Green Will Sit Out One Game Against the Giants

SAN DIEGO —  Because of his religious beliefs, first baseman Shawn Green plans to sit out the second game of a National League West showdown against the San Francisco Giants at SBC Park, a Dodger team official said late Tuesday night.

Green, who is Jewish, will not play Saturday in observance of Yom Kippur -- the holiest day on the Jewish calendar. Although the games Friday and Saturday fall within the Jewish Day of Atonement, which starts at sundown Friday and ends at sundown Saturday, Green apparently figured he would be letting down his teammates if he skipped both games, said the official who asked not to be identified.

The Dodgers (86-64) lead the second-place Giants (85-66) by 1 1/2 games -- their smallest margin in more than two months.

Green and Manager Jim Tracy discussed the situation in a closed-door meeting Tuesday before a 9-4 loss to the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Tracy reiterated he did not know what Green’s final decision would be, and attempts to contact Green after the game were unsuccessful.

However, the official said Green would announce his decision today.

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General Manager Paul DePodesta chuckled about rumors circulating since pitcher Brad Penny suffered an arm injury in his second start with the Dodgers.

If some major league executives and scouts are to be believed, DePodesta either knew Penny would be sidelined because of an arm problem or should have known before the Dodgers and Florida Marlins completed a six-player deal July 30.

As Penny returns to the mound tonight against the San Diego Padres after a six-week layoff, DePodesta said the rumors are ridiculous.

“There’s probably a bad joke in here about getting documentation like CBS News before people say some of the things they’ve said, but it doesn’t really bother me,” said DePodesta, accompanying the team in San Diego. “I know my conversations, I know our thought process, I know what went on and I know what our plans were. If people want to speculate on what we were doing and why were doing it, I can’t let that bother me.”

Among the criticisms of DePodesta is that Penny -- who last started Aug. 8 because of a nerve problem in his right biceps -- did not undergo a physical before the trade.

According to the Marlins’ media guide, Penny sat out six weeks during the 2002 season because of inflammation in the right biceps. Penny called that incorrect and told reporters -- and the Dodger medical staff -- he had suffered a shoulder impingement injury at that time and never has had a biceps injury. He also sat out six weeks of the 2000 season because of a shoulder impingement.

“I don’t know if it would have even showed up in a physical,” DePodesta said. “He comes out and throws eight scoreless innings in his first outing for us and is completely fine. Injuries are an inherent risk you take with every player, and we’re talking about a guy who had had something prior with his arm.”