BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : DODGERS : Offerman, Reed Quarrel in Field and in Dugout

Jody Reed and Jose Offerman had a confrontation in the dugout Saturday during the game against the Chicago Cubs.

The tension began after Rey Sanchez led off the bottom of the third inning with a line drive to left field that Mitch Webster fielded from the line.

It would have been a good play for Webster to get Sanchez at second, but Offerman cut off the ball on its way to Reed and didn’t try to make a play. Reed had not yelled for Offerman to cut off the throw.

Reed spoke to Offerman on the field after the play, and the conversation didn’t appear to be amiable. Then in the dugout, standing about 12-15 feet apart, they started screaming at each other and even drew their arms back before other players got between them.

Manager Tom Lasorda kept the clubhouse closed to reporters for more than 15 minutes after the game as he and Dodger Executive Vice President Fred Claire met with the Reed and Offerman.

“It’s something that happens on a ballclub, but I don’t see it as a problem,” Claire said. “It is something that happens in the heat of a play and Jody and Jose explained to Tommy and me what had happened and they left on the best of terms.

“Those things will happen in game situations when the objectives are to make the plays, but the biggest thing is to explain the situation and move on.”

Offerman was already a little heated when the incident occurred. In the top of the third inning, first base coach Ben Hines had to step between Offerman and umpire Ed Rapuano after Offerman thought he had beaten out a grounder to short.

Lasorda has said in the past that Offerman plays better when Reed is next to him, and Claire has often pointed to the stabilizing effect that Reed and Tim Wallach have had on the infield. But Offerman continues to alternate between playing well and making mental mistakes that do not show up in the box scores but privately frustrate his teammates.

*

Dave Hansen put the Dodgers ahead, 1-0, in the second inning, when he doubled in Mike Piazza, who had singled. Hansen also kept a rally going in the ninth inning with a single.

“When I got up in the ninth inning, I thought of it as a pinch-hit because I feel so comfortable now in that situation,” Hansen said.

Hansen, who made only his second start of the season Saturday--both at third base--has won four games for the Dodgers off the bench, including a two-out grand slam against San Francisco in the bottom of the ninth on June 28. In 34 appearances as a pinch-hitter, he has 12 hits and 11 runs batted in.

*

Henry Rodriguez, who started at first base Saturday for an ailing Eric Karros, was a first baseman in the minors until he got to double-A San Antonio. “Eric was there, so they played me in left field,” said Rodriguez, who was thrown out at home in the second inning trying to score from first on Hansen’s double. Hansen was thrown out on the following play by left fielder Derrick May as he tried to score on a single by Reed to short left field. “Joey (third base coach Joe Amalfitano) sent them and he did the right thing,” Lasorda said.