There’s Nothing Artificial About Cedeno’s Broken Toe

Although he has played sports much of his life, outfielder Roger Cedeno had never broken a bone.

Until Monday.

Cedeno fractured a bone at the base of his left toe in a freak play in the second game of Monday night’s doubleheader and could be lost for the season.

The injury occurred on a play in which Cedeno was not directly involved. In the Pirate fourth, Eddie Williams popped up a ball up down the left-field line in foul territory. Cedeno, shortstop Greg Gagne and third baseman Todd Zeile all came over.

At first, Cedeno thought he was going to have to catch the ball, which was dropping rapidly near the left-field stands where the artificial turf ends and an artificial track begins.

“I thought the only way I was going to get it was to slide,” Cedeno said.

But at the last instant, Gagne jumped in and made the catch.

Cedeno tried to pull up. As he did, his cleats caught on the track, but his momentum still pulled his foot forward, causing the fracture.

“On a play like that,” physical therapist Pat Screnar said, “you might expect a turf toe, or maybe a hyperextension. But I’ve never seen a fracture on something like that. That’s really a strange one.”

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To replace Cedeno, the Dodgers have called up outfielder/infielder Garey Ingram from their double-A team at San Antonio.

Ingram, who was sent down from triple-A Albuquerque to get more playing time, was hitting .299, with 12 home runs, 52 RBIs and 16 stolen bases.

With left-hander Steve Cooke starting today for the Pirates, Dodger Manager Bill Russell is expected to start the right-handed-hitting Ingram, who was due to arrive late Tuesday night, in left field.

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Outfielder Todd Hollandsworth, who has been on the disabled list since Aug. 2 because of an injured right arm, had the soft cast removed. He is not expected to be ready for several weeks at the earliest.

Hollandsworth first broke a bone in the arm and later suffered a deep bruise to the area on the day he was due to return.

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Upon learning that several North Koreans had defected, Jonathan Heo, a reporter for the Korean Central Daily who travels with the Dodgers, joked that they had targeted the wrong day to do so.

“They shouldn’t have picked a day when Chan Ho [Park] pitched,” he said. “They won’t get any publicity in the Korean papers.”

TODAY’S GAME

DODGERS’ DENNIS REYES (1-2, 4.01 ERA) vs. PIRATES’ STEVE COOKE (9-12, 3.81 ERA)

Three Rivers Stadium, 10:30 a.m.

Radio--KABC (790), KWKW (1330).

* Update--If the Dodgers win today’s series finale, it will give them an 8-2 record for the trip, including six out of seven in the state of Pennsylvania. It would also make them 10-1 in Pennsylvania this season, the Dodgers having already swept all five played at Philadelphia. This probably will be Reyes’ last start. With the return of Ramon Martinez, the Dodgers will go back to a five-man rotation and Reyes is expected to go back to triple-A Albuquerque. Manager Bill Russell is expected to start newly arrived Garey Ingram in left field over Billy Ashley, who has had defensive problems this season. Ingram will wear No. 56, the number formerly worn by pitcher Pedro Astacio, who was traded to Colorado last week. Cooke is 2-2 in his career against the Dodgers with a 4.30 ERA.