DODGERS NOTEBOOK: GREEN OPTS TO PLAY TONIGHT, SIT SATURDAY.Byline: Tony Jackson
Anthony (Antonio) Jackson, best known as Tony Jackson Staff Writer SAN DIEGO San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. - Dodgers first baseman Shawn Green Shawn David Green (born November 10, 1972, in Des Plaines, Illinois) is a 6' 4" left-handed Major League Baseball player. Green is the starting right fielder for the New York Mets.[1] Green was a 1st round draft pick, and has been a two-time major league All-Star. finally made up his mind regarding Yom Kippur Yom Kippur [Heb.,=day of atonement], in Judaism, the most sacred holy day, falling on the 10th day of the Jewish month of Tishri (usually late September or early October). It is a day of fasting and prayer for forgiveness for sins committed during the year. on Thursday, saying he will play in tonight's series opener at San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden but sit out Saturday's game. Green said the decision came after considerable soul searching. ``This is something I have been struggling with a lot,'' he said. ``I talked with family and friends and received advice from a million different people. Ultimately, it came down to what my heart was telling me to do. My reasoning is everyone approaches religious worship in their own way and goes about it differently. I feel like playing one of the two games is the most consistent with my belief as a Jewish person.'' Green is one of the nation's high-profile Jewish athletes and thus is a natural role model. But at a time when the Dodgers are struggling to stay afloat atop the National League West, and with this weekend's series with the Giants having become monumental, Green was faced with a decision that would profoundly affect others. Ultimately, he seemed to choose principle over expedience ex·pe·di·ence n. Expediency. Noun 1. expedience - the quality of being suited to the end in view expediency . At least for one of the two days. ``I'm not Orthodox,'' Green said. ``I'm Jewish, and I respect those customs. I feel like this is the most consistent way for me to celebrate the holiday.'' Green told manager Jim Tracy
``I don't have any reaction to it because I don't delve into people's religious practices or their beliefs,'' Tracy said. ``I'm not terribly versed in the Jewish faith and exactly how all of that works. I have no other comment beyond that.'' Green said he will not be at SBC (1) (SBC Communications Inc., San Antonio, TX, www.sbc.com) A large, national telecommunications company that grew from a multitude of local and regional companies, including Southwestern Bell, Pacific Bell and Nevada Bell, into a single, unified brand by 2002. Park at all on Saturday. He declined to discuss how he will observe the holiday. ``I'm going to keep that personal,'' Green said. --Penny update: Right-hander Brad Penny met with doctors in Los Angeles and was found to have, as suspected, a recurrence of the same nerve injury in his right arm that sidelined him for more than six weeks. He finally returned to the mound on Wednesday night, only to grab his arm and walk off again in the fourth inning. All indications are Penny is done for the season. ``It's very doubtful as to whether he will pitch again this year,'' Tracy said. ``I would say right now that `doubtful' is the best choice of words Noun 1. choice of words - the manner in which something is expressed in words; "use concise military verbiage"- G.S.Patton phraseology, wording, diction, phrasing, verbiage .'' --Finley's slide: Center fielder Steve Finley, who entered Thursday's game in a 0-for-23 skid, says he feels good at the plate and denied that he is in a slump. ``I don't think it's a slump because I'm still drawing walks,'' said Finley, who had drawn six of them since his last hit on Sept. 15. ``If you could control when everything happens, this would be an easy game. At this stage of my career, what I have learned is that sooner or later, you're going to come out of it.'' Finley popped up in his first at-bat Thursday, running his hitless streak to 24 at-bats, before getting an RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in double in the third inning. Two weeks ago, Finley was the National League's Player of the Week. Since being acquired from Arizona on July 31, he has become such an integral part of the Dodgers lineup that when he is struggling, the entire team struggles to score runs. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: SHAWN GREEN Says decision whether to play ``came down to what my heart was telling me to do.'' |
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