BASEBALL NOTEBOOK: SELIG: NO STRIKE DATE.

Byline: Daily News Staff and Wire Services

Major League Baseball reacted with confusion to a report the players' association was targeting a mid-August strike date if the ongoing labor strife isn't resolved.

While making his first visit to Dodger Stadium since taking over the post as baseball's commissioner, Bud Selig said he was hopeful a resolution would be reached so the World Series won't be canceled for the second time in nine seasons.

``Before everybody reacts or overreacts, there's been no strike date set,'' Selig said during the Dodgers-Mets game. ``We must confront and solve these problems at the table. I have great hopes that we will do that. There's an overwhelming rightness to getting it done, frankly. There's a logic to getting it done. I hope we can. It's May. We've got a lot of time, but we have problems that need to be addressed.''

At the close of spring training, ownership pledged not to lock out the players during the season or the playoffs. The players association angrily viewed that as a hollow threat, knowing the owners gain a large share of revenue from postseason television.

The last labor stoppage, a players' strike, came Aug. 12, 1994, and forced the cancellation of the World Series for the first time in 90 years. A similar threat has hovered over this season much of the last six months.

But Selig and Rob Manfred, baseball's top lawyer in the negotiations, said the threat of such action this early in the season and with negotiating sessions planned within the next two weeks was strange.

``We had heard some rumblings, but quite frankly we've been hearing conflicting things,'' Manfred said. ``They've never said any of this to us at the table. Given the types of proposals we have out there, where the calendar is, the experience we had in '94 and '95, the fragile state of the economy, we're a little surprised this was out there''

The sides are expected to renew negotiations either May 23 or May 28. They last met May 2.

``Obviously, it's going to be devastating to the game (if there's a labor stoppage), but hopefully we can come up with an agreement and avoid it,'' said Mark Grudzielanek, who, along with Paul Lo Duca, are sharing the duties as the Dodgers player representative. ``It's something where, in my view of it, the situation is that we may need to do that, to set a deadline. I don't think it's such a bad idea. Hopefully, that would make it so we can get something worked out.''

--Pena catches on: Tony Pena the manager promises to be just as tough and combative as Tony Pena the All-Star catcher.

``I believe you go out and play hard baseball,'' said the new Kansas City Royals manager, renowned during his 18-year career as one of the major leagues' most aggressive players.

A five-time All-Star while with Pittsburgh and St. Louis, the 44-year-old Pena was introduced Wednesday as the replacement for Tony Muser, who was fired April 29. Hired off the staff of the Houston Astros, Pena signed through the 2004 season.

``I am the new DJ. I play the music,'' he said. ``You are to dance. If you don't know how to dance, get off of the dance floor.''

--It's getting ugly: Actress Tawny Kitaen and her husband, pitcher Chuck Finley of the Cleveland Indians, accused one another of domestic violence and drug abuse in dueling court documents obtained by the Associated Press.

Petitioning to regain custody of their two children, Kitaen claimed that Finley started a fight that led to her arrest in April, and also accused him of alcohol and drug abuse, including taking steroids banned by baseball.

The petitions were filed May 2 in Orange County Superior Court. A hearing on Kitaen's request has been continued until June 3.

In the documents, she said she wants custody of her children because she is concerned for their safety.

``I have observed the petitioner (Finley) as a heavy drinker. Petitioner also is a heavy marijuana smoker. I have also witnessed petitioner take illegal steroids. ... He has previously bragged to me that he knows how to get around drug testing with the baseball league,'' it read.

--Charges of molestation: A retired Boston Red Sox spring-training clubhouse manager will plead guilty to charges that he molested young boys who worked at the team's complex, an attorney said.

Donald James Fitzpatrick has agreed to reduced charges of attempted sexual battery on a child under 12 and will pay four alleged victims $10,000 each in restitution.

In exchange, the 73-year-old Fitzpatrick will serve 15 years of probation, and a 10-year prison sentence will be suspended. If he violates probation, he will be imprisoned.

--Sum of all parts: The Seattle Mariners are paying right-handed reliever Jeff Nelson $10.65 million over three years for his arm. The eBay bidding reached $23,600 for his bone chips removed during a surgical procedure - until the auction was stopped.

The online company stopped the Nelson auction, saying it doesn't allow the sale of body parts. The auction was up for about 24 hours.