Malone to Return

Kevin Malone, who has impressed Chairman Bob Daly, will return as general manager next season, team sources said Thursday.

Daly said recently he would evaluate his management staff after the season. However, he has already decided to retain Malone for at least another season because of their strong relationship and Malone’s off-season performance.

Daly has not determined whether Manager Davey Johnson, under contract through the 2001 season, will return.

Malone, in the second year of a four-year deal that pays him $500,000 annually, declined comment on his status. Daly, attending the owners’ meetings in New York, was unavailable for comment.

There has been speculation that former pitcher Orel Hershiser, who retired July 6 and became a consultant, would replace Malone unless the struggling club qualified for the playoffs.

But Hershiser is headed toward an on-field position next season. The 17-year veteran, currently vacationing with his family, will tour the farm system and evaluate players for the rest of the season.

Daly and Malone have worked well together since Daly, a former Warner Bros. studio boss, joined the franchise in October.

And Malone strengthened his position with Daly by revamping the roster in the off-season according to Johnson’s wishes. Daly also is pleased with the direction of the farm system under Malone’s direction.

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The Dodgers plan to put second baseman Mark Grudzielanek on the 15-day disabled list today because of an undetermined viral infection.

Grudzielanek, experiencing dizziness and weakness among other problems, sat out the final three games before the All-Star break.

He underwent tests Thursday at Centinela Hospital Medical Center in Inglewood, but results were inconclusive. Team physician Michael Mellman hopes to know more today after other results are ready.

Mellman recommended Grudzielanek, who has been told to stay home, be put on the disabled list. Johnson said infielder-outfielder Mike Metcalfe, optioned to triple-A Albuquerque Monday, will be recalled to take Grudzielanek’s spot on the 25-man roster.

The Dodgers are already playing short-handed because catcher Chad Kreuter is serving an eight-game suspension. Losing Grudzielanek, the No. 2 batter, forces Johnson to alter the top of the club’s batting order.

“It’s bad news,” Johnson said. Grudzielanek is batting .303 with a team-high 107 hits.

“He just started to get into an awful good groove [at the plate],” Johnson said. “He just started making all the plays at second. It’s just bad news.”

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Catcher Todd Hundley has a fractured right thumb, but the switch-hitter is not expected to go on the disabled list.

Just in case, the Dodgers recalled catcher Paul LoDuca from Albuquerque. LoDuca started in Thursday’s game.

Hundley, who can’t throw or bat right-handed, hopes to return to the lineup Sunday or Monday. He was the club’s hottest batter before the break, and is batting .316 with 17 home runs and 43 runs batted in.

“It’s sore, but it’s a lot better than it was in Seattle,” said Hundley, wearing a protective brace. “We’ve basically got the swelling out of it.”

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Right-handed reliever Jeff Shaw, who sat out 11 games because of tendinitis on his pitching elbow, was activated from the disabled list. Shaw, who has blown seven saves in 19 opportunities, must regain Johnson’s confidence to regain the closer’s job. . . . The Dodgers are still waiting for the commissioner’s office to set Gary Sheffield’s second suspension appeal hearing date. . . . Reliever Gregg Olson pitched a scoreless inning for Albuquerque in a rehabilitation assignment.