DODGERS NOTEBOOK: TOO MANY INVITES, NOT ENOUGH TIME.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

Sammy Sosa is on everybody's A-List these days and that could be a problem tonight.

Sosa, the major-league home run leader with 53, was scheduled to appear at a dinner honoring Dodgers coach and Dominican icon Manny Mota in downtown Los Angeles.

But Sosa, whose Cubs play the Dodgers this afternoon, also has been invited to the birthday party of pop star Michael Jackson.

Sosa, who earlier this season was visited by President Clinton at Wrigley Field, is in demand, signing a $25 million endorsement deal Thursday with a Chicago-based marketing firm. He also is planning to open a restaurant on Chicago's fashionable Michigan Ave. that will include affordable meals for low-income families.

Sosa received the loudest ovation Friday night when he came to the plate with two on and one out in the first inning. He struck out on a high fastball by Dodgers starter Ismael Valdes.

More fun: One party Sosa didn't make was the one thrown Thursday night by Dodgers left fielder Gary Sheffield for more than 100 people at his home in Bel Air.

The party was attended by players and club employees, but one no-show was manager Davey Johnson.

``I didn't know if it was one of those parties where the manager isn't supposed to come,'' Johnson said with a smile. ``Sometimes the players just like to get together without us around.''

The party was sponsored by the Gary Sheffield Foundation, which works extensively with inner-city youth.

``Davey knows he was invited,'' Sheffield said with a laugh.

Medical news: Pitchers Antonio Osuna (elbow) and Robinson Checo (groin) each threw in the bullpen before the game, but it is unknown if or when they will begin rehabilitation assignments.

Osuna has been told repeatedly he needs reconstructive surgery on his right elbow, but with a club option of $1.5 million next year, he wants to continue throwing. He went on the disabled list May 18 for the second time this season and has appeared in just five games.

Checo, sidelined since suffering a groin strain July 28 in his only start, made a rehab start last Thursday but experienced more pain in his groin.

He underwent a CAT scan for a hernia, but instead doctors found swollen lymph nodes. Antibiotics reduced the swelling, but the team will wait until today to see how he feels before plotting its next move.

Quick hits: Carlos Perez, who looked sharp in his last minor-league start Tuesday, is scheduled to pitch again for Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday. If all goes well, Perez could return to the Dodgers next week. Perez's fastball was clocked at 91 after clocking in at anywhere from the low to mid-80s with the Dodgers. . . . George Brett, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame last month, was a clubhouse visitor before the game. . . . The Cubs, who came in undecided about Sunday's starter, will go with right-hander Kyle Farnsworth (2-7, 6.17 ERA) in the final game of the series.

Lasorda steps in: Tommy Lasorda returned to the dugout Friday for the first time since retiring three years ago, managing the Single-A Vero Beach Dodgers to a 1-0 win in a Florida State League game against the St. Lucie Mets.

Vero Beach manager Alvaro Espinoza, whose wife recently had a baby, was unavailable. So Lasorda, the Dodgers' senior vice president, in town to evaluate players, stepped in for one game.

``I miss managing, I really do,'' Lasorda said.

DODGERS vs. CHICAGO

Time: 1:05 p.m., at Dodger Stadium.

TV/Radio: Channel 11; KXTA-AM (1150), KWKW-AM (1330, Spanish).

Matchup: In the second of three games with the Cubs, Chan Ho Park (7-10, 5.78 ERA) faces left-hander Andrew Lorraine (1-2, 3.95). Park, 19-10 with a 2.74 ERA at home entering this season, is still looking for his first 1999 victory at Dodger Stadium. He is 0-6 with a 5.86 ERA. Park snapped a three-game losing streak last Sunday in Philadelphia but walked six and allowed four runs in six innings of a 9-7 Dodgers victory. Lorraine, a Hart High product, is making his fifth start for the Cubs since his Aug. 6 callup. Lorraine, who pitched briefly for the Angels in 1994, was 9-8 with a 3.74 ERA at Triple-A.

- Matt McHale

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Box: DODGERS vs. CHICAGO (See text)