DODGERS NOTEBOOK: PARK POUNDS LONG HOMER; NOMO LOOKS RUSTY IN SPRING DEBUT.

Byline: Matt McHale Daily News Staff Writer

Hideo Nomo bombed Wednesday in his first appearance of the spring, but it was a bomb that Chan Ho Park hit in the fourth inning of the Dodgers' 7-6 exhibition victory over the New York Mets that had people talking.

Park pitched four scoreless innings, but nothing compared to the monster two-run homer he hit off fellow Korean Jae Weong Seo in the fifth inning that put the Dodgers up for good. Seo, who at 20 is the Mets' top pitching prospect, stared at Park as he circled the bases.

`That kid threw really hard,'' Dodgers pitching coach Goose Gregson said. ``But not as hard as the ball Chan Ho Park hit. The place was stunned.''

Park shifted the attention away from Nomo, who allowed three runs and five hits in two innings. Nomo was facing his former Kintetsu Buffaloes teammate Masato Yoshii, who limited the Dodgers to a Juan Castro home run in three innings.

``I didn't know he was going to throw it right down the middle,'' Park said. ``The first one was down the middle. The next one will be at my head.''

Park was impressed with Sao, who is expected to open the season at Class A but should climb quickly. So was catcher Mike Piazza, who also hit a home run.

``He has great movement on that fastball,'' Piazza said. ``He should get here pretty quick.''

In one at-bat, Park matched his RBI total for last season. Park batted .176 with four doubles and 11 sacrifice bunts.

Nomo not sharp: The book on Nomo is to swing early in the count before he gets ahead and throws his hard-breaking forkball. In the first inning, Carlos Baerga singled, Brian McRae singled and Bernard Gilkey doubled, all on the first pitch.

``They knew this was his first game so they knew he wouldn't be as sharp,'' Piazza said. ``He threw mostly fastballs and he got them up. But his velocity was good.''

Nomo, coming off arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow during the offseason, said he experienced no discomfort. ``I wondered when somebody would ask me that,'' Nomo said in a news conference after leaving the game. ``Everything is OK, I just didn't have the fine edge today. That is my goal by the end of spring training.''

Injury update: First baseman Eric Karros was expected to return to action but instead missed his third consecutive game with a sore left knee. Two years ago, Karros missed much of spring training with a strained left hamstring and got off to a slow start.

``We want to avoid having something like that,'' trainer Charlie Strasser said. ``We don't think it is serious so it is best to let him rest.''

Left fielder Todd Hollandsworth (strained left elbow) took batting practice for the second consecutive day but was kept out of action for the third game in a row. He threw Wednesday but might play today against the Florida Marlins.

Center fielder Roger Cedeno tested his right hamstring by participating in running and walking drills, but it could be two weeks before he returns.

SPRING TRAINING `98

DODGERS

FACTS: Wilton Guerrero, making his second start in center in place of injured Roger Cedeno, continued to struggle defensively. He dropped a fly ball Wednesday that led to two first-inning runs. Guerrero, a converted infielder, had trouble with popups last year. But he went 2 for 4 with a run and is batting .375 (6 for 16). The Dodgers made two more errors and now have nine in six games. Darren Dreifort makes his second start today against Florida.

NOTES: The Mets made it a close game in the ninth when Bernard Gilkey hit a three-run homer off right-hander Darren Hall. Gilkey also doubled home two runs, just one day after he was arrested for drunk driving in Port St. Lucie. Gilkey showed little remorse for being pulled over, which caused a stir in Mets camp. ``I think Bernard showed a lot of character today after what he went through yesterday,'' Mets manager Bobby Valentine said. ``He almost brought us back by himself. That showed me something after all the things that were said.''

QUOTE: ``I feel great right now,'' said catcher Mike Piazza, who is batting .400 (6 for 15) with two homers. ``It's a long spring and I hope I'm not peaking now.''

--- Matt McHale

ANGELS

FACT: When Troy Glaus remembers to bat, he's been something special for the Angels so far this spring. The rookie from UCLA smacked his third home run of the spring during Wednesday's 9-7, 10th-inning loss to the Seattle Mariners in Peoria, Ariz. He took a Bill Swift fastball high over the fence in left center in the fourth inning, giving him three of the first four Angels homers this spring. Glaus, who was drafted in June but didn't sign a contract until the late fall, is expected to start the season in Class AA, with Dave Hollins penciled in as the everyday first baseman in Anaheim this season. But he didn't have a perfect day. Glaus forgot to take his turn at bat in the eighth inning when he thought he had been removed from the game. The Angels wound up skipping his spot in the batting order - something that is overlooked with a wink in spring training.

NOTES: Angels starting pitcher Allen Watson scattered three hits over three scoreless innings but didn't get away completely unscathed. He took a line-drive rocket from Seattle's Edgar Martinez off the back of his right thigh before he recovered to get the out. ``If that had happened last year, I wouldn't have felt it because I was so fat,'' said Watson, who is sporting a lean body thanks to a rigorous offseason program. ``I felt good today. They have a great lineup and holding them without a run makes you feel good.''

QUOTE: ``We sure like him and he's displayed the power we know he has,'' Anaheim manager Terry Collins said of Glaus. ``That ball he hit today, that didn't just carry over a fence. He hit that thing hard.''

--- Daily News Wire Services

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

PHOTO HIDEO NOMO

Coming off offseason elbow surgery, the Dodgers pitcher was hit hard by the Mets in a practice game.

BOX: SPRING TRAINING '98 (see text)