High-Scoring but Heady Trip

The Dodgers wielded heavy bats in the thin air here on Sunday, pounding 30 hits to beat the New York Mets, 20-10, in an exhibition game before an enthusiastic crowd of 20,000.

The fast turf and 7,200-foot elevation made for a long weekend for the pitching staffs of both clubs, as baserunners wore a path around the bases of Foro Sol Stadium for the second consecutive day.

Sunday’s win by the Dodgers gave them a split in the two-game series here, which is among several efforts this year by Major League Baseball to plug its product to fans outside the United States. The Mets won the first game on Saturday, 16-11. “If I had to pitch here all the time I would probably retire,” said weary Met ace Tom Glavine, who gave up 10 runs on 13 hits Sunday before getting the hook in the fourth inning.

The Dodgers jumped all over Glavine from the start, scoring four runs in the first inning behind Shawn Green’s two-run home run over the fence in center field and a two-run single by Adrian Beltre.

Roger Cedeno got the Mets on the scoreboard in the bottom of the inning, with a solo homer off Dodger starter Odalis Perez.

Trailing throughout, the Mets made a game of it in the seventh, scoring four times to cut the Dodger lead to 13-10.

But the Dodgers ran away again in the eighth, scoring seven times, including a grand slam by Calvin Murray and a solo homer by Mike Kincade off Met reliever David Weathers.

The pitchers weren’t the only ones reeling.

Fielders, too, had a tough time playing balls that skittered at freakish angles on artificial turf so hard that Dodger Manager Jim Tracy likened it to an airport runway.

Of course, not everyone was complaining. Green, in particular, seemed to thrive in Mexico City’s rare air. In the two games, he had four hits in six at-bats, including two home runs and six runs batted in.

“As a hitter, you always like to play where the balls travels further,” he said. “It has been a nice diversion” from spring training in Florida.

Dodger players and coaches likewise expressed appreciation for the hospitality and enthusiasm of Mexican fans. Nearly 38,000 turned out for the two games, compared to nearly 21,500 who bought tickets for a two-game series between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Tampa Bay Devil Rays here two years ago.

“They are true baseball fans,” Tracy said of his Mexican hosts. “The whole experience was just tremendous.”

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The investigation into the Mike Piazza-Guillermo Mota situation was delayed while the Dodgers and Mets played in Mexico, but a high-ranking baseball official said disciplinary action still might be announced as early as today.

Bob Watson, baseball’s administrator in charge of on-field discipline, said Sunday he had not completed interviews into the events of last week’s bench-clearing brawl in Port St. Lucie, Fla., ignited when Mota hit Piazza on the left shoulder with a pitch, because the clubs left Friday for a two-game series at Foro Sol Stadium. However, Watson said the final phase of the process would not take long.

“There are still some people I have to speak with and they’re not going to get back into the country until [late Sunday night],” Watson said. “There’s a chance it could be [wrapped up Sunday], but we’ll just have to see.”

Mota, whose action was ruled intentional by an umpire, and Piazza, who entered the Dodger clubhouse without permission in pursuit of Mota, are facing regular-season suspensions and fines.

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Times staff writer Jason Reid contributed to this report.