgers but insists he is happy in Toronto. He said he would like the Blue Jays to trade for help, including pitching, but the team is rebuilding and would prefer to trade Mondesi if it could find a taker for a contract that guarantees him $13 million next season.

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And what happened Tuesday in the home of Dodger Manager Jim Tracy?

“Our beagle hound tore up a rally monkey,” Tracy said.

No, really. Tracy’s sons had brought home one of the Angel mascots a while back, and the family dog chewed it up Tuesday, for no apparent reason. Asked whether the dog was somehow retaliating for the Angels hitting Green with a pitch Sunday, an incident that caused benches to clear, Tracy laughed--but he wouldn’t bite.

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The Dodgers will open a theme restaurant Thursday at Universal CityWalk, featuring such stadium fare as Dodger dogs, burgers, fries and Cracker Jack. The Dodgers don’t expect to make much money off the snack shack, but they plan to sell merchandise there and hope to generate ticket sales among locals and tourists. Kris Rone, the Dodgers’ marketing chief, assures fans that the Dodger dogs there will be grilled, preventing the popular uprising that occurred when a team concessionaire once decided to steam the dogs.

Said Rone: “They’ve had very strict discussions on how a Dodger dog should be served.”

TONIGHT

DODGERS’

KAZUHISA ISHII

(10-2, 3.61 ERA)

vs.

BLUE JAYS’

JUSTIN MILLER

(4-3, 5.81 ERA)

Dodger Stadium, 7

TV--Fox Sports Net 2.

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

Update--Ishii was knocked out after three innings in his last start and has a 6.46 earned-run average this month. Tracy said it is far too soon to tell whether Darren Dreifort, starting to throw 11 months after reconstructive elbow surgery, will be able to return this season, whether as a starter or reliever.

Tickets--(323) 224-1448.

Bill Shaikin