BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : Polonia Says No Harm Was Intended

Angel designated hitter Luis Polonia said he wasn’t trying to hurt Athletics’ catcher Terry Steinbach when he slid into home plate with his spikes high Sunday, causing a gash on Steinbach’s right leg.

Polonia was trying to steal home during the third inning when he slid hard into Steinbach and was out. The two exchanged words and both benches and bullpens emptied, but no punches were thrown. Steinbach had to leave the game for treatment.

“There was nothing wrong with the play. Kelly (Downs) has a slow delivery and Luis is fast, but his spikes were high,” Steinbach said. “The track record Luis has was documented by ESPN (which showed his slide into second against Chicago’s Steve Sax last Sunday, cutting Sax’s pant leg). If he has to go to school to learn how to slide with his spikes low, maybe he should.”

Said Oakland Manager Tony La Russa: “It was a bad cut from a bad slide. Sliding with your spikes up, that went out with Ty Cobb and 23-skidoo. Any time you come in with your spikes up, that’s unnecessary.”

Polonia said he was simply trying to catch a piece of the plate.

“I wanted to get my right foot between his legs,” Polonia said. “Steinbach is the last guy I would try to do something to. I played with that guy in the minors (in Oakland’s farm system), and there’s no way I’d hurt him. It’s unfortunate where my cleats went. . . . I went to the side. If I really wanted to try to hurt him, I’d go right at him.”

Interim Manager John Wathan won’t change his pitching rotation after today’s off-day. He had considered a change to avoid having left-handers Chuck Finley, Mark Langston and Jim Abbott pitch in succession, but since the three wouldn’t pitch in the same series until Aug. 28-30 at Anaheim Stadium against the Red Sox, he decided to leave the rotation unchanged for now.

Rookie Damion Easley got his first major league hit, his first run scored and first RBI Sunday. He singled and scored during the third, and drove in the third run with a sacrifice fly during the fifth inning. . . . Junior Felix’s two RBIs increased his season total to 60, six short of his personal best, set in 1990 with Toronto. Twenty-nine of his RBIs have tied the game or given the Angels a lead. . . . Polonia’s seventh-inning single ended a 20-at-bat slump. . . . Von Hayes, hitless in three at-bats Sunday, is four for 38 in August. . . . Sunday was Manager Buck Rodgers’ 54th birthday. Rodgers, who spent the day with his family in Yorba Linda, is expected back Aug. 28.