Ishii Is Sidelined for Season

Pitcher Kazuhisa Ishii, who suffered a fractured skull when he was hit in the head by a line drive Sunday in Dodger Stadium, is scheduled to be released from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center today, but Manager Jim Tracy said the left-hander will not pitch again this season or in the postseason, if the Dodgers reach the playoffs.

“When you see the type of injury he had, you can’t just run him back out to the mound,” Tracy said. “There will be some hurdles he has to get over, just like Mike Mussina and Bryce Florie [who were hit in the face by comebackers in recent years] had to clear.”

Ishii, who went 14-10 with a 4.27 earned-run average in his first major league season, underwent surgery Monday in which a titanium plate was inserted at the top of his skull to repair a section of his sinus cavity. He also suffered a concussion, but there was no damage or infection in the brain.

According to Dr. John Yu, who performed the surgery, Ishii’s neurological functions and vital signs are normal, and he has been walking and eating without limitations. Yu expects a full recovery.

“I regret causing concern with this incident, but I am currently doing well in my recovery,” Ishii said in a prepared release. “At this point in the season, with the standings the way they are, I hope I have not troubled the team by this occurrence. I am also very disappointed that I am not able to compete with my teammates as we close out the season.”

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Team officials were fuming about two anonymous quotes, attributed to members of the Dodger organization and appearing in a San Francisco Chronicle column Thursday, that questioned the Dodgers’ playoff chances.

The quotes, as they appeared in the Chronicle: “I would never say this publicly,” said one of the most respected men in the organization, “but we’re done.” Added another: “We’ll never beat the Giants. We don’t have the pitching.”

Though they don’t expect to finger the author of the quotes, the Dodgers plan to launch an internal inquiry into the matter.

“I find it hard to believe anyone said that,” said Derrick Hall, senior vice president of communications. “However, if they did, I can tell you they are definitely not well-respected, and they don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s disappointing to think someone is on the road with this team and doesn’t believe in the team.”

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The Dodgers went .500 in coin tosses Thursday, winning a flip with Houston but losing one with San Francisco to determine home-field advantage should a one-game playoff be needed to determine the National League wild-card winner.

If the Dodgers and Astros, who entered Thursday’s game 5 1/2 games back in the wild-card race, finish tied for the lead, they would play Monday, Sept. 30, in Dodger Stadium.

The Giants may have to make up a game in Atlanta on Sept. 30 if it has a bearing on the standings. If that result forces a tie between the Giants and Dodgers, the teams would play Tuesday, Oct. 1, in Pacific Bell Park, with the winner traveling to Atlanta to begin the division series the next day.

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Right-hander Kevin Brown, who gave up five runs and six hits in five innings of Tuesday night’s 5-2 loss to San Francisco, received an epidural injection Thursday to treat residual soreness in the area of his lower back where he underwent June 11 surgery for a herniated disk.

Brown, who will remain in Southern California over the weekend, was scheduled to pitch Tuesday night against the Giants, but Tracy pushed his start back to Wednesday night so Brown could work out in the bullpen Monday under the supervision of pitching coach Jim Colborn. Left-hander Omar Daal will start Tuesday.

TONIGHT

DODGERS’

KEVIN BEIRNE

(1-0, 2.57 ERA)

vs.

ROCKIES’

JASON JENNINGS

(16-7, 4.51 ERA)

Coors Field, Denver, 6 p.m.

TV--Channel 13.

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

Update--The Colorado rotation includes $121-million left-hander Mike Hampton and $51-million left-hander Denny Neagle, but Jennings, the leading candidate for NL rookie of the year, has been the staff ace. The right-hander, who is 3-1 with a 4.38 ERA in four starts against the Dodgers, needs one win to tie the Rockies’ franchise record for victories in a season. Beirne, an emergency replacement in the Dodger rotation, will be making his second big league start.